A new podcast is available called ‘What’s the Crack’ discussing intimate partner violence (IPV) and substance use. The podcast takes the form of an interview with Dr Gail Gilchrist. Gail discusses national and international studies she has conducted alongside other researchers on substance use and perpetration of IPV.  She highlights unmet need in treatment services to identify and treat this violence. Research shows that there is a strong link between substance use and IPV (which includes both emotional abuse and physical perpetration). This podcast details the many reasons why this population of men may perpetrate violence more than the general population. For example perpetrators may have experienced childhood abuse themselves, witnessing DV in childhood, have mental health problems and have seen general violence in their childhood and perpetrated violence more generally.

Each episode of What’s the Crack draws on knowledge or research in drugs field the researchers Rob Calder, Lindsey Hines and Elle Wadsworth are based at the National Addiction Centre at Kings College London. The aim of the podcasts is move away from one dimensional news coverage and combine a pool of expertise that covers chemistry, psychology and addiction treatment. The research interests for the podcasts are broad including the causes of addiction, drug sales on the hidden web, policy, and the use of cannabis, alcohol, tobacco and opiates.

You can listen to this podcast by clicking here.

We would like to draw you attention to October as being Domestic Violence Awareness Month. You may be planning to encourage awareness and create some interesting event or materials, you could plan an event to coincide with the 18^th annual Health Cares About Domestic Violence (HCADV) Day. This year it is taking place on Wednesday, October 11^th  the events aim to reach healthcare and advocacy partners with information about how important it is to promote healthy relationships, address the health impact of abuse and provide essential referrals to domestic violence programs.

Find resources to help you plan your event or materials by using an action kit here.

• Writing a newsletter article or an op-ed for a local paper, or your workplace newsletter. View an example.
• Committing to try universal education for one week.
• Inviting a speaker (such as a domestic violence advocate from your community or a health care provider from your local health center or hospital) to conduct a lunchtime presentation for staff.
• Connecting with staff from the National Health Resource Center on Domestic Violence to localize materials such as posters and safety cards, and to advertise local hotlines and community programs.

Thank you to Futures without Violence for providing the links and information for this blog post.

If you decide to run an event then please contact Juliet.henderson@kcl.ac.uk and we would be happy to promote your event through our blog.

Leaflets to promote the Cranstoun Men and Masculinities groups taking place in London have been launched and are now being distributed. The leaflets seek to attract new men to the group who are recovering from alcohol and drug use and who would like to improve their relationships and their understanding of themselves.  You can access the mens programme worker leaflet that outlines the programme and provides contact details and another shorter version mens group short leaflet.

‘What’s The Crack’, a new podcast that seeks to explore the research behind drug news stories, asked this week: What’s the link between intimate partner violence and substance use? As one of the key questions that drives the ADVANCE PROGRAMME, the project team here at King’s College London listened with intent. Speaking to Karen Baily, also a researcher at King’s, and drawing on the work of Dr Gail Gilchrist, the podcast astutely ‘discusses some of the myths, prevalence and patterns of behaviour that are associated with IPV as well as some of the issues facing those seeking treatment and help following an abusive relationship’.

Listen to the whole thing here:

The West Midlands ADVANCE team were excited last week to bring together key organisations and academics from the field of IPV and substance misuse to discuss the ADVANCE project. The Learning Alliance will work together to strengthen and support the exchange of information, whilst enhancing the possibilities of mainstreaming the integration of domestic abuse interventions with substance use services.

Members of the West Midlands Learning Alliance included the following organisations: Swanswell, Public Health England, West Midlands Violence Prevention Alliance, West Midlands Police, Richmond Fellowship, West Mercia Rape & Sexual Abuse Support Centre, Police and Crime Commissioner, West Mercia, Anawim, West Mercia Women’s Aid, South Staffordshire and Shropshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, Aquarius, Worcester County Council, Safe & Sound Malvern Hills and Cranston.

