NJAMHAA News - October 2021

October 2021 28 October 2021 Take a moment and focus on your organization’s abuse prevention program. Do you consider your organization complacent, compliant, or…committed? Complacent organizations are typically tight-knit environments where everyone knows everyone. The culture in this setting usually does not support a belief that the risk of abuse is real, and so they become complacent with their policies, screening and employee training. Compliant organizations are ‘box-checkers.’ They check off boxes for only those items required by licensing and law. Then there are committed organizations. I’m not talking about buy-in at some of the levels. “Committed” means your organization is focused on abuse prevention, starting with your board of directors and trickling down to every employee and volunteer at every level in your organization. Who loses when an organization becomes complacent or compliant? The victims of abuse, their family members, entire communities, and the organization. Abuse has a crippling long-term effect. When abuse occurs within an organization, that organization’s mission – its sole purpose for existence – becomes threatened. Organizations experience loss of reputation, which leads to loss of donations. They incur large financial expenses defending or settling abuse claims. Obtaining or renewing abuse and molestation insurance becomes extremely difficult and sometimes impossible. Meanwhile, employee morale, the life force and spirit of your organization, crumbles and employees begin to leave. But, here’s the deal: It doesn’t have to be this way! Abuse is preventable and it starts by becoming committed to abuse prevention. As a Certified PraesidiumGuardian, I have learned the concept of the Praesidium Safety Equation ® , which focuses on eight key areas necessary to provide a safe environment for your consumers. 1. Policies and Procedures Policies and procedures lay the foundation for consistent acceptable and non-accept- able behaviors within your organization. 2. Screening and Selection Process The people in your organization respon- sible for hiring are your gatekeepers. They determine who will have access to your consumers. It is critical they understand the importance of using the screening and selection process to make informed decisions about who they let into your organization. 3. Training Abuse prevention training should be incorporated into your organization’s onboarding process and continued regularly for all employees. Training is two-fold in that it should educate employees and volunteers on your organization’s abuse preven- tion policies and provide themwith the knowledge and skills to prevent abuse. 4. Monitoring and Supervision Appropriate monitoring and supervision prevent potential of- fenders from gaining access and control. High-risk activities and areas should be monitored closely. 5. Internal Feedback and Suggestions Feedback provides valuable information relevant to the detec- tion and prevention of abuse within your organization. To gather this information, your organization should implement a system for reporting concerns, complaints and grievances. It’s important that any barriers to reporting are eliminated and employees are praised or rewarded for making reports. 6. Consumer Participation Consumers need to know about boundaries and how they can report violations. Parents and guardians of consumers should also be educated, so they are able to have important conversa- tions. They should understand your organization’s policies on Complacent, Compliant, or How Does your Organization Stack Up in Lisa A. Bellis, ARM, CPG, CSM, CIC, CRIS, Senior Vice President, Risk Management & Loss Control, Brown & Brown, Inc. Abuse is preventable and it starts by becoming committed to abuse prevention. - Lisa A. Bellis