La. Admin. Code tit. 4 § VII-1729

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 11, November 20, 2024

Section VII-1729 - Residential Services

A. Basic Considerations. These standards assure family violence programs provide appropriate and quality services to survivors of family violence and their children in an empowering, non-blaming way.

B. Standards

1. General

a. Family violence shelters provide access, admittance and residence in temporary shelter for survivors of family violence and their children 24 hours a day, every day of the year.

b. Shift coverage provides on-site staff coverage 24 hours a day, seven days a week when a survivor is in residence at the shelter and/or when the hotline is answered at the shelter facility.

c. Regardless of the shift requirements, the first priority of the staff is to be responsive and accessible to a resident or hotline caller.

d. A family violence program provides a back up system for use during emergencies. A supervisor or designee is available "on call" by way of pager or in some manner of contact that allows for immediate response. Each program establishes a protocol that defines criteria and steps for using the back-up system.

e. Family violence programs provide a record of individual and group supervision for shelter employees. Supervision is implemented no less than monthly for part-time employees (20 or less in a week) and biweekly for full-time employees. Documentation of supervision for volunteers is recorded and implemented as if they were part time employees.

f. Documentation of staff/volunteer supervision reflects the fact that the supervision took place and a listing of general subject(s) covered in the session is in the personnel or volunteer's file. In the event of problems related to staff performance, documentation is performed according to the program's personnel policies.

g. Procedures for adequate staff communication to provide continuity of service for survivors, including a regular review of any problem areas to resolve, will be developed and implemented.

2. Shelter Services

a. Every survivor is provided:

i. emergency shelter which is structurally safe and accommodates the particular security concerns of family violence survivors. The method of providing this security needs to be documented and this knowledge made available to survivors;

ii. confidentially of stay at shelter. This is documented in a form and signed by the survivor during intake;

iii. emergency food, clothing, and hygiene items free of charge to adult survivors and their children. When medical services are needed the program helps survivors access services.

b. Advocacy/intervention services, including safety planning for the shelter stay and travel outside the shelter, are available and offered 24 hours a day, every day of the year, with trained advocates on site to provide face-to-face emergency services.

c. Family violence shelters ensure that staff members:

i. have immediate face-to-face contact with a new survivor admitted to shelter to help determine emergency needs, orient them to the shelter facility and procedures;

ii. conduct a formal face-to-face intake process with a new survivor upon admission to shelter and answer any questions the survivor may have. During this time the staff gives the survivor a copy of shelter guidelines and education material on family violence, being very sensitive to the survivor's ability to read and understand. The staff person doing the intake is trained on discipline guidelines for children in the shelter and how to assist the mother on following these guidelines through appropriate discipline techniques;

iii. sign a written agreement with each survivor about services to be provided by the shelter, which include but are not limited to:

(a). program services, its staff and volunteers;

(b). confidentiality agreements, including records;

(c). house guidelines, rights and privacy matters;

d. House guidelines are written in positive and respectful language, including those guidelines posted throughout the house. The purpose of the guideline is for protection, safety or health. Guidelines are limited to the most crucial of situations and reflect the intent to show that the shelter facility is the survivor's home. (OWS with the assistance of LCADV will review program guidelines and offer suggestions.) House guidelines include only those items under the following three categories.

i. Safety

(a). around confidentiality issues (confidentiality of staff and survivors and program locations, etc.);

(b). around security issues (possession of weapons, locked doors, etc.); and

(c). around physical safety (threats or acts of violence including discipline of children, etc.).

ii. Group Living

(a). programs encourage cooperation between survivors in communal living;

(b). programs make every reasonable effort to keep a survivor eligible for services regardless of her ability or willingness to participate in daily upkeep of the shelter facility and to adhere to the health and safety guidelines.

iii. Respect for Self and Others. Demerit and warning systems are not used.

