Referral

1. Referral

2. When to Give Referrals • If the patient feels it is safe to do so, • provide her with written information (including phone numbers) on legal options, local counseling and crisis intervention services, shelters, and community resources. • Educational materials on domestic violence that are on display in waiting areas and examination rooms may help patients identify violence as a personal health problem. • The types of referrals given will vary depending on availability and the patient’s individual needs and circumstances, and also on the availability of facilities and resources. • Health care providers should be familiar with the full range of formal and informal resources that are available locally for victims of sexual violence.

3. Support Services Patients should be given both verbal and written referrals for support services which may include: • Rape Crisis Centers • Shelters or Safe Houses • HIV/AIDS Counseling • Legal Aid • Victim Witness Programmes • Support Groups • Therapists • Financial Assistance Agencies • Social Service Agencies

5. Support Services Should be Readily Accessible • Compile a list of local services and telephone numbers that can be kept in a place that is easily accessible. • Display posters about sexual violence and where to go for help on the walls of health facilities (having information prominently displayed may make victims feel more comfortable in disclosing and talking about the sexual violence in their lives). • Place pamphlets and brochures regarding sexual violence in examination rooms and women’s toilets so that patients can take them away with them or read the information in private. • Develop small pocket-size materials with lists of useful telephone numbers and addresses.

6. Developing Safety Strategies with Survivors Developing a Safety Plan: • Identify one or more neighbors you can tell about the violence, and ask them to help if they hear a disturbance in your house. • Are there any friends or relative you can trust and who could give you and your children shelter for a few days? • Decide where you will go if you have to leave home and have a plan to go there (even if you do not think you will need to leave). • If an argument seems unavoidable, try to have it in a room or an area that you can leave easily. • Stay away from any room where weapons may be available. If possible, get the weapons outside your house. • Practice how to get out of your house safely. Identify which doors, windows, elevators or stairwell would be best.

7. Developing Safety Strategies with Survivors • Have a packed bag ready, containing spare key, money, important documents and clothes. Keep it at the home of a relative or friend, in case you need to leave your home in a hurry. • Devise a code word to use with your children, family, friends, and neighbors when you need emergency help or want them to call the police. • Use your instincts and judgment if the situation is dangerous, consider giving the abuser what he wants to calm him down. You have the right to protect yourself and your children. • Remember, you do not deserve to be hit or threatened. -> See also: Handout 1 “Personal safety plan” and Handout 2 “Checklist for developing a safety plan”

8. Exercise: How to Work with “Referral” and “Safety Plan” • Worker develops a personal safety plan with the victim. Role play based on the handout: personal safety plan. Observer gives her/his comments after the role play. • Situation: The victim has arrived at the health centre to ask for advice. The staff member/worker will develop a safety plan with the victim. Discussion and development of plan takes about 15 minutes (=based on practice experience). • Parties: Victim, health professional, observer -> See also: Handout 1 “Personal safety plan” and Handout 2 “Checklist for developing a safety plan”