Barriers and facilitators of implementing integrated interventions for alcohol misuse and intimate partner violence: A qualitative examination with diverse experts

Abstract

Introduction: Alcohol misuse and intimate partner violence (IPV) are major public health burdens with a well-established association. These problems are difficult to remedy individually and can exacerbate one another, compounding treatment complexity. Though scarce, integrated alcohol misuse and IPV treatments exist. Yet implementation remains inadequate. Thus, the current study applied the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR) to examine barriers and facilitators of implementing such integrated treatments.

Methods: Through purposive sampling, we conducted in-depth interviews with diverse IPV and alcohol treatment experts (n = 21) whose ages ranged from 27 to 72 and who averaged 17 years of experience working in alcohol and IPV treatment. The research team conducted analysis using Grounded Theory Methods.

Results: Experts identified barriers and facilitators for integrated treatment of alcohol misuse and IPV in three CFIR domains: intervention, inner setting and provider, and outer setting.

Conclusions: Leveraging the facilitators of implementation and addressing barriers at multiple organizational and intervention levels through an implementation science lens can help to close the research-to-practice gap for integratively treating alcohol misuse and IPV.

Keywords: Alcohol use; Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research; Domestic violence; Implementation science; Treatment.