COMMUNITY RESOURCES:
The need for community systems to be responsive to the needs of victims of family violence and sexual assault:
Victims of family violence and/or sexual assault may be reluctant to disclose abuse to anyone. The first disclosure that someone has been a victim of abuse could be to anyone, a friend or family member, a coworker, or even a member of a community system, such as the health care, social service or criminal justice systems. As Panhandle Crisis Center emphasizes in its trainings to other community service providers, these systems can best serve victims by understanding that simply disclosing abuse, whether family violence or sexual assault, is an important first step. For survivors of these crimes, seeking the resources available to them may not occur immediately after survivors are informed of the availability of such services. However, service providers should realize they have met an important need by providing resources, referrals, and options for victims to consider. In other cases, survivors may begin services immediately following disclosure and later change their minds. A sexual assault survivor may initially report the crime and later be reluctant to cooperate with the criminal investigation or testify in court. A family violence victim may desperately seek a protective order one day and then request the order be dropped a few days or weeks later. This can often be a frustrating situation for the service provider, but expressing this frustration to the victim/survivor is not helpful and can, in fact, be detrimental to the process.
Professional Conduct for Effective Advocacy:
In order for community systems to truly be responsive to the needs of victims, the service providers within these systems must first respect that victims have a right to make their own decisions. The role of service providers is not to guide (or chide) individuals into following the course the service provider believes is best; rather, it is to ensure that victims have both knowledge and access to the resources they need in order to make their own decisions about their lives. Above all, service providers must realize that healing from sexual assault or leaving an abusive situation is a process. How service providers treat survivors along each step of the process makes in difference in whether they will access their services again or other vital legal and social services at the time when they need them most.
Community Resource Referral List:
Volunteers should contact the volunteer coordinator at volunteer@pccperryton.org for the community resource referral list. This list details criminal justice entities, social service providers, legal resources, and other referral sources for victims of family violence and sexual assault.
The need for community systems to be responsive to the needs of victims of family violence and sexual assault:
Victims of family violence and/or sexual assault may be reluctant to disclose abuse to anyone. The first disclosure that someone has been a victim of abuse could be to anyone, a friend or family member, a coworker, or even a member of a community system, such as the health care, social service or criminal justice systems. As Panhandle Crisis Center emphasizes in its trainings to other community service providers, these systems can best serve victims by understanding that simply disclosing abuse, whether family violence or sexual assault, is an important first step. For survivors of these crimes, seeking the resources available to them may not occur immediately after survivors are informed of the availability of such services. However, service providers should realize they have met an important need by providing resources, referrals, and options for victims to consider. In other cases, survivors may begin services immediately following disclosure and later change their minds. A sexual assault survivor may initially report the crime and later be reluctant to cooperate with the criminal investigation or testify in court. A family violence victim may desperately seek a protective order one day and then request the order be dropped a few days or weeks later. This can often be a frustrating situation for the service provider, but expressing this frustration to the victim/survivor is not helpful and can, in fact, be detrimental to the process.
Professional Conduct for Effective Advocacy:
In order for community systems to truly be responsive to the needs of victims, the service providers within these systems must first respect that victims have a right to make their own decisions. The role of service providers is not to guide (or chide) individuals into following the course the service provider believes is best; rather, it is to ensure that victims have both knowledge and access to the resources they need in order to make their own decisions about their lives. Above all, service providers must realize that healing from sexual assault or leaving an abusive situation is a process. How service providers treat survivors along each step of the process makes in difference in whether they will access their services again or other vital legal and social services at the time when they need them most.
Community Resource Referral List:
Volunteers should contact the volunteer coordinator at volunteer@pccperryton.org for the community resource referral list. This list details criminal justice entities, social service providers, legal resources, and other referral sources for victims of family violence and sexual assault.