The Worcester Research Team introduced the ADVANCE project in-depth, and explained the projects goals and workstreams. Representatives discussed their thoughts on the research plans and highlighted best practice surrounding safety when recruiting survivors of IPV into research. Representatives discussed language used to recruit survivors and safety protocols that should be implemented for both the participants and researchers taking part.

Overall, feedback from the first meeting was very positive with representatives expressing how nice it was to be able to share experiences of the challenging nature when working with substance users + IPV perpetrators with similar organisations.

The next meeting will be in June. If you would like more information on the Learning Alliance or would like to attend the next Learning Alliance meeting then please contact Amy Johnson on a.johnson@worc.ac.uk.

The Framework for working safely and effectively with men who perpetrate intimate partner violence in substance use treatment settings was developed from the findings of the bilateral project ‘Perpetration of intimate partner violence by males in substance abuse treatment: a cross-cultural research Learning Alliance’ (funded by the Economic and Social Research Council ES/K002589/1)

The Framework is aimed primarily at people who work within substance use treatment services to define and clarify the key capabilities (i.e. knowledge, attitude and values, ethical practice, skills and reflection and professional development) for working with men who use substances (drugs and alcohol), and who perpetrate intimate partner violence.

The first part gives an overview of the rationale for the development of the framework, including background information on intimate partner violence perpetration by people who receive substance use services. The second part describes the capabilities themselves. The final part contains useful resources including user friendly self-assessment and team checklist designed to allow a service to rapidly implement and benefit from the framework.

Here is the link to download the framework, click ‘capabilities framework’.

The first London Learning Alliance for the ADVANCE project took place this week at Kings College London. The Learning Alliance will work together to address this issue across sectors by supporting the exchange of information and good practice. Members of the London Learning Alliance include drug and alcohol treatment services, domestic violence survivor and perpetrator organisations, the Department of Health, the Home Office, Public Health England and local authorities.

Gail Gilchrist and Polly Radcliffe described the project goals and work streams. Participants were asked to comment on the research plans and to highlight best practice surrounding safety when recruiting survivors of IPV into research. Attendees suggested strategies when contacting IPV survivors and how to work with partners and perpetrators simultaneously.

Attendees shared what they hoped to gain from attending the learning alliance more broadly. Common themes included sharing experience on the challenges of working with substance using IPV perpetrators. Attendees were invited to promote their activities, reports or events through this blog. The next meeting will take place in June.

If you are interested in attending our Learning Alliance meetings please contact Juliet.henderson@kcl.ac.uk

The Domestic Violence Intervention Project (DVIP)  and Cranstoun has published a report detailing outcomes of working with 30 male perpetrators of domestic violence in a substance treatment context. The report documents what has been learnt from the pilot programme that assesses and treats a group of men disclosing behavioural concerns relating to substance us and DV.

DVIP and Cranstoun jointly developed a safety focussed, 60+ hours day programme designed to support the aims and objectives of a substance use treatment programme. It combines the two working styles by using emotionally challenging and more general self-talk and CBT material. The assessment process used to recruit men to the group showed the majority of men had used severe and persistent violence and abuse in their intimate relationships.

Outcomes

1. 87% of men started treatment  

2. 77% of men completed over 30 hours of DV prevention work

3. Men on the programme reduced their drug/alcohol use by 29% and reported a 40% improvement in their quality of life

4. The combined intervention did not impinge on the aims of the substance use treatment

5. Active contact was established with 53% of ex/partners

6. Only 1 woman disclosed an incidence of violence during the programme

7. 87% of men commenced treatment

8. 77% of men completed more than 30 hours of treatment

The report concluded:

The high proportion of men using persistent and severe violence and abuse in their relationships and the programme outcomes highlight the need for a combined intervention. The authors recommend that other domestic violence and substance misuse agencies bring together their skills and understanding to deliver joint substance misuse and domestic violence interventions. All joint work should be conducted alongside a partner support service and delivered by dedicated and experienced staff to allow for a comprehensive case and risk management process to take place alongside service delivery.

If you would like more details please contact Cranstoun on 0207 923 8010.

You can download the report here.