The client has to be at the core of the treatment process. Therefore, the individual has to contact us directly and follow the intake process. There is no referral form to fill and send us on your part. Your role as a counselor is to present our services and our approach, and to give to the client our contact information. You can be present during the first contact by phone, if the client wishes so. In some rare occasions, and if the client wishes to, you can even be present during their first session.
Elements facilitating reference
Take the client’s worries into account and share pertinent information
Many people are apprehensive about asking for help from an organization specialized in domestic violence:
- Fear of being judged, denigrated, labeled
- Doubts regarding their ability to engage and fully profit from the program
They might need to be reassured regarding:
- How they will be received
- Delays
- How our services work (including costs)
- Confidentiality
They might also benefit from general information regarding how previous participants evaluated our programs.
Use the motivation of the client
People requesting services from an organization for people with violent behaviors generally report being motivated by the desire to fill the following needs:
- Assess their situation
- Learn to better know oneself
- Rebuild hope
- Get support, a good listener, and good advices
- Go through a crisis
- Better deal with stress and difficult situations
- Improve the quality of their couple relationship
- Avoid hurting their loved-ones
- Control their anger
- Break the intergenerational transmission cycle
- Stop being afraid of themselves
- Avoid criminal penalties or interventions from Youth Protection