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Staff safety in the workplaceGuidelines for the prevention and management ofoccupational violence for Victorian Child Protection and community-based Juvenile Justice staff

Guidelines for the preventionand management ofoccupational violence forVictorian Child Protectionand community-basedJuvenile Justice staffOffice for Children

Department of Human Services

Staff safety in the workplace

Published by the Office for Children, Victorian GovernmentDepartment of Human Services, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

June 2005

© Copyright State of Victoria, Department of Human Services, 2005.

This publication is copyright. No part may be produced by any process except in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968.

Authorised by the Victorian Government, 555 Collins Street, Melbourne.

Printed by GT Graphics, 34 Stanley Street, Collingwood.

(0040605)

Further information

For further information about these guidelines,please contact:

Office for ChildrenDepartment of Human Services555 Collins StreetMelbourne, Victoria 3000Telephone: (03) 9616 7777

Supporting and strengthening the workforce is an integral priority of the Department of Human Services. Staff safety in the workplace. Guidelines for theprevention and management of occupational violence forVictorian Child Protectionand community-based Juvenile Justice staff forms part of the Office for Children’scommitment to providing and maintaining a safe and healthy work environmentfor its staff and clients.

The work conducted with children and young people is complex and demanding. The aim of Staff safety in the workplace is to provide consistent guidelines for all Child Protection and community-based Juvenile Justice employees, which promote safe practice and minimise the risk of employees encountering occupational violence.

While serious incidents can occur, steps can be taken to identify hazards and reducerisks. Staff safety in the workplace provides a systematic and practical approach topreventing and managing occupational violence. It also proposes ways to incorporatesafety precautions that complement practice in a way that does not compromise thecrucial work conducted with clients and families.

Please read Staff safety in the workplace. It is based on sound safety frameworks and valuable input from experienced practitioners. The document will be a helpful aid in orientating, supervising and training staff and will provide a reference point forexperienced staff. This document should be used in conjunction with local regionalsafety guidelines.

It is anticipated all Child Protection and community-based Juvenile Justice staffwill be trained in these guidelines and once the guidelines have been implemented,their application will be evaluated.

We encourage staff to make full use of this resource.

Christina AsquiniDirector, Child Protection and Family Services

and

Jan NoblettDirector, Juvenile Justice and Youth Services Department of Human Services

2005

Foreword

Staff safety in the workplace iii

Contents

Foreword iii

Part 1 Introduction 1

1.1 Purpose of this document 1

1.2 Department of Human Services Occupational Violence Prevention Policy 1

1.3 Definitions of occupational violence 2

1.4 Legislative context 4

1.5 Supervision 4

1.6 Defining the workplace 4

1.7 Keeping safe 4

1.8 Scope of this document 4

1.9 Continual improvement 4

1.10 Relevant departmental references 4

1.11 Acknowledgements 5

Part 2 Risk management 6

2.1 Departmental responsibilities 6

2.2 Hazard identification approaches 6

2.3 Information, instruction and supervision 7

Part 3 Hazard identification 8

3.1 Hazardous situations 8

3.2 Severe hazards 8

3.3 Other serious hazards 9

3.4 Hierarchy of control 9

Part 4 Risk assessment 10

4.1 Preparing for contact 10

4.2 Routine contacts 10

4.3 Ongoing risk assessment 10

Part 5 Risk control 11

5.1 Control plan for severe hazards 11

5.2 Control plan for other serious hazards 13

5.3 Risk control options and strategies 13

Part 6 Post-incident management and support 22

6.1 Medical assistance 22

6.2 Disease Injury Near Miss Accident and incident reports 22

6.3 Support 23

6.4 Employee Assistance Program 24

6.5 Managing the perpetrator 24

6.6 Making complaints to the police 24

6.7 Return to work program 24

6.8 Common personal reactions to occupational violence 24

Bibliography and further reading 26

Appendix 1: Department of Human Services Health, Safety and Wellbeing 27

Appendix 2: Department of Human Services Occupational Violence Prevention Policy 29

Appendix 3: Melbourne Children’s Court 31

Appendix 4: Rural Children’s Court 33

Appendix 5: Professional visits to juvenile justice centres 34

Appendix 6: The law of negligence 35

Appendix 7: Known environment audit 37

Appendix 8: Occupational violence - severe hazard identification 38

Appendix 8a: Occupational violence - hazard identification checklist 39

Appendix 8b: Indicators of imminent violence 40

Appendix 8c: Personal safety plan 41

Appendix 9: Risk assessment worksheet for client contact 43

Appendix 9a: Risk management worksheet for client contact 44

1.1 Purpose of this documentThe purpose of Staff safety in theworkplace is to prevent and manageviolence against staff. This document is a resource to assist staff and supervisorsand managers at all levels to work safelywhile providing an effective service toclients. It is a tool to help preventoccupational violence and forms partof the Department of Human Services’overarching approach to safety in theworkplace (see Appendixes 1 and 2).

Working in Child Protection and JuvenileJustice is very challenging. Clientsinvolved in these programs can oftenpresent angry and frustrated. Unlikeother welfare services, Child Protectionand Juvenile Justice staff have a statutoryobligation to provide services to clientswho might behave in an aggressivemanner. Both programs aim to providerespectful, proactive, flexible andresponsive interventions with statutoryclients. Particular skills are required towork effectively with this client group and these skills are acquired through a combination of training, observationand direct experience.

