Intimate partner violence is a major public health concern. According to Statistics Canada, in 2018, 44 per cent of women experienced some form of intimate partner violence in their lifetime. Rates of intimate partner violence are not only alarmingly high, but steadily increasing. In 2022, there were 117,093 victims of police-reported intimate partner violence in Canada. This marked a 19 per cent increase since 2014.
Violence in intimate relationships can take many forms, including physical, sexual, emotional or financial abuse and coercive control. And intimate partner violence increases during emergencies such as pandemics, natural disasters and even economic downturns.
