Explain The Procedure When Reporting Abuse

safeguarding, who a vulnerable adult is, different types of abuse, who may abuse, factors and

All complains has to be reported to senior staff and recorded in care plan of resident. If any complain is related to abuse

Abuse can happen anywhere anytime, but especially to vulnerable people, ie Children, elderly people, people with disabilities, people with learning difficulties. It can even happen in places people should be safe, ie hospitals, residential/ nursing homes, schools, daycare/ nurseries, centres etc.

All schools have policies and procedures in place to support staff in their management of situations these may involve violence, threatening behaviour or abuse amongst other policies which are all legal requirements within the setting of a school, you must adhere to these policies and familiarise yourself on where these policies can be found within the school surroundings. At our school all policies can be found in Mrs McNally’s the headmistress’s office within a contained cupboard all labelled up with titles on the folders.

If any professional becomes concerned that a child might be at risk of abuse, be it physical, sexual, emotional or neglect, it is their legal duty to pass on such concerns to the appropriate professionals who can assess if and what action should be taken. In cases where it will not put the child at greater risk or danger, the parents / carers of the child will be informed that such action has been taken.

• As practitioners we should also get support. As practitioners this can become very stressful and upsetting for us when we are involved in a case of suspected abuse or actual abuse, so it is important that we can talk to others about this, but because of strict confidentiality you must not talk to anyone who does not need to know. Your Supervisor /manager/colleagues can help support you but remember again this information is confidential so only talk to other professionals that you can legally confide in. Your manager/supervisor will put you in touch with an outside professional that you can talk things over with. This is usually a Social worker or a person from the NSPCC.

if the alleged abuse is of a criminal matter (e.g. assault, rape), then the police will need to be called. If there is any doubt, then you should refer to the policies and procedures or (again) speak to your supervisor or any other senior member of staff

If you suspect a child is being abused you would firstly need to report your concerns to your manager, you would need to explain why you believe the child is at risk. The manager will then get in touch with social services to express their concerns for the child’s welfare and then follow that up in writing within 48 hours. Next Social Services will work with the manager to decide on a plan of action for the child and then an initial assessment would need to be completed. If social services decide that the matter does not need urgent action they would then work alongside the appropriate agencies to decide the next steps for the case. If social services decide that urgent action is needed they would firstly have an immediate discussion with the police and other agencies, they would then seek

Abuse may be revealed in a number of different ways. For example you may find that someone wants to tell you about it because they trust you. Also it might be from someone who has observed the abuse taking place, e.g. resident seeing a care worker shaking another resident because they were too slow getting dressed. The abuse is disclosed to the professional, sometimes with a request for confidentiality.

‘If I suspect abuse through noticing a sign of physical abuse or change in the behaviour of an individual, I will make sure that I ask the individual what has happened telling the individual the changes that I have noticed. If it is in my place of work and the name of the person that abused the individual is known, whether staff or another service user, I must also record and report this. I will listen to the individual carefully; it is up to them to tell me, I would not ask them any questions about this as this is not part of my job role and would stay calm.I will make sure that I record what the individual tells me using the individual’s own words. I will make sure that I reassure the individual and explain that their safety is the most important and that it is my duty of care to tell the manager. I will make sure that I let my manager know what has happened immediately and pass

My working environment deals with adult. A vulnerable adult is a person aged eighteen years or over who needs to depend on other people for at least some of their care and support and is unable to protect themselves from harm or exploitation. This can be due to learning disabilities, mental health problems, age or illness, and physical disability or impairment. Every adult has a right to respect, dignity, privacy, equity and a life free from abuse (Joint Committee on Human Rights). There are a growing number of incidents of adult abuse, many of which are not reported. That is why everyone has a responsibility to help prevent adult abuse by doing something about it especially I have a duty of care in my profession under my competencies to protect vulnerable people. There are robust, policies and procedures for safe guarding and protecting adults and

Safeguarding vulnerable group act 2006 is an Act that protects vulnerable people from abuse. Legislation policies and procedures for safeguarding groups have made health and social care staff much more aware of what is regarded as abuse and how to identify that abuse may have occurred. This rule helps to know what to do and how to do it if you suspect any kind of maltreatment or abuse or if an individual tells you that they are being abused. (Stretch, Whitehouse, health and social care level 3 books 1 P105).

The home shut down and many members of staff were suspended. The members of staff involved in the abuse were all punished and some receiving prison sentences after being found guilty of physical, emotional and verbal abuse. Ever since this case there has been many changes made to how care homes and residential services are regulated especially through CQC.

Abuse of vulnerable adults may occur at the adult's home, in a supportive accommodation such a hospital, care home or nursing home, independent living accomadtation, health services such as GP surgeries, public settings and local community or other places previously assumed safe. Where the abuse occurs will be determined by the setting in the environment. Nursing care homes, surgeries and hospitals usually have strict regulatory controls to ensure adequate care is being given, however paid care staff in domiciliary homes may work with little or no supervision. Where there is poor management, little assessment and no enforced legislation in place, those receiving support are more likely to receive inadequate care; this is when abuse starts to occur.

You may follow all of the procedures necessary, and report your concerns in the appropriate way, and find that no action has been taken place. If this happens then you have the right to report your concerns directly to the social services or the police. If you believe there is physical abuse or criminal damage, or fraud then you should most certainly refer the matter the police. Although its stated that your manager or supervisor should be notified, you may find your self in a situation where you do not believe that they will challenge or respond to the situation, you must take the referral to a more senior and move up the chain. If you are unable to find anyone to report to then you should contact an outside agency and inform social services.