Integral to these guidelines is a focus ona participatory (consultative) ongoingassessment of day-to-day occupationalviolence risks. This enables supervisorsand staff to regularly and consistentlyidentify hazards and risks, which meansthe controls to minimise the risks arerelevant and current. This resource does not aim to cover every aspectof occupational violence, but does:

• articulate staff safety guidelines for theOffice for Children

• provide a structured risk managementapproach to dealing with day-to-dayidentification, assessment andmanagement of occupational violencerisks associated with clients

• establish guidelines for staff safety,provide a focus for supervision andtraining activities and provide guidance on:

– preventing the occurrence ofviolence by identifying hazards and eliminating or controlling them

– establishing and maintaining asystem to manage occupationalviolence

– available resources (for example,information, training and supervision,and tools such as mobiletelephones).

1.2 Department of HumanServices OccupationalViolence Prevention PolicyThe following is edited text from thedepartment’s Occupational ViolencePrevention Policy. The complete policy is at Appendix 2.

The Department of Human Services is committed to creating a safe andproductive workplace by improvinghealth, safety and wellbeing at work. The client care and working environmentwill reflect the requirements of state andfederal law, and community expectationsfor the protection of clients and staff. The department defines occupationalassault as any incident in whichemployees are abused, threatened orassaulted in circumstances arising outof or in the course of their employment,including verbal, physical andpsychological abuse. The departmentrecognises that occupational assaultinjuries represent a significant proportionof overall injuries and aims to eliminatethe risks associated with these injuriesand to implement controlled solutionswhere elimination is not possible. This policy covers all facets of theDepartment of Human Services’business where people are managing or are exposed to the risk of injuryresulting from occupational assault.

Legislation

The department will comply with therequirements of the Occupational Healthand Safety Act 2004 to provide a safeworkplace, including safe systems of work.

Principles

• Senior management commitment iscritical to achieving improvements inthe health, safety and wellbeing ofemployees.

• Consultation with stakeholders,including departmental managementand employees, and employeerepresentative organisations, willprovide positive and effective workplacehealth and safety outcomes.

• Preventing health, safety and wellbeing risks in the workplace is the most effective way to reduceillness and injury.

• No work-related injury to employees is acceptable. The goal is zero injuries.

Commitments

All tasks and systems will be examined using the framework ofhazard identification, assessment andcontrol, and a monitored process ofcontinuous improvement. Appropriateresources will be allocated to enablecompliance with legislative requirementto provide a safe workplace, with priorityallocation to highest risks.

Consultation

• In line with the department’sconsultation policy, staff, occupationalhealth and safety representatives and management will manageoccupational assault issues throughthe consultative process.

Staff safety in the workplace 1

Part 1Introduction

Systems of work

• Program-specific policies andprocedures designed to reduce the risk of occupational assault hazards will be developed and implemented,with priority given to high-risk groups.Reporting systems for all incidents,including near misses, injuries andillness, will effectively promote early reporting.

Client behaviour assessment andmanagement

• Clients in the department’s care will be assessed using existing systems,and behaviour management strategieswill be developed and documented.

• Behaviour management strategies will be reviewed as required tomaintain staff safety.

Supervision

• Supervision will be provided bymanagers and other key personnel inrelation to performance of work tasksand personal safety to reduce the risks of occupational assault injury.

• Supervisors will monitor employeeskills and competencies inimplementing client behaviourmanagement strategies.

Post-incident stressmanagement

• Management will providedemobilisation and staff will be offered debriefing and defusingthrough the Critical Incident StressManagement (CISM) service, withinrecommended timelines.

Monitoring implementation

• All departmental programs will havetheir safety performance monitoredusing the Safety PerformanceManagement System.

Responsibilities

Senior managers are responsible for:

• ensuring implementation of the SafetyPerformance Management System

• ensuring policy commitments reduceoccupational assault risks.

Managers are responsible for:

• identifying, assessing and controllingoccupational assault risks

• inducting and training employees in preventing occupational violencework practices

• working with employees andcontractors to prevent and minimiseoccupational assault risks

• investigating all incidents andmaintaining records of incidentinvestigations

• maintaining staff training records

• providing immediate and ongoingsupport for employees exposed tooccupational assault.

Employees are responsible for:

• following work practices designed toreduce occupational assault risk

• identifying and reporting occupationalassault risks to management

• working with management to preventand minimise occupational assault risks

• reporting all incidents.

1.3 Definitions ofoccupational violenceWorkSafe Victoria’s publication,Prevention of bullying and violence atwork: guidance note (2003) definesoccupational violence as ‘any incidentwhere an employee is physically attackedor threatened in the workplace’. Within this definition:

• ‘threat’ means a statement orbehaviour that causes a person tobelieve they are in danger of beingphysically attacked

• ‘physical attack’ means the director indirect application of force by aperson to the body of, or to clothing or equipment worn by, another person,where that application creates a riskto health and safety.

The most common forms of assaultagainst staff are verbal abuse and threatsof harm. Verbal abuse includes shouting,intimidation, sarcasm and personalinsults. Staff might also be subjected to sexual or racial harassment throughoffensive suggestions and remarks. The impact of verbal assaults on staffcan be considerable and can affecttheir psychological wellbeing.

The following flowchart depicts thesystematic approach to managingoccupational violence using a riskmanagement strategy. Detailedprocedures and tools to support thisstrategy and to provide direction tomanagement and staff can be found in the Work Health Tool Kit (DHS, 2005).

