What is SafetyNet?
SafetyNet is a voluntary, collaborative strategy designed to help service providers develop, maintain and enhance the integrated network of services and supports available to victims of partner abuse and their families in the Kawartha Lakes Haliburton region.
The SafetyNet Process is designed to help service providers work together more effectively with priority attention to the best interests, protection and well being of victims of partner abuse and their families. It is NOT designed to replace client-centered planning processes or client complaint procedures currently used by individual organizations and agencies.
SafetyNet has two distinct components:
- Service planning (also known as case planning or case conferencing)
- Service review (also known as case review)
Forms relating to the SafetyNet Process can be found in the appendices of the KLHDVCC Protocol.
What is Service Planning?
Face-to-face meetings and/or teleconferencing involving representatives from two or more agencies who are working with a specific client may be scheduled at the onset of the service delivery relationship and/or during the service delivery process to facilitate: information sharing; service planning; risk assessment and management; problem solving; and/or efficient use of available resources.
This component of SafetyNet is especially appropriate for use when working with clients in high risk situations, clients with multiple and complex issues requiring attention, and/or clients involved with many different agencies.
This inter-agency contact is used to generate a concrete plan of action for each of the agencies or professionals working with the client in accordance with their mandate and in consideration of the client’s needs, priorities, preferences, values and goals. In some instances, specific problems, gaps in service, duplications of service, communication break-downs or similar issues may be identified during the meeting or teleconference. Every effort will be made to address any such issues in relation to the specific client as they arise. When necessary and appropriate, issues may be highlighted for follow-up by a particular agency (such as problems with a particular policy or practice) or the KLHDVCC (such as reoccurring service gaps).
What is Service Review?
Face-to-face meetings and/or teleconferencing involving representatives from two or more agencies who have worked with a specific client may be scheduled at or within one (1) year of the conclusion of the service delivery process to facilitate the identification of: best practice processes and learning relevant to the delivery of an integrated network of services; issues or areas requiring follow-up by a particular agency; and/or issues requiring attention and action at a community-wide or systemic level.
This component of SafetyNet is especially appropriate for use at the conclusion of particularly challenging, complex or unusual service delivery processes and/or at the conclusion of the service delivery process for any clients who participated in or were discussed in the SafetyNet Service Planning process.
This inter-agency contact is used to allow service providers to “de-brief” at the end of a particularly challenging or difficult service delivery process and to encourage the identification of problems or issues that are negatively impacting on the delivery of services to victims of partner abuse and their families in our region.
In some instances, a client may wish to participate in the Service Review process to provide critical feedback to the various agencies and professionals who have worked with him/her – i.e., “this is what worked for me…this is what didn’t work for me…”. However, the Service Review process should NOT be offered to or used by clients as a complaint process. Clients who wish to register formal complaint(s) about the services they received should be redirected to the individual complaint processes for relevant agencies.
The Consent to Release & Receive Information form allows clients to give permission, in advance, for a SafetyNet Service Review meeting to be scheduled at the conclusion of or within one (1) year of their involvement with identified agencies. This allows service providers to secure approval for such a review at any time during their involvement with a specific client, up to and including during departure, even if no such review has been planned or scheduled to date.
In the event that one or more service providers decide to schedule a SafetyNet Service Review meeting after contact with a specific client has concluded, all participants must sign a Commitment to Confidentiality form.
