Violence against women during the Covid-19 pandemic: scoping review of the literature in collaboration with the World Health Organization protocol

The World Health Organization estimates that almost one in three women were subjected to physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence or sexual violence by someone other than their partner at least once in their lifetime. During the COVID-19 pandemic, there were increased reports of violence against women in some countries, whereas others reported reductions, in part due to inaccessibility of services. The aim of this scoping review is to first document the available research evidence on violence against women during the COVID-19 epidemic, both in terms of its impact on violence against women and how it was addressed through services and interventions. This scoping review will begin with a search of six databases, using search strategies developed by the review team: MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Social Science Citation Index–expanded, Cochrane Library (including CENTRAL), Campbell Systematic Reviews Journal, and Scopus. Predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria will be applied to identified studies to determine eligibility as part of a two-stage process (title and abstract; full text). Following data screening, data from included studies will be synthesised and presented in descriptive, tabular format and accompanied by a narrative description of the characteristics of those studies and their findings. The findings of this review will contribute to ongoing efforts of the World Health Organization to build evidence on how outbreaks like COVID-19 impact violence against women and identify strategies to address this and ensure access to services is protected. The scoping review will facilitate a follow-on deeper analysis of the available evidence through systematic review methods.