2 Staff safety in the workplace


Occupational violence prevention flowchart

Health, Safety and Wellbeing Policy

Occupational Violence Prevention Policy

Client profile Staff profile

Intervention with no actual or threatened occupational violence

Intervention with actual or threatened occupational violence

Managementresponsibility

Physical environment

Hazard identification

Controls

Risk assessments

New or changed work practice:hazard identification

New client or staff member:hazard identification

Incident investigation

Reports:• DINMA • Incident • Police

Post-incident: • Support • Counselling • CISM• EAP

Workcover: • Claim• Return to work

1.4 Legislative contextThe principles of health and safetyprotection under the Occupational Healthand Safety Act 2004 (Vic) stipulate:

1. The importance of health and safetyrequires that employees, otherpersons at work and members ofthe public be given the highest level of protection that is reasonablypracticable in the circumstances.

2. Persons who control or managematters that give rise to risks to health or safety are responsible foreliminating or reducing those risks as far as is reasonably practicable.

3. Employers and self-employed personsshould be proactive and take allreasonably practicable measures to ensure health and safety atworkplaces and in the conductof undertakings.

4. Employers and employees shouldexchange information and ideas about risks to health and safety and measures that can be taken to eliminate or reduce those risks.

5. Employees are entitled, and should be encouraged, to be represented inrelation to health and safety issues.

Under the Act, the department, as anemployer, has a responsibility to take all reasonably practicable measures to provide a safe working environment.The Office for Children recognises itsresponsibilities under this legislation forthe safety of its employees. It provides all staff with induction, information,instruction, training and supervision toensure they can carry out duties in amanner that is safe and without riskto health and have the necessaryknowledge to contribute to work-relatedhealth and safety.

1.5 SupervisionSupervision plays a critical role in staff health and safety. All staff safetyissues, and the planning and checklistprocedures outlined in this document,must be discussed in supervision. Healthand safety is a regular agenda item ofChild Protection supervision (see theChild Protection supervision standards(Department of Human Services 2005)).

1.6 Defining the workplaceThe definition of workplace is extendedto all locations an employee visits duringthe course of their work. Therefore,the provisions of the occupational health and safety legislation apply to all environments in which workis conducted, such as home visits,meetings away from the office,court attendances and outreach.

1.7 Keeping safeThe department has a statutoryobligation to provide, so far as reasonablypracticable, work environments that aresafe for all staff. Effective measures forminimising the risk of occupationalviolence are:

• establishing and maintaining a cultureof safety through the department’sconsultative processes

• maintaining routine work practices thatenhance safety

• assessing the risks to staff safetybefore every client contact

• effectively managing conflict

• building and maintaining a skilledworkforce.

1.8 Scope of this documentThe purpose of this document is toidentify ways to enhance and managestaff safety regarding occupationalviolence in the workplace. It includesviolence generated by clients and theirfamilies and carers in all areas wherestaff carry out their work. Staff-initiatedassault is subject to separate proceduresand processes.

1.9 Continual improvementThis resource will be monitored andreviewed for continual improvementas understandings and practices inmanaging violence against staff and itsimpact are refined. It is anticipated allChild Protection and community-basedJuvenile Justice staff will be trained inthese guidelines and once the guidelineshave been implemented, their applicationwill be evaluated.

1.10 Relevant departmentalreferencesThe department has an integratedapproach to health and safety, whichincludes the following procedures,guidelines and publications:

• Health, safety and wellbeing policy

• Occupational violence prevention policy(a revision of the Occupational assaultreduction policy)

• Incident reporting departmentalinstruction

• Critical incident stress managementservice guidelines

• Guidelines for employee assistanceprogram

• Disease Injury Near Miss Accident(DINMA) reporting

• Occupational health and safetyconsultative Structure. User guide and summary


• Occupational health and safetyaccountability framework. User guide and summary

• Resolving claims of unacceptablebehaviour

• Risk management framework

• Child Protection, Beginning Practicelearning guide

• Work Health Tool Kit.

1.11 AcknowledgementsRegional Child Protection and JuvenileJustice staff contributed to this resource.It is based on work developed in thedepartment’s Northern Metropolitan and Southern Metropolitan regions.

The Staff Safety in the WorkplaceReference Group and Child Protectionand Juvenile Justice personnel gaveadvice and creative insight to theseguidelines, and a range of people acrossthe department made valuable input.These guidelines are also the resultof extensive discussions with theCommunity Public Sector Union and WorkSafe Victoria.


The safety of staff cannot be simply a function of situational responses or guesswork. Violence can often be predicted and prevented. A riskmanagement approach provides asystematic framework for violenceprevention and management planning.Awareness of high-risk situations allowsfor enhanced interventions with clientswho might be violent.

Staff safety in the workplace is based ona framework for controlling occupationalhealth and safety risks in Australia. The framework has three steps:

• step one: hazard identification(identifying the extent and type of hazard)

• step two: risk assessment (identifyingthe factors that contribute to risk)

• step three: risk control (implementingnecessary changes to eliminate orcontrol the risk and monitoring andevaluating the risk control process).

Certain tasks can increase the risk ofviolence; for example, removing a child or breaching an order. A systemic view offactors that might influence occupationalviolence can be helpful. First, the natureof the task and the client group shouldbe considered, followed by the physicalenvironment (for example, the location,such as an office, court, or client’shome). Conducting this type ofassessment helps to identify and assessrisks and then allows decisions to bemade about the best way to control (that is, remove or reduce) the risks.

