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The Role of Advocates/Support Providers/Helping Professionals in Addressing Sexual Violence
Minimizing/Preventing Secondary Wounding
Helping professionals include:
Social workers, family support workers, financial counselors, employment outreach workers, child protection staff, victim rights advocates, crisis intervention workers, substance abuse counselors, home support staff, family resource center staff, other service providers and professionals from services such as health care, public health, victim services, education, law enforcement, transition house workers, women centers, and other community based agencies that have a support/advocacy role.
Helping professionals have many opportunities to help people develop their strengths and over come difficulties after they have experienced sexual violence. Victims and perpetrators of sexual violence may seek professional help. Their friends and families may also need services to deal with trauma. For a variety of reasons, some clients do not tell the service providers they deal with that they have experienced sexual violence. Yet these experiences may be related to their problems or symptoms.
Helping professionals may be emotionally affected by the clients’ traumatic experiences. Some helping professionals may not be able to assist their clients deal with sexual violence issues. This may be because they lack the adequate training and experience to identify the signs of abuse, or to respond to the issues experienced by their clients.
By developing awareness and understanding about the issues pertaining to sexual violence and the affects and impacts of sexual assault trauma, gender/racial stereotyping, and sexual assault myths; support providers can improve their support of and response to sexually assault women, men and children.
Why you are important:
You can…
- Be a role model: You can demonstrate healthy, respectful behavior for your clients and coworkers
- Focus on strengths: You can help the people you work with recognize their own skills, strengths and resources, and to use these assets to benefit and improve their lives
- Recognize warning signs: You may recognize signs and symptoms of sexual abuse/assault and provide information, support, and referral.
- Help with healing: Your work with victims/survivors can help them to deal with sexual assault trauma
- Support empowerment: Your work with victims/survivors can enable them to reclaim their sense of power and autonomy over their own bodies/lives
- Hold accountability: Through you work with individuals that commit sexual offences you can assist them with accepting the responsibility for the level of harm they have commit against the people they have sexually assaulted/abused
- Work with diverse clients: Make your services available to people in many different communities
What you can do as…
An individual and a service provider committed to addressing sexual violence:
- Educate yourself and others. Share information about sexual violence with local support agencies, community groups and the general public
- Volunteer on the board of directors of a sexual assault center, or other agency that deals with sexual violence issues at a community level. Support prevention, awareness, and advocacy efforts by the agency and the community
- Distribute and make available a directory of resource, treatment, and support services. If there isn’t one in your community, gather information and make it available to other service providers and your clients
- Be aware of your legal and professional responsibilities regarding reporting child sexual abuse and adult protection issues. Ensure that your agency has and follows policies about how to address
these issues that are in accordance to the Children and Family Protection Act and the Criminal Code of Canada
- Be aware to signs that a client may be acting in sexually violent ways. Consult with sex offender treatment providers to learn how to address these issues with your clients
- Be aware of the signs that your client may be at risk to and/or experiencing sexual violence
- Be aware about local services for women, youth, victims/survivors, sexual offenders, and their families. Know how and when to refer. Exchange information with these agencies so that everyone keeps updated on the various programs and services each offer
- Lobby for and assist in fundraising efforts to ensure that community based front line services have adequate financial and community support. Assist community based front line services with promoting and implementing their services
- Lobby government, and public policy makers to support sexual violence actions and awareness efforts by support/advocacy groups, and to encourage more funding for education, awareness/prevention, and support programs
- Offer to mentor a coworker or student entering into a helping profession. Discuss and practice healthy communication, conflict resolution, and assertiveness skills. Model respectful, non judgmental, approaches to working with victims/survivors of sexual violence; as well as healthy self care practices
- Participate in local activities and events designed to prevent violence, encourage your agency to promote and participate in these events (i.e. Family Violence Prevention Week, National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women)
- Educate your clients about healthy sexuality, health/unhealthy relationships, and sexual assault/abuse
- Request resources and training about sexual violence from your local sexual assault centre. If sexual assault services do not exist in your community, work collectively with other agencies to develop an interagency response to sexual violence
- Design services, resources, and outreach programs that are appropriate and sensitive to different communities and populations. Be aware of the agencies and resources available in your community
- Become aware of the practices and approaches used by you and/or agency that may perpetuate victim blaming and/or condone the occurrence of sexual violence in order to minimize/prevent secondary wounding clients.
- Put educational materials and posters in your office and waiting area so that clients will know that you are open to talking about sexual violence issues
Individual Advocacy/Support To Prevent/Address Secondary Wounding:
- Accompaniment to hospital for forensic exam or to police station to give a statement, to provide court support
- Provide support or accompaniment when dealing with other service providers, offer to mediate or intervene
- Writing letters, calling or meeting with other service providers on client’s behalf
- Explaining legal/court process and ensuring the woman knows her options before she makes a decision before proceeding
- Ensuring that the client has access to other support agencies to address other issues/needs (i.e. language interpreter, mental health services, women’s shelter, etc.)
- Supporting a woman in her own individual efforts to empower herself and take control of her life after sexual assault, and/or to address or challenge inequality/discrimination/secondary wounding she experiences.
You will know that you have made a difference when:
- Clients are building strengths, as well as addressing issues that may put them at risk
- Clients talk more freely about their experiences with sexual violence
- Fewer clients experience sexual violence
- There is an increase in community action and awareness about sexual violence
Benefits of awareness, action, education, and prevention:
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