A qualitative study of dentists' and dental students' preparedness to support patients with lived experience of intimate partner violence and abuse. Br Dent J 2024; https://doi.org/10.1038/s41415-024-8059-3

This qualitative study involved 14 dentists and 22 dental students through focus groups and interviews. Participants expressed awareness of physical abuse but struggled to identify broader forms of IPVA, such as emotional, psychological, and financial abuse. Many were also unaware of the correlation between IPVA and child abuse. Key barriers included limited training, fear of making errors, and a lack of practical safeguarding knowledge, contributing to hesitancy and missed intervention opportunities.