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Purpose <p>With the recent 5-year mark of the COVID-19 pandemic, rural communities continue to grapple with the profound and lasting impacts on rates and severity of sexual and gender-based violence. Rural areas, home to 16% of Canada’s population, account for 38% of femicides, with disproportionately higher rates of severe violence and emergency interventions compared to urban centres. Despite this, research on the pandemic’s long-term effects on sexual and gender-based violence in rural regions remains limited, hindered by underreporting and administrative data constraints. This qualitative study addresses this gap by exploring service provider perspectives on the enduring impacts of COVID-19 on sexual and gender-based violence in rural Ontario, a Canadian province where over 100 municipalities have declared intimate partner violence an epidemic.</p> Methods <p>This study explored service provider perspectives in service delivery, rising demand, and operational challenges in rural Ontario in the 5-years post COVID-19, with specific attention to how geographic isolation intersects with race, gender, immigration status, and other structural factors shaping access to care. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and sociodemographic surveys with 18 service providers with clients in rural Ontario, recruited via purposive and snowball sampling.</p> Results <p>Reflexive thematic analysis, conducted using NVivo15, identified three key themes: (1) escalating violence and unmet needs, (2) strain on rural services, and (3) shifting community dynamics and intersectional considerations. Findings highlight the urgent need for adaptable, culturally competent service models to address the evolving needs of rural populations.</p> Conclusions <p>This study underscores the urgent need for sustained investment, community-driven infrastructure, and responsive policymaking to address the enduring impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on rural SGBV service delivery. Strengthening support for community-based organizations, including adequate funding, culturally safe programming, and workforce development, is critical to equipping service providers with the resources needed to meet rising demand and deliver comprehensive, survivor-centered care.</p>

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Strained Systems, Escalating Needs: Service Provider Perspectives on the Rural Landscape of Sexual- and Gender-based Violence in the Five-years post-COVID

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2025年8月5日

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  • Madeleine D. Sheppard-Perkins,
  • Francine E. Darroch

摘要

Purpose

With the recent 5-year mark of the COVID-19 pandemic, rural communities continue to grapple with the profound and lasting impacts on rates and severity of sexual and gender-based violence. Rural areas, home to 16% of Canada’s population, account for 38% of femicides, with disproportionately higher rates of severe violence and emergency interventions compared to urban centres. Despite this, research on the pandemic’s long-term effects on sexual and gender-based violence in rural regions remains limited, hindered by underreporting and administrative data constraints. This qualitative study addresses this gap by exploring service provider perspectives on the enduring impacts of COVID-19 on sexual and gender-based violence in rural Ontario, a Canadian province where over 100 municipalities have declared intimate partner violence an epidemic.

Methods

This study explored service provider perspectives in service delivery, rising demand, and operational challenges in rural Ontario in the 5-years post COVID-19, with specific attention to how geographic isolation intersects with race, gender, immigration status, and other structural factors shaping access to care. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and sociodemographic surveys with 18 service providers with clients in rural Ontario, recruited via purposive and snowball sampling.

Results

Reflexive thematic analysis, conducted using NVivo15, identified three key themes: (1) escalating violence and unmet needs, (2) strain on rural services, and (3) shifting community dynamics and intersectional considerations. Findings highlight the urgent need for adaptable, culturally competent service models to address the evolving needs of rural populations.

Conclusions

This study underscores the urgent need for sustained investment, community-driven infrastructure, and responsive policymaking to address the enduring impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on rural SGBV service delivery. Strengthening support for community-based organizations, including adequate funding, culturally safe programming, and workforce development, is critical to equipping service providers with the resources needed to meet rising demand and deliver comprehensive, survivor-centered care.