The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) awarded a $663,001 Project Grant under the Mental Health Research Grants program (CFDA 93.242) to The Regents of the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) to conduct a randomized controlled trial of a multi-component family intervention aimed at lowering depression and addressing intimate partner violence (IPV) among young women in Nepal.
The MILAP intervention engages young women reporting IPV, their husbands, and their mothers-in-law, utilizing behavioral couple's therapy and strategies to improve empowerment and freedom of movement for the young women. As sub-awardees, Wheaton College will assist with training and competency assessment of counselors delivering the interventions, while Nyaya Health (operating as Possible) will lead intervention design, piloting, participant recruitment, data collection, and dissemination of findings in Nepal. The study seeks to establish the effectiveness of this family-based approach, understand its mechanism of impact, and conduct a cost analysis. If successful, the project will deliver an effective intervention and improve understanding of how to address the complex challenges of IPV and depression impacting young women in Nepal and similar low- and middle-income country settings.