Safety Planning for Survivors with Disabilities

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Safety Planning for Survivors with Disabilities

• Sponsored by Transforming Communities Technical
  Assistance, Training Resource Center, Part of
  Marin Abused Womens Services, California. Funded
  by California Department of Public Health
  MCAH/OFP, Unserved/Underserved Training and
  Technical Assistance (U/U TAT).
• Presented by Cathy Hoog, Abused Deaf Womens
  Advocacy Services (ADWAS) Leigh Hofheimer,
  Washington State Coalition Against Domestic
  Violence (WSCADV). Partners in the disAbility
  Advocacy Project of WSCADV. Please do not reprint
  or distribute materials without permission, April
  2008.

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What is the disAbility Advocacy Project?

• There are four organizations that make up the
  disAbility Advocacy Project (dAP)
• Washington State Coalition Against Domestic
  Violence
• Abused Deaf Womens Advocacy Services
• Disability Rights Washington and
• Washington Coalition of Sexual Assault Programs.
  
• The goal of the dAP partnership is to make
  domestic violence and sexual assault services
  more accessible for survivors with disabilities.
• HOW? By building collaborations at the local
  level

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Goals for the Training

• To promote the autonomy and safety of persons
  with disabilities
• Expand our safety planning advocacy practices
• Examine safety planning forms and process for ALL
  program participants

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What informs our thinking?

• 2000 2006 Community gatherings, surveys with
  advocates and people with disabilities
• 2004 2006 Two pilot projects
• 2007 2008 Needs assessment
• Focus groups and interviews with advocates from
  DV or SA programs, disability advocates, and
  people with disabilities.

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• Definitions Used in
• Focus Groups and Interviews

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Definitions

• Domestic Violence - When someone in an intimate
  relationship tries to control the other person
  through fear, threats, or violence.

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Definitions

• Abuser - An abuser can be a boyfriend,
  girlfriend, husband, wife, or a
  caregiver/personal attendant. The person who
  tries to gain control is an abuser and the abuse
  can happen in many ways.
• The abuser can gain control by making the other
  person feel isolated, afraid of physical harm,
  afraid of the loss of their money or their
  independence. Abusers often criticize the other
  person to make them feel bad about themselves.
  Sexual violence can also be a way the abuser
  gains control. The abuser may get back at the
  person if they try to resist or tell other people
  about the abuse.

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Definitions

• Sexual assault - When a person is forced or
  manipulated into doing something sexual that the
  person doesnt want to do. It includes unwanted
  sexual comments or harassment. It can be an
  assault by someone that is known or a stranger.
  Sexual assault is any behavior of a sexual nature
  that makes a person feel uncomfortable.

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Definitions

• Disability - Anyone with mobility, sensory, or
  communication issues mental illness,
  cognitive/intellectual or developmental
  disabilities or are Deaf or have experienced a
  hearing loss. We also include people who have
  invisible disabilities, such as diabetes,
  traumatic brain injuries, stamina issues or
  substance use disorders.

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Definitions

• Some Deaf individuals do not identify as having
  disabilities. They believe that being deaf is
  not something that needs fixing.
• Because many Deaf individuals face barriers in
  the hearing world, we include the Deaf community
  in our definition of disability.

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Definitions

• Survivor - A person who has experienced domestic
  or sexual violence.

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Definitions

• Advocate - Someone who listens to you and tries
  to make other individuals listen to what you want
  to have happen. This person may be a volunteer
  or work for a non-profit group. Many disability
  advocates are volunteers, and started their work
  by advocating for themselves. You may hear the
  term self-advocate.

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Definitions

• Personal Attendant/Assistant - Someone who
  assists a person with a disability to provide
  support they need because of the disability. A
  personal attendant provides Personal Assistance
  Services.

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Violence against Men with Disabilities

• While most people who seek domestic violence
  services are women, men who have disabilities are
  more likely to experience a wide range of
  violence than men without disabilities.
• During the teleseminar, we will use the pronouns
  she and her when referring to survivors with
  disabilities. We acknowledge that men with
  disabilities may experience domestic violence.

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• Findings from the
• Needs Assessment and
• Focus Groups

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Needs Assessment Finding

• Disability advocates are often unfamiliar with
  advocacy strategies regarding domestic or sexual
  violence.
• Disability advocates are unfamiliar with
• Principles of safety planning
• Advocacy practices that address domestic violence
  or sexual assault
• How dv/sa advocacy could be added to a support
  network
• Screening and training for abuse and how to
  support victims who disclose abuse

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Needs Assessment Finding

• Disability advocates dont know what DV/SA
  advocates offer.
• DV/SA advocates are largely unaware that
  disability advocates exist.
• Disability advocates were hesitant to refer to
  DV/SA programs
• Many DV and SA advocates have little contact with
  Centers for Independent Living or other
  disability organizations

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• You go into their office and you want to say
  something, but . . . They dont know how to bring
  a subject up because its a touchy subject. Its
  like a big white elephant in the middle of the
  room.
• -- person with a disability

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Safety Planning Process

• How do survivors with disabilities keep
  themselves safe?

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Safety Strategies

• Used by survivors with disabilities . . .
• The café works for me when other places fail.
  They are a 24-hour drop-in place. There is always
  someone there to chat with me and calm me down so
  I can focus.
• -- survivor with a disability
• From pg. 44, Chapter Three, Discussion Series
  and women with Disabilities Leadership
  Initiative, Report of the Disability Advocacy
  Project of the Washington State Coalition Against
  Domestic Violence, September 2006

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• He knows that if he messed with disability
  eligibility documentation, it could trap me much
  longer in this homelessness cycle. I cant stay
  in homeless shelters, they are scarier than his
  house, so I couch surf.
• -- survivor with a disability
• From pg. 43, Chapter Three, Discussion Series
  and women with Disabilities Leadership
  Initiative, Report of the Disability Advocacy
  Project of the Washington State Coalition Against
  Domestic Violence, September 2006

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Compounding Impact . . .
Societal Bias
System Discrimination
Abuser
Survivor
Acts of Resistance
Power Control Tactics
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Safety Planning Process

• How do we craft safety plans that reflect the
  experiences of survivors with disabilities?

