SIMM FAQs

Why Is This Study Important?

Mississippi has the highest prevalence of any physical intimate partner violence, as well as before pregnancy, and second highest during pregnancy, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Often unreported, intimate partner violence affects as many as 50 percent of young, single, poor, minority pregnant women, said SIMM principal investigator Dr. Lei Zhang, and substance use disorder providers aren't necessarily trained to provide the needed resources.

"Bridging these gaps through an integrated approach undergirded by community partnership will hopefully provide the necessary wrap-around support for those struggling with IPV, SUD and new motherhood, empowering them to take the steps to secure their health, safety and a better future for themselves and their families," said Dr. Michelle Owens. "We also want to strengthen the ability of providers to identify and readily assist those individuals who are victims or at risk of IPV."

Table 1 provides demographic data for the U.S. and Mississippi.

Table 1. Demographics of U.S. and Mississippi¹²

Each year, the United Health Foundation ranks each state's health status using 81 different measures of health outcomes and social determinants of health from 30 unique data sources.

Within those measures, Mississippi ranked worst (#50) in food insecurity, per capita income, unemployment, and its economic hardship index. The state also ranked 49th in rates of preventable deaths, teen births, clinical care, and poverty, 48th in income inequality, and 46th in the percentage of residents who are unemployed. 

Importantly, as is generally true throughout the U.S., Mississippi is appreciating more fully the interconnections between SUD and IPV among pregnant and postnatal women, and recognizing the need to screen and treat for both. Mississippi's mental health and SUD providers need to be trained to screen and refer for treatment of those women suffering from IPV.

Concomitantly, Mississippi's community-based service providers for pregnant and postpartum women suffering from IPV need to be trained to screen and refer patients for SUD.  With this award, we will target just that.

Who Can Participate?

Intimate Partner Violence among Mississippi Moms – Initiative to Prevent and Treat Program (SIMM) is currently recruiting people who meet the following criteria:

• Individuals who live in the state of Mississippi
• Healthcare and Community Providers who wish to identify and readily assist victims or those at risk of intimate partner violence
• Individuals who need support with intimate partner violence (IPV), substance use disorder (SUD), and empowerment to secure a healthy and safe environment to establish a healthy and safe future

Participants may play a key role in allowing us to:

Goal 1: Establish and implement a pilot project that incentivizes Substance Use Disorder (SUD) providers treating pregnant and postpartum women in Mississippi to be trained on identifying and addressing IPV.

Goal 2:  Develop and implement SUD training program for Mississippi's community-based Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) staff members that focuses on pregnant and postpartum women.

Goal 3:  Based on feedback from recipients of initial SUD and IPV training programs, revise as necessary, and disseminate widely best practices for managing co-occurring IPV and SUD among pregnant and postpartum women.

Goal 4:  Develop and implement a statewide plan for integrating IPV and SUD protocols across healthcare settings.

Goal 5:  Provide technical assistance to community-based IPV programs to better accommodate the needs of pregnant and postpartum women with SUD.

Goal 6:  Develop and disseminate a disparity impact statement on Mississippi's pregnant and postpartum women at risk for co-occurring SUD and IPV. 

Goal 7:  Monitor, evaluate, and continuously improve the programs and services offered by the SIMM Initiative.

What Participants Can Expect

Participants can expect to be equipped with tools that will prepare them to provide care in their medical practice related to PIV and SUD training.

The session will take approximately 3 hours to complete.  Participants will be provided a pre and post-test as well as asked to complete a survey.

Costs and Compensation

There will be no costs to participate in this training.

Participants will receive Continuing Health Professional Education credit upon completion of online courses and surveys for both IPV and SUD.

More Information:

For more information about the study, please contact us:

• Phone: 1-833-435-7147

• Email: violenceresearch@umc.edu