2.1 DepartmentalresponsibilitiesThe department’s Health, Safety andWellbeing Policy outlines all staffmembers’ roles and responsibilities for staff health, safety and wellbeing(Appendix 1). Developing andimplementing strategies to manageoccupational violence is a managementresponsibility. Under the policy, allemployees are responsible for observing,notifying about and acting on workplacehazards. The department provides anincident reporting system all employeesshould use so staff can be supported andhazards can be identified, managed andmonitored. (Refer to section 6.2, DiseaseInjury Near Miss Accident (DINMA) andincident reports.

2.2 Hazard identificationapproachesThe department has a number of systemsin place to detect, consult on and recordhazards. Child Protection and JuvenileJustice use the following mechanisms to identify hazards:

• alerts on clients’ electronic and paper files

• staff supervision and staff meetings(refer to section 2.2)

• critical incident reporting (refer to section 6.2 for DINMA and incident reports)

• the workload review and monitoringpanel

• reports with health and safetyrepresentatives (refer to section 2.1)

• case reviews and audits

• psycho-social assessments of clients

• ongoing consultations with police,including criminal records checks

• employee climate survey.

Part 2Risk management


2.3 Information, instructionand supervisionThe following forums provide staff withthe information they need to functionsafely and effectively in the workplace.addressing occupational health andsafety matters should also be an integralpart of day-to-day management.

Orientation and induction ofnew employees

Where practical, employees mustcomplete the induction process beforecommencing direct work with clients. The induction process should be used to:

• make new employees aware of theVictorian Public Sector Code ofConduct

• inform employees of the risks involvedin their work, particularly any risks foroccupational violence

• provide employees with theinformation and skills they require tounderstand and apply the preventativestrategies being used to deal with therisks of occupational violence, and tomanage potentially violent situations to the best of their ability

• ensure all employees are informed of the mechanisms and processesassociated with health and safety (for example, occupational health and safety representatives and theDINMA system).

Child ProtectionNew employees to the Child Protectionprogram are required to complete aseven-week comprehensive inductioncalled the ‘Beginning Practice’ program,which includes both on- and off-the-joblearning. Employees complete ‘BeginningPractice’ prior to taking on casemanagement responsibility for clients.

Supervision and staff meetings

Clients should be assessed for potentialviolence at the time their case isallocated to a case manager. Thisassessment can be done in discussionsbetween the supervisor and the casemanager. The supervisor and the casemanager should consider all sources ofinformation. Client assessment should be ongoing, and identified hazards andassociated risks should be placed onclient information systems.

Supervision and regular staff meetingsare integral to risk management and are important approaches to the earlydetection of risk to staff. As such, it isessential communication between staffmembers and the supervisor takes place.

Training

It is anticipated all Child Protection andcommunity-based Juvenile Justice staffwill be trained in these guidelines. Thisdocument should be read in conjunctionwith training material provided duringemployee orientation and safety orconflict management training.


To minimise the risk of occupationalviolence, staff must identify and assessthe potential risks for violence using thechecklists at Appendixes 8 and 8a.Hazard identification is the first step inthe process of managing risk. If a hazardis not identified and consequentlymanaged, its associated risk cannotbe managed. A hazard is defined asanything that has the potential to harmthe health and safety of a person.

As well as identifying hazards prior tocontact with the client, staff need tomonitor the situation during contactfor evidence of increased risk. Thechecklist at Appendix 8b will help thestaff member to identify a hazard. Thesafety plan at Appendix 8c, which thesupervisor and the staff member willdevelop, will identify how the risk is to be managed.

3.1 Hazardous situationsThe nature of the work environmentand client group of Child Protection and Juvenile Justice predisposes staff tohazards and, consequently, to risks. It istherefore critical staff are made aware of hazards and their associated risks.

A number of identified hazards for staffin Child Protection and Juvenile Justiceincrease the likelihood of their beingexposed to occupational violence. These hazards include:

• applying legislation that relates to child protection and juvenile justice

• working in clients’ homes

• working after hours

• visiting clients in high-risk or isolatedareas

• working and living within a client’scommunity

• working with clients experiencing painand anger associated with separationand loss

• working with clients whose behaviouris unpredictable (for example, clientsaffected by substance abuse ormental illness)

• being exposed to clients who are violent and use threats andintimidation.

3.2 Severe hazardsThe following hazards are identified as severe and the associated risks are considered high:

• Firearms might be present or werepresent in the past.

• There is an indication of weaponpresence.

• There has been previous police contact relating to assault orconvictions of violence.

• There is a history of physical violenceor serious verbal threats.

• There is a history of serious sex offence.

• There are staff safety alerts on client files.

• (Child Protection) Client contact isnecessary (due to statutoryrequirements) prior to confirmation ofcriminal records and firearms checks.

Recommended control plan options to help manage these hazards areoutlined in Part 5. Additional controls are documented in the Work Health Tool Kit (refer to Occupational violenceprevention policy).

Part 3 Hazard identification


3.3 Other serious hazardsThe following are examples of otherserious hazards that can intensify risk:

• There is a history of substance abuse.

• There is a history of mental healthissues.

• The client or family member presents in an escalating state of crisis.

• The client has unknown or problematicassociates.

• Visits are to isolated, remote or at-riskareas (for example, high rise flats,work sites, farms).

• The impact of the intervention is likelyto precipitate violence (for example,breach of order).

