DSWD: Referral guidelines out for victims of violence

A government inter-agency council has come out with guidelines on the referral system for victims of violence, the Department of Social Welfare and Development has said. The Inter-Agency Council on Violence Against Women and their Children (IACVAWC)'s guidelines apply to the local government level, the DSWD said. "The guidelines mentioned the various services to be given to a victim-survivor of violence from legal, medical, social and aftercare services which are provided by various agencies of the government," it said. Moreover, it said the guidelines are part of efforts to provide comprehensive services to meet the needs of victims-survivors of violence and their families. According to the DSWD, the guidelines emphasized the need for coordination as women and children victims of violence have various needs that can rarely be met by a single facility, agency or organization. It underscored in particular the needs of victims-survivors such as:

Meeting such needs will require the coordinated efforts of various agencies, which will be accomplished through the establishment of an efficient and effective referral system, it said. Agencies' roles Under the referral system, member-agencies have outlined and identified their specific roles and responsibilities in addressing the needs of the victims-survivors. The DSWD and local service providers in the local governments are mandated to provide temporary shelter, counseling, psychosocial services and/or recovery, rehabilitative programs and livelihood assistance. For their part, the Department of Health and other health service facilities shall provide medical assistance to victims. Barangay officials and law enforcers shall respond immediately and provide protection to the victims and report the incident to the DSWD or local social welfare office for assessment and assistance. "To ensure the quality of services provided to VAW victims-survivors, the Guidelines require that members of the referral network are professionally competent to provide gender responsive intervention(s) at each level to protect women and children victims-survivors from being re-traumatized," the DSWD said. The IACVAWC is composed of the DSWD, Philippine Commission on Women (PCW), Department of Justice (DOJ), DOH, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), and Philippine National Police (PNP). — LBG, GMA News