Mentor mother support for mothers experiencing intimate partner violence in family practice: A qualitative study of three different perspectives on the facilitators and barriers of implementation

AbstractBackground: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is highly prevalent and associated with physical and mental health problems. Mentor mother support is a low threshold intervention in family practice consisting of support by non-professionals trained to support mothers experiencing IPV. A mentor mother support study showed reduced exposure to IPV and decreased symptoms of depression.Objectives: Identify factors determining implementation success of mentor mother support in family practice.Methods: Individual interviews were conducted with 12 family physicians, 16 abused mothers and three mentor mothers. Four mentor mothers participated in a focus group. Qualitative content analysis was used to analyse the data.Results: The identification and discussion of abuse is hindered by family physicians’ attitudes because they considered mothers experiencing IPV as a difficult target group with a responsibility of their own to break out of their violent situation. Some family physicians doubted the partner’s viol...