• The client is involved with a multitudeof services (for example, ChildProtection, Juvenile Justice, mentalhealth and disability services, andcommunity service organisations).

While the prevalence of these hazards isnot extensive, they do represent regularsituations staff encounter. All identifiedhazards should be subject to a riskassessment process and control plans to manage the established risks.

3.4 Hierarchy of controlThere are preferred options for managingand controlling hazards. Whereverpossible, the best way to control andmanage the effects of hazards is tosimply eliminate them. Where this is notpossible, the next preferred option wouldbe to substitute a hazardous process foranother less hazardous one and to keepdoing this until the final level of controloffers personal protection arrangements.This principle is called the hierarchy ofcontrol. The higher up the hierarchy acontrol option, the more preferable it is.

To apply the hierarchy, it is vital to firstidentify the actual hazards facing staff.Certain tasks, such as removing a childor breaching an order, can increase therisk of violence. Similarly, the physicalenvironment and location staff need tooperate in can also impact on the level of hazard. Assessing the tasks a staffmember has to take will help to identifythe hazards that create the risks. Then,applying the hierarchy of control to theidentified hazards will guide staff practice.

The hierarchy is shown here, togetherwith suggestions for its application:

• elimination. Eliminate or remove the hazard; for example, eliminate ordefuse triggers for violence; remove a violent person from a situation

• substitution. Replace a hazardousprocess with a less hazardous one.Alter the system of work; for example,conduct an interview at the officerather than during a home visit; sendtwo staff to visit the client; have apolice or security guard presence

• engineering. Apply a physicalintervention to minimise the hazard; for example, use a desk as a physicalbarrier in laying out the interview roomor setting up an office

• administration. Implement policies and procedures for safe work practices;for example, conduct a risk assessmentbefore engaging with a client; provideoccupational health and safetyguidelines, and information andtraining

• personal protective equipment. For example, use duress alarms andmobile telephones, think about workerpresentation (clothing), involve twostaff in the client contact.

Note: It is not possible to eliminate most of the hazards in Child Protectionand Juvenile Justice work because theyare inextricably linked to the client.Therefore, the aim should be to managethe hazard and thereby manage the riskaccording to the guidelines in Part 5,‘Risk control’.


All client activities with the potential to cause harm must be subjected to a comprehensive risk assessment. Risk assessments are a systematicmethod for evaluating the likelihood of occupational violence and resultingconsequences. Risk assessment is based on:

• the likelihood of an incident(frequency and exposure duration)

• how serious the injury will be if anincident occurs

• who might be affected by the incident

• determining the appropriate controlmeasures.

Supervisors, in conjunction with casemanagers, should complete the riskassessment worksheet for client contact(see Appendix 9) prior to the initialcontact with the client. Assessing thepotential for violence should be ongoing,and identified hazards and associatedrisks must be placed on clientinformation systems.

4.1 Preparing for contactPlanning for staff safety is an essentialaspect of preventing occupationalviolence. Supervisors and staff shouldregard planning for client contact as animportant safety strategy. While staffshould always take routine precautions,they should take extra precautions whenhazards have been identified. Staff safetyshould be addressed during supervision,as prescribed in program-specificsupervision guidelines.

Preparing for contact should occurwhenever an employee is planning aninitial contact appointment to find outfacts, to seek clarification or to providesupport or information; attending aroutine home visit, supervising anaccess; going to court; participating in aclient meeting or supervision at the officeor other location; or organising an initialChild Protection investigation.

4.2 Routine contactsIf contact is assessed as being routineand no hazards are identified, it is stillimportant that safety precautions forroutine contacts are considered.Supervisors and staff should alwayscheck electronic and paper clientmanagement systems for alerts before all client contact. During contact withclients, staff should be:

• observant

• aware of changes that indicateunanticipated safety concerns aredeveloping

• prepared for the unexpected.

4.3 Ongoing risk assessmentThere are different ways in which anindividual can indicate they are aboutto become violent, and some peoplebecome violent without warning. Whenengaged in client contact, an employee’sassessment of the potential for violenceshould be ongoing.

Indicators of imminent violence

Staff should consider the followingquestions when evaluating potential risksand refer to the indicators of imminentviolence checklist at Appendix 8b:

• Is the person showing any signs ofatypical excitement or passivity?

• Are there weapons or similar cues toviolence in the room?

• Is there a breakdown in the normalpattern of non-verbal communication?

• Is the person showing signs of rapidmood swings or increased irritability?

• Is the person oversensitive tosuggestions or criticisms?

The following violent behaviour scaleidentifies warning signs that mightbecome evident before a violent outburst(Mayhew 2000):

• early potential: rapid shallowbreathing, clenched fists, grindingteeth, flaring nostrils, flushing, panic,rising voice or chanting, restless andrepetitive movements, pacing, violentgestures (for example, pointing,swearing excessively, using sexuallyexplicit language), veiled threats,abusive language, unprovokedoutbursts of anger or emotion,or sexual harassment

• escalated potential: argues frequentlyand intensely; blatantly disregards‘normal’ behaviour; hyper vigilant;obsessive thinking and behaviour;throws, sabotages or steals equipmentor property; makes overt verbal threatsto hurt staff; shows rage reactions tofrustration; sends violent or sexualcomments via email, voicemail orletter; blames others for all difficulties

• urgent signs: fascination withweapons, substance abuse, severestress, violent history, marked changesin psychological functioning, exoticclaims (losing touch with reality),social isolation or poor peerrelationships, poor personal hygieneand drastic changes in personality

• realised potential: destruction of property, involved in physicalconfrontation or commits assaults,displays or uses weapons, commitssexual assaults, arson or suicide.