iv. Survivors constitutional right to privacy in their person, property, communications, papers and effects is respected at all times by programs. Survivors are not under any circumstances subjected to unwarranted or unreasonable searches conducted by shelter staff of the survivors person, room, or property. However, circumstances may arise at a shelter where some sort of search may be necessary to protect the health or safety of other survivors or staff.

e. All survivors residing in the shelter for more than 72 hours are provided with an individualized service plan. The survivor plan reflects assistance to survivor's needs. Programs design service plans to facilitate revision in the event circumstances change. This plan includes:

i. release of information agreements;

ii. an individual or family plan of self-defined goals and actions to address needed services to maintain safety and create self-sufficiency;

iii. list of guidelines for children in the shelter;

iv. length of stay polices.

f. A protocol is developed by each program for safe travel of all survivors. All protocols contain a provision for survivor travel to the shelter for intake. Further, the protocol reflects survivors need for local travel whether provided by themselves, the program or public/private carriers.

3. Discharge of Survivors

a. Family violence shelters establish a length of stay policy that is flexible and that balances the needs of survivors and the program's ability to meet those needs. Length of stay policy cannot be shorter than six weeks.

b. Shelters document the attempt to provide an exit interview with each survivor prior to their departure. Minimum categories of exit interview include, but are not limited to, an assessment of program services, treatment by staff (respectful, helpful, available), knowledge of staff in the areas of dynamics of family violence, children's services, safety planning, and goal planning. This is to be completed by survivor through use of a survivor friendly survey. The exit interview provides for a revision of the survivor's safety plan (inclusive of children's safety issues) and linkage to outreach and/or follow up services provided by the program and other community resources. These items are listed in detail on an exit interview form. The exit interview survey and form must be approved by OWS and LCADV.

c. Involuntary Discharge. Shelters must make every effort to work with a survivor in order for them to remain in shelter, except for situations which compromise the safety of others such as:

i. the use of violence or threats of violence;

ii. the use of behavior that repeatedly disrupts the ability of other survivors/children to receive safe and effective services;

iii. possession of illegal substances;

iv. possession of firearms, stun-guns, knives or any other weapon that may be used or by accident to threaten a life;

v. active suicidal or homicidal behaviors;

vi. violating the confidentiality of another resident.

d. An individual service plan/contract is developed with the survivor and appropriate documentation placed in the survivor's file which demonstrates attempts to assist the survivor and/or her children with problematic/disruptive behaviors.

i. Example A. A survivor is drinking alcohol and returning to the shelter intoxicated. Once sobriety is established, the program staff addresses this problem with the survivor and offer to develop a contract or service plan regarding this situation, such as requiring the survivor to attend AA meetings and assisting the survivor to those meetings. If the contract is not followed or the situation reoccurs, then steps to find other resources for the survivor are offered. If this is not accepted, the survivor may be asked to leave. The contract and service plan are documented in survivor's file to reflect the process of offering assistance.

ii. Example B. A survivor's child's behavior is repeatedly disruptive or destructive. A worker addresses this problem with the survivor/parent and offers suggestions to remedy this by developing a plan which may include alternate resources such as a parental support group or referrals to other appropriate child service providers in the community.

e. Survivors may be asked to leave under the following circumstances:

i. credible threats to others, with intent to harm;

ii. unresolved disruptive or abusive behavior; or

iii. if the safety of the shelter is compromised by their continued presence.

4. Re-Entry

a. Shelters do not discriminate against a survivor by limiting the number of times of re-entry or by requiring a time limit between re-entry. Programs do not maintain a "no re-admit" list; however, it is permissible to "not admit at this time" if a survivor is not currently appropriate. This information is documented in survivor's file. Reentry status reflects the survivor's need and behaviors at the current time and is not based on past situations.

La. Admin. Code tit. 4, § VII-1729

Promulgated by the Office of the Governor, Office of Women's Services, LR 27:536 (April 2001).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 46:2122B and R.S. 46:2127B1.