Strengthening Women's Agency in Pregnancy (SWAP): Empowerment Counselling Intervention [ECI] for Pregnant Women and Girls Affected by Intimate Partner Violence in a Refugee Camp in Tanzania

This research aims to address the feasibility and acceptability of a brief empowerment counseling intervention (ECI) among pregnant women and girls receiving antenatal care (ANC) who have experienced intimate partner violence (IPV), in humanitarian healthcare settings. This 3- year study will take place in two IRC-managed health posts in a refugee camp in Kigoma, Tanzania. The objectives of the study are to: 1) Adapt, as needed, for use in the context of ANC in a humanitarian setting, a brief ECI to address women's and girls' exposure to sexual and/or physical IPV during pregnancy, by improving their mental health, self-efficacy, safety, and coping strategies; 2) Test the ECI through a pilot randomized controlled trial, determining whether the intervention is feasible/acceptable and whether it improves women's self-efficacy, reduces mental distress and increases uptake of longer-term IPV services; 3) Test the feasibility of integrating such an intervention into pre-existing ANC service delivery in humanitarian settings and make recommendations for future intervention research and development, including effectively linking routine enquiry of IPV in ANC settings with support service use.