The HIV pandemic provides lessons for the response to the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic: no vaccine is available for either and there are no licensed pharmaceuticals for COVID-19, just as there was not for HIV infection in the early years. Population behavior will determine the pandemic trajectory of COVID-19,1 just as it did for HIV.
News Articles
A recent review drawing on lessons from past pandemics shows the length of quarantine increases the risk for serious psychological consequences. A relevant, yet frequently ignored risk during a pandemic and its socially disrupting response, is the potential increase of intimate partner violence (IPV).
A sexual and reproductive health and justice framework—one that centres human rights, acknowledges intersecting injustices, recognises power structures, and unites across identities—is essential for monitoring and addressing the inequitable gender, health, and social effects of COVID-19.
The success of the global response—the ability of both women and men to survive and recover from the pandemic's effects—will depend on the quality of evidence informing the response and the extent to which data represent sex and gender differences.
In the last 20 years, there has been increasing standard and guideline development and program experiences related to accountability in humanitarian settings. Yet, the emphasis is on tools or mechanisms for accountability with less attention to changing norms regarding sexual and reproductive health and rights within affected communities, and to a lesser extent, among implementers of humanitarian programs or to institutionalizing community participation.
The regional or global nature and associated fear and uncertainty associated with pandemics provide an enabling environment that may exacerbate or spark diverse forms of violence. Understanding the mechanisms underlying these dynamics is important for crafting policy and program responses to mitigate adverse effects. Based on existing published and grey literature, we document nine main (direct and indirect) pathways linking pandemics and violence against women and children.