Note: The best indicator of a client’scapacity for violence is a history ofviolence.

Part 4Risk assessment


Risk control is a process of eliminating orminimising risk. In Child Protection andJuvenile Justice, the identified hazards are inextricably linked to the client and,as such, it is most unlikely they can beentirely eliminated. Therefore, once therisk is assessed, the safety plans thatare devised should include precautionsand preventative measures aimed atreducing the risk as far as is reasonablypracticable to avoid placing staff indangerous situations.

Supervisors and staff should refer tosection 5.3, ‘Risk control options andstrategies’, for help in implementing thecontrol plan and formulating strategies to manage the identified risks of severeand other hazards. Staff should also beconstantly alert to the indicators ofimminent violence.

Management, in consultation withemployees and their health and safetyrepresentatives, should review the rangeof controls available and identify themost suitable. They should consider thefollowing hierarchy of control optionswhen determining an appropriate riskmanagement strategy:

• elimination: removing or eliminating the hazard from the work environment

• substitution: replacing a hazardousprocess with a less hazardous one,thereby limiting the opportunity foroccupational violence

• engineering: using a physicalintervention to minimise the hazard;making changes to the workenvironment

• administration: providing informationabout safe work practices

• personal protection: using, for example,mobile telephones and duress alarms,and thinking about worker presentation(clothing).

5.1 Control plan forsevere hazardsOne of the most vulnerable situationsstaff can find themselves in is a clienthome visit. The following severe hazardsof a client home visit are identified ashigh risk. Given it is not possible toeliminate the identified severe hazardsbecause they are inextricably linked tothe client, the control plan recommendssubstitution responses (for examples,refer to the table at 5.1.1).

If any of the hazards outlined in the tableat 5.1.1 are present when planning clientcontact, supervisors and staff should,wherever possible, follow therecommended control plan optionsoutlined in the table. If the recommendedoptions are not reasonably practicable,the supervisor and the case managershould discuss the situation. They mightneed to consider alternative options. The supervisor and the case managershould complete the risk assessmentworksheet for client contact (Appendix 9)and the risk management worksheet forclient contact (Appendix 9a) at the time of client allocation to determine the levelof risk and to manage hazards. The planshould be reviewed during supervision or as required.

Note: Electronic and paper versions ofclient management systems for ChildProtection and Juvenile Justice haveprovisions for documenting safety alerts.Staff should always check alerts before all client contact.

Part 5Risk control



5.1.1 Substitution examples for severe hazards

Recommended control plan options

Severe hazards Child Protection Juvenile Justice

Firearms might be present or Staff should not attend the house without Staff should not attend the house.were present in the past. police. Client to attend the office. Alternative arrangements should be made

(for example, have the client attend the office).

Indication of weapon presence. Staff should not attend the house without Staff should not attend the house.police. Client to attend the office. Alternative arrangements should be made

(for example, have the client attend the office).

There has been previous police contact relating Alternative arrangements should be made Alternative arrangements should be madeto assault or convictions of violence. (for example, have the client attend the office, (for example, have the client attend the office;

send two staff to the home visit, or attend send two staff to the home visit).with police).

There is a history of physical violence or Alternative arrangements should be made Alternative arrangements should be madeserious verbal threats. (for example, have the client attend the office, (for example, have the client attend the office;

send two staff to the home visit, or attend send two staff to the home visit).with police).

There is a history of serious sex offence. Alternative arrangements should be made Alternative arrangements should be made(for example, have the client attend the office, (for example, have the client attend the office;send two staff to the home visit, or attend send two staff to the home visit).with police).

There are staff safety alerts on client files. Alternative arrangements should be made Alternative arrangements should be made(for example, have the client attend the office, (for example, have the client attend the office;send two staff to the home visit, send two staff to the home visit).or consult police).

Contact is required (due to statutory order) Alternative arrangements should be made N/Aprior to confirmation of criminal records and (for example, have the client attend the office,police safety checks. send two staff to the home visit,

or consult police).

Note: Where no severe hazards are identified, it is still important to make sure safety precautions are considered. Staff should remain vigilant and be aware the situation might change.

5.2 Control plan for otherserious hazardsIf any other identified serious hazards are present when planning client contact,the aim should be to formulate a suitablecontrol plan to manage the risks. Refer to guidelines in section 5.3,‘Risk control options and strategies’during the planning stages.

The supervisor and the case managershould complete the risk assessmentworksheet for client contact (Appendix 9)during client allocation to determine thelevel of risk and to manage hazards. The plan should be reviewed duringsupervision or as required and electronicclient management systems should beupdated.

5.3 Risk control options and strategiesRefer to the following options andstrategies when formulating a strategy to manage risks associated with clientcontact.

5.3.1 Information gathering

Basic preparation and communicationare essential if hazards are to beeffectively identified and risks arisingfrom the hazards are to be controlled as far as is reasonably practicable. As much information as possible shouldbe gathered prior to client contact.

Client information systemsIt should not be assumed that colleaguesfrom other programs within thedepartment have access to the sameinformation systems. No informationsystem should be a substitute forappropriate communication andexplanation. For example, ChildProtection staff must always alertsupervised access staff to safetyconcerns. Likewise, Juvenile Justice staff must alert sessional workers.

