Experiences of violence place enormous psychological strain on both women and their children, especially when the situation persists over a long period and is compounded by other stressors. Psychological impairments often result. These include all forms of mental disorders and illnesses, as well as addictions.
Women with mental health issues also seek protection and support in women's shelters. This presents many facilities with significant challenges. Mental health diagnoses are often unknown upon admission. However, women's shelters are rarely suitable for accommodating women with severe mental health issues: The lack of privacy and the cramped living conditions of several women and children are stressful for everyone involved. Most women's shelters also lack the staffing to provide care for women with mental health issues.
This situation leads to women with severe distress not being admitted. Attempts to refer these women to other services often fail due to deficiencies in the psychiatric and psychotherapeutic system. There is a risk that these women affected by violence will not receive care, will continue to be exposed to violence, will remain in precarious housing conditions, and their illnesses will become chronic.
Specialist counseling centers usually see themselves as specialized counseling centers for women with mental health disabilities who have been victims of violence. This is especially true for specialist counseling centers for sexual violence. However, even in these centers, adequate care is often not possible due to staffing constraints: Long waiting times for initial counseling appointments and long periods between individual consultations are particularly difficult for women with mental health disabilities.
In addition, affected women often have to wait long periods for outpatient therapy and trauma-specific inpatient services. There are too few services in this area. Many specialized counseling centers try to bridge these delays with counseling services. To ensure that women affected by violence and suffering from mental health problems can receive appropriate support, the framework conditions in women's shelters and specialized counseling centers must be improved, especially regarding staffing.
FHK is involved in the AKF’s working group “Mental Health of Women Affected by Violence” to improve the care of women affected by violence.
Support for women affected by violence with mental health problems, Handbook of Women's Shelter Coordination 2015
Working Group on Women’s Health in Medicine, Psychotherapy and Society (AKF), Website with information on violence against women
Women with mental disabilities and experiences of violence - Lecture by Dr. Katrin Körtner, Diamorphine Outpatient Clinic Patrida Berlin, FHK Expert Forum 2020
Note: The cases presented do not refer to individual real patients, but are a fictitious compilation of various cases based on clinical experience.
The following federal associations are members of the Women’s Shelter Coordination Association
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