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Survivors may fear a loss of independence more
than further abuse.

• The abuser told her no one would believe her, as
  she had a developmental disability and he was
  correct. When she reported it at work she was
  called a trouble maker and soon fired.
• . . . survey respondent
• From pg. 58, Chapter Four, Disability Advocacy
  Project Survey, Report of the Disability
  Advocacy Project of the Washington State
  Coalition Against Domestic Violence, September
  2006.

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Effective Safety Planning Action . . .
Weakens Abusers ability to use . . .
Abuser uses Bias
Abusive Tactics
Bias
Increases Survivors Access to Resources,
Autonomy, and Advocacy
Survivor
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Confidentiality - Key to Safety Planning

• Community based advocates
• Survivor has control over information
• Survivor decides what information to reveal and
  how it supports or undermines her decision-making
  and safety
• Advocacy programs will not share information
  without the survivors express permission in most
  circumstances (exceptions to confidentiality).

• Disability social services
• Survivors control over information is limited by
  family member, social worker intervention
  guardianship/payee ship, or mandatory reporting.
• Agencies used to sharing information with
  guardians, families, other agencies.

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Mandatory Reporting of People With Disabilities

• Tell all potential program participants that you
  are a mandatory reporter
• ALWAYS inform the survivor that you are a
  mandatory reporter before asking for any
  identifying information
• Learn about the legal or funding obligations of
  reporting
• When you need to make a report, safety plan with
  the survivor

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• Excerpts from the
• Model Safety Planning Protocol for
• Domestic Violence Victims with Disabilities
• http//www.wscadv.org/resourcesAlpha.cfm and
  search by title

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Safety Planning Protocol a few highlights

• The survivor is the expert on what safety
  techniques will work best for them.
• Safety planning efforts should consider
• how the survivors disability impacts the safety
  plan

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• how abusers take advantage of barriers which
  prevent a survivor from using domestic violence
  or sexual assault services
• how possible disability issues of the abuser or
  other family members impacts planning
• other disability advocacy resources
• knowledge of adaptive devices and information on
  new technology to support safety

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• Safety plans should be
• reviewed and updated
• presented in clear language, with an interpreter
  if applicable,
• available in alternate formats
• Staff should receive ongoing training to discuss
  emerging issues raised when safety planning for
  survivors with disabilities.

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Sample Safety Planning Questions

• How does your abuser react to your disability in
  private?
• What does your abuser tell others about your
  disability?
• Do you have any concerns about how your
  disability might affect your safety?

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• Do the effects of your disability change? If so,
  what causes the change?
• Can you predict when changes will happen?
• How does it affect your safety?
• Does your abuser do things that make your
  disability worse?
• Does your abuser do things that take advantage of
  your disability?

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• Does your abuser do things that take away your
  independence?
• Do you have any thoughts about using DV/SA
  programs or other community resources?
• What is your abusers involvement with your
  personal care or disability support service?
• Has anyone manipulated your medications? Or
  refused to give them to you?

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• What are your ideas for dealing with identified
  barrier to service?
• Is there any equipment, medications, or other
  kinds of technology that help you stay safe?
• Does your abuser interfere with your use of
  items needed for safety?

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Exercise Advocacy in Action

• The survivor, who is blind, uses her abuser for
  transportation.
• How would you plan to get her to your shelter?

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Exercise Advocacy in Action

• The survivor, who is Deaf, states that her
  abuser monitors her texting and tty calls.
• How would you plan to meet with her?

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Exercise - Advocacy in Action

• A support person calls you on behalf of a person
  with a disability who cannot use the phone.
• How would you handle the call?

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Exercise Advocacy in Action

• The survivor has a brain injury and experiences
  a lot of memory loss. She wants to rent an
  apartment and needs many support services.
• How would you help her keep her location
  confidential?

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• Cathy Hoog
• Abused Deaf Womens Advocacy Services,
• 206-726-0093 (TTY),
• cathy_at_adwas.org and www.adwas.org
• Leigh Hofheimer,
• WSCADV,
• 206-389-2515 x202 (V), 206-389-2900 (TTY),
• leigh_at_wscadv.org and www.wscadv.org

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References

• Effective Safety Planning Action . . . Adapted
  with permission from Successful interventions in
  cases of battering that involve children Praxis
  International, www.praxisinternational.org
• Model Protocol on Safety Planning for Domestic
  Violence Victims with Disabilities, Revised 2004,
  Cathy Hoog, Abused Deaf Womens Advocacy Services
  for the Washington State Coalition Against
  Domestic Violence, [phone], ext. 202 (V)
  or [phone] (tty), http//www.wscadv.org/res
  ourcesAlpha.cfm and search by title of document
• Needs Assessment Report from the Washington State
  disAbility Advocacy Project, 2008, Washington
  State Coalition Against Domestic Violence, (206)
  389-2515, ext. 202 (V) or [phone] (tty).
• Report of the Disability Advocacy Project of the
  Washington State Coalition Against Domestic
  Violence, September 2006, www.wscadv.org. (206)
  389-2515, ext. 202 (V) or [phone] (tty),
  contact for a copy of the report.