Understanding the Landscape of Substance Use Management Practices in Domestic Violence Shelters across Ontario

Women in abusive relationships are five times more likely than other women to become dependent on substances. Despite evidence of the co-occurrence of substance use and domestic violence (DV), shelters have been hesitant to implement policies and practices to support women residents using substances while seeking shelter services. This research aimed to determine the current landscape of practices and policies to manage residents’ substance use within Ontario Violence Against Women (VAW) shelters. An anonymous web-based survey was distributed to Ontario VAW shelters (N = 96) governed by the Ministry of Community and Social Services (MCSS). Results suggest that few shelters operate from an abstinence-based approach, and most have already implemented minimal and moderate-risk practices to manage substance use. Those shelters implementing more moderate and higher-risk substance use management practices tend to have more frontline and relief staff employed than shelters with lower staff levels. However, bed capacity at the shelter did not make a difference. Many shelters operate using lower-risk practices and policies, but self-reported that they operate using a harm reduction model. Nevertheless, it does not seem that all shelters use the same definition of harm reduction. The substance use management approaches and the early stage continuum of practices developed from this survey will provide a foundation for developing a better common understanding of harm reduction practices and a flexible framework to accommodate the unique needs of VAW shelters.