Supporting the implementation of prevention strategies by public health nurses to reduce intimate partner violence in Alaska

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a critical social determinant of health, affecting over 40% of women and men in the US. IPV is particularly prevalent in Alaska and disproportionately impacts American Indian and Alaska Native individuals. Given the widespread prevalence, impact on marginalized communities, and associated

adverse outcomes, prevention strategies are urgently needed. Public health nurses (PHNs) can play a key role in IPV prevention, particularly in rural and underserved communities. These nurses work “upstream” to prevent and mitigate risks for underlying social determinants of health and have unique skills in communication,

collaboration, promoting health equity, and applying evidence-informed approaches. Alaska has a unique geography and largely centralized public health system with a statewide infrastructure to deploy prevention practices. In their 2018-2021 strategic plan, Alaska’s statewide Section of PHN, within their Department of

Health, made IPV a priority focus area. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the PHN strategic plan lapsed as their focus shifted to infection control, even as IPV grew in Alaska. The Alaska Section of PHN is now recentering their prevention efforts and updating their strategic plan. To guide their strategic planning process, we propose

a practice-based research partnership between academic researchers at two leading research institutions and Alaska’s statewide Section of PHN to advance the use of high-impact, evidence-informed IPV prevention practices throughout the state. With input from Advisory Board members representing diverse organizations in

Alaska, a team of interdisciplinary researchers and practitioners with expertise in IPV prevention, public health systems, practice-based research, mixed methods, and implementation science will initiate an Implementation Mapping process that combines quantitative data from existing sources (i.e., administrative data documenting

PHN activities across the state) with newly acquired qualitative data from focus groups with PHNs and other state public health leaders. Specifically, we will: (1) describe the array of IPV practices delivered by PHNs throughout the state; (2) identify barriers to and facilitators of effective implementation of IPV practices

delivered by PHNs; and (3) develop implementation strategies for PHNs to overcome common barriers to effective implementation of evidence-informed IPV practices using established implementation science frameworks: RE-AIM (Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, Maintenance) and the Consolidated

Framework for Implementation Science (CFIR). This project is closely aligned with the Social Determinants of Health and Health Equity research lenses of the National Institute of Nursing Research. Identifying and implementing IPV prevention practices that are evidence-informed, feasible, culturally relevant, and

contextually appropriate is critical to the advancement of IPV prevention led by PHNs in Alaska. Findings will benefit state and national organizations engaged in IPV prevention with rural and underserved communities and support further research regarding IPV prevention and PHN practice.