Electronic and paper files must bechecked:

• prior to an initial contact

• when the case is reallocated

• when there could be a change (for example, following an after hours contact).

If at any time safety concerns emerge,staff are responsible for updating thescreens and recording the information on the paper file

Sharing informationStaff from other programs within thedepartment (for example, School Nursing,Specialist Children’s Services, DisabilityServices, and the Supervised AccessProgram) hold and might needinformation about safety issues. Staff must use correct case reportingprocedures when reporting staff safetyconcerns and provide colleagues withany information relating to staff safety.

The department’s clients are oftenclients of more than one service. It istherefore essential that departmentalstaff and community serviceorganisations identify and shareinformation about client issues thatincrease staff risk, and that pertinentinformation is placed on clientinformation systems.

Information can be shared with otherstaff under the Information PrivacyPrinciples (Information Privacy Act 2000)in situations where the organisationreasonably believes the use or disclosureis necessary to lessen or prevent aserious and imminent threat to anindividual’s life, health, safety or welfare.Staff safety takes precedence over anyperceived confidentiality issue. If issuesof confidentiality might conflict withinformation sharing, staff should seekadvice from a supervisor in the firstinstance.

Police check and criminal recordscheckThe Child Protection and Juvenile Justiceprograms have different roles andresponsibilities, which require differentlevels of statutory contact with clients.Child Protection staff are required toattend the home of clients as part oftheir statutory role. Juvenile Justice staffare not required to visit clients or theirfamilies in their home, although theymight choose to do so. Procedures forconducting police checks are thereforedifferent for each program.

Child Protection

If there is any information to suggestan individual might have a history ofviolence, a criminal records checksshould be conducted prior to clientcontact. Supervisors and managers can also ask police if they are aware of any safety issues for staff attending a client’s home, for example warningsabout firearms, warrants and intervention orders.

Where circumstances require contactto be made before criminal checks are completed, the contact must beconsidered high-risk and the control plan outlined in section 5.1, ‘Control planfor severe hazards’, should be followedwherever possible.

Criminal record checks can be madethrough the Victoria Police HumanServices Unit (formerly the InformationBureau of Records) before the initialinvestigation of a new Child Protectionclient. A criminal police check givesinformation about a person’s criminalrecord and is conducted primarily to find out whether a person has a criminalrecord for offences related to violence.


The process for conducting a criminalrecords check is:

1. The supervisor or unit manager appliesfor a criminal records check.

2. To ensure the check includes otherstates in which a client has resided,the supervisor or unit managerincludes details about periods of timethe client has resided interstate.

3. The supervisor and case managerdiscuss the results.

In high-risk situations, Child Protectionsupervisors must regularly repeat policechecks in order to ensure the informationon file is up-to-date. The Child Protectionsupervisor needs to assess the frequencyof the repeat checks on a case-by-casebasis in conjunction with managers. It is important to remember the absenceof a criminal record or registered firearmsdoes not rule out the possibility of ahistory of violence or the presence offirearms.

Staff safety concerns can also be raisedwith the police by:

• contacting the Sexual Offences andChild Abuse Unit

• asking for issues to be raised at policeand Department of Human Servicesliaison meetings.

Juvenile Justice

If a home visit is being considered andsevere hazards are identified, JuvenileJustice case managers must discussalternative options with their supervisor.There are two preferred options: (1) have the client attend the office, or(2) arrange an alternative site for contact.

5.3.2 Communication

When a client home visit is required, acommunication plan must be establishedbetween the supervisor and the staffmember as part of a proactive riskmanagement approach (see the WorkHealth Tool Kit, Occupational violenceprevention policy, for guidance).

Communicating with co-workersWhen working with a colleague duringclient contact, formulate a communicationsystem. It is important to know if a co-worker believes it is necessary to end the contact or to obtain assistance,without the co-worker necessarily havingto say it directly. Plan your excuses, yourcues and your code words.

Note: Working with a colleague is not asafety plan in itself. Supervisors must beinvolved in risk assessments.

Communication strategiesWhere risks are identified, supervisorswill initiate telephone contact to checkor confirm safety.

Plan communication strategies inadvance and note the following:

• There must be at least one telephonesafety check between the supervisorand staff.

• Staff and the supervisor should agreeon an approximate time for the safetycheck. Preferably, the supervisorshould initiate the safety check.

• Staff and the supervisor shoulddevelop a system for staff to signal forhelp without increasing client agitation.Supervisors should ask questionsrequiring a yes or no response toascertain details about safety.

• The staff member should advise theclient at the start of the interview that atelephone contact will be made duringthe interview and give reasons why (forexample, to consult or to deal with anurgent matter). If the client expects thetelephone contact, disruption can beminimised.

• Staff and the supervisor must discussand agree on changes to the safetycheck, otherwise the supervisor canonly assume whether or not the staffmembers are safe.

• If a staff member arrives at adestination later than expected,the staff member should inform thesupervisor so the communication plancan be amended.

• When making contact with supervisors,staff should use agreedcommunication codes to confirmsafety or to advise supervisors thereare safety concerns.

• If the staff member does not makecontact as agreed, the supervisor willinitiate contact.

• If there is no response from the staffmember, the supervisor will followprocedures outlined in section 5.3.3,‘Monitoring client contacts’.

• Staff should carry an emergency taxivoucher in case their car breaks downor an unexpected situation ariseswhich might place them at risk.

