Integrating gender-based violence (GBV) services into HIV care entailed engaging stakeholders to ensure the integration process addressed the needs of GBV survivors, providing adequate health care provider training to identify GBV and provide support and care, developing standardized procedures for screening and identification of GBV cases, strengthening documentation of cases, and enhancing referral procedures for post-GBV care services.

From January 2020 to June 2024, over 9,000 cases of GBV were reported, and over 18,00 post-GBV services were documented.

Of the GBV cases reported, 54% were among adolescents aged 10–19 years, 92% were female survivors, and 45% were incidents of sexual violence.

We provide a replicable model for health care providers and facility administrators, demonstrating the effectiveness of standardized screening, care, and referral processes in improving the support and outcomes for GBV survivors within HIV care in low-resource settings.

Our findings can inform the development of more inclusive health policies and support services in HIV care that address the needs of all GBV survivors.

Gender-based violence (GBV) not only poses significant public health and human rights challenges but is also closely associated with HIV. GBV acts as a barrier to HIV prevention, testing, and treatment adherence, and fear of GBV inhibits disclosure of HIV status to sexual partners. In Malawi, where both GBV and HIV prevalence is high, integrating GBV services into HIV care is crucial. We describe the integration of GBV services into Lighthouse Trust’s HIV testing and treatment clinics in Malawi, including screening, documentation, intervention implementation, outcomes, and lessons learned.

We conducted a retrospective analysis from January 2020 to June 2024. Data on cases identified, post-GBV services, and perpetrator demographics were collected from the GBV register. We used descriptive statistics to describe the intervention outcomes.

We documented 9,045 reported GBV cases among males and females from January 2020 to June 2024. Adolescent girls aged 10–19 years constituted a significant proportion of survivors. Psychosocial services were the most common type of service that was offered to GBV survivors (25%), followed by HIV testing (19%) and sexually transmitted infection screening (18%). Perpetrators were mostly known to survivors.

We successfully integrated GBV services into the Lighthouse Trust HIV clinics in close collaboration with the one-stop centers in Malawi. Training health care providers enhanced support for GBV survivors, with a focus on increasing awareness, especially for children and adolescents. Recommended actions include improving access to GBV services, enhancing documentation, and promoting multi-sectoral collaboration to ensure comprehensive care aimed at creating a safer, more dignified health care environment for all, particularly GBV survivors.

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