Why the ‘V’ matters: advancing equity and effectiveness in violence against women interventions through trauma and violence informed care

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is a pervasive global health and human rights wherein experiences are shaped by intersecting social positions. Despite the complex manifestations of violence, health-sector responses often prioritize acute crises while neglecting the structural forces that perpetuate it. Trauma- and Violence-Informed Care (TVIC) offers a transformative, equity-oriented approach bridging clinical practice with social change by explicitly acknowledging the role of systemic oppression, institutional violence, and inequitable hierarchies that shape access to care. By expanding trauma-informed practice to incorporate an understanding of structural and interpersonal violence, TVIC reframes trauma as both an individual and collective experience rooted in social and structural determinants of health. The "V" in TVIC highlights the need to address systemic harms that position some survivors as more deserving of care than others, perpetuating cycles of revictimization. TVIC calls for multi-level action: fostering compassionate, non-judgmental, strengths-based care at the individual level; embedding culturally, emotionally, and physically safe organizational practices; and promoting intersectoral collaboration to reduce systemic barriers. In SRHR contexts, TVIC restores dignity and autonomy by challenging entrenched inequities and mitigating risks of retraumatization. Adopting TVIC offers an equity promoting, tangible way to optimize systems of care and finally interrupt violence cycles of oppression.