Why being called a “Confidentiality Warrior” matters
A national group that supports local domestic violence groups with information and referrals recently spotlighted Haven as “confidentiality warriors” and we couldn’t be more proud and honored.
In a recent blog post, Carol Schrader, a senior attorney with the national Victim Rights Law Center, called Haven one of her “favorite programs” because of our iron-clad confidentiality practices with the survivors we support.
“Why do I love them so? Let me count (some of) the ways…Haven has a routine confidentiality practice. They have quarterly meetings that focus on issues related to confidentiality. At these meetings, the advocacy team debriefs and strategizes about how they might better protect confidentiality. (Be still my heart.)”
VRLC is a nonprofit law firm that provides legal representation for survivors of sexual assault and national technical assistance and training to attorneys, advocates, and other victim services providers. Haven has received consultation and support with our program policies and developing procedures from VRLC since about 2018.
Why this matters to us
Haven is legally bound to keep confidentiality with survivors we support because of grants we receive under the auspices of the federal Violence Against Women Act – a law passed initially in 1994 and re-authorized multiple times since then.
But we also prioritize confidentiality because there’s value in it in our relationships with survivors – especially in a small city like Bozeman.
“Confidentiality is aligned with empowerment because it communicates to survivors that we won't share their information with anyone without expressed, informed consent from them,” said Haven Program Director Kareena. “This is a clear message that they know what is best for them and that what they share with us is sacred. That we're not the experts, they are.”
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