Mobile/CDMA telephonesStaff should check the area they aregoing to has mobile telephone receptionand their telephone is charged. Ruralstaff might need to use a CDMAtelephone or handheld radio to maximisethe likelihood of telephone reception.Staff should ensure pertinent numbers,including emergency numbers, areprogrammed into the mobile phone incase of emergency.


Police assistanceChild Protection

In cases in which the risks are deemedsevere and the client cannot or will notattend the office, but yet there is astatutory requirement to visit the client,police assistance might be required(Refer to Protecting children: protocolbetween Department of Human Servicesand Victoria Police, DHS, 1998 fordetails). When police assistance isrequired, the staff member should informpolice of the role, purpose, and likelylength of the visit. Staff and police mighthave to negotiate when the visit willoccur and consider the impact a policepresence might have on the visit.

Stand-by arrangements are when staffand the police make the decision toinvolve the police by having them waitoutside the client’s home or by havingthe staff member ring 000 (EmergencyCommunication Victoria). In critical high-risk situations, police will conducttheir own safety assessments and mightrequire a period of time to completethese before the visit. Police might alsowish to assess the property and itsoccupants prior to departmental staffentering the property. In high-risksituations, staff should be guided by the police at all times.

Executing a warrant to take a child oryoung person into safe custody cancreate additional high risks. Planning and managing warrant executions is apolice responsibility, and departmentalstaff will take direction from the officerin charge. In some circumstances,it might be unsafe for staff to enterpremises with police, and staff will need to await instruction.

Juvenile Justice

Juvenile Justice staff should not visita client in a situation where policeassistance is required. If an assessmentdetermines a visit is high-risk to thedegree police assistance is warranted,Juvenile Justice supervisors, inconsultation with staff, will ensure analternative site for the visit is arranged.

5.3.3 Monitoring staff safety

Routine contacts

The recorded information must enableimmediate contact if concerns developfor staff safety, for example, if a staffmember fails to return to the office. Staff itineraries and arrangements mustbe known at all times. If the visit is likelyto extend beyond normal working hours,it is important that arrangements forsupervisor consultation are made. The overnight use of a vehicle mightbe arranged to avoid late returns to the office.

Contacts with identified riskStaff movement will be closely monitored.Staff should take a mobile or CDMAtelephone and make sure it is switchedon and remains on. Staff should leavesufficient information to ensure helpfuland appropriate assistance can bequickly made available if the need arises.

Staff should record the following before a client contact:

• location of the visit or meeting

• names and contact details of peoplewho will be present at the visit ormeeting

• details of any safety concerns

• time of departure

• estimated start and finish times of thevisit or meeting

• whether police, security or colleagueswill be in attendance

• contact details of police, security orcolleagues who will be in attendance

• name and contact details of the person monitoring the visit or meeting,if other than the supervisor

• planned communication strategies andagreed code words to confirm safety

• car registration details.

Monitoring client contactsIf a staff member fails to return to theoffice when expected, the supervisor willimplement the following safety procedureto establish safety:

1. Call the staff member’s mobile.

2. If there is no response, call the staff member on the client’s hometelephone number or the telephonenumber of the visit site.

3. If there is still no response, or if safetyconcerns are indicated, assess thesafety risks and decide what action is required, including informing thesupervisor’s manager and arrangingfor the police to attend the client’shouse or visit site if necessary.


Staff must always advise supervisors of their movements and the followinginformation must be recorded priorto the staff member leaving the officeto have client contact:

• the staff member’s name

• their mobile telephone number

• the client’s name

• the location of the contact

• the expected time of return.

This applies to all contacts and is the minimum requirement.

5.3.4 Safety in differentsituations

All the suggested controls are fullydeveloped in the Work Health Tool Kit.Completing the safety plan (seeOccupational violence prevention policy,Work Health Tool Kit) will assistsupervisors and staff in selecting theappropriate controls for a given situation.

Guidelines for office and receptionphysical environmentsThe department’s Work Health Tool Kit(Occupational violence prevention policy) Known environment audit(see Appendix 6) and the Client ServiceModel Strategic Project Front EndRedevelopment Project are safetyguidelines pertinent to the physicalenvironment of receptions and officeareas. The safety guidelines can be usedas a tool to review accommodation tocreate a safer and better environmentfor clients, the public and staff.

Managing office contactsAs discussed, it is not possible toeliminate most of the hazards in ChildProtection and Juvenile Justice becausethe hazards are inextricably linked to theclient. Therefore, the preferred option for managing risk associated with clientcontact is to conduct meetings andsupervised access at the office. The following precautions should be considered:

• It is standard practice for staff not toarrange to have contact with a clientwhen alone in the building.

• Staff should make sure the contact isnot conducted in isolation and thatsupervisors, colleagues and receptionstaff are aware of the contact,including the estimated start and finishtimes. Staff should be checked on atregular intervals.

• Arrange for security guard assistance if available.

• Staff should use fixed and personalduress alarms, where available. Refer to regional office duress alarm procedures.

• Staff and their supervisor shoulddevelop a system for staff to signal forhelp without increasing client agitation.

• Staff should consult with officereception staff and follow theirguidelines for dealing with threateningclients.

• If the regional office has interviewrooms that are designed with viewingpanels, staff should use these roomswhenever possible to conductmeetings with clients or familymembers.

• Staff should start the interview on timeand keep waiting time to a minimum. If there is an unavoidable delay, staffshould make sure the client is informedof the delay and of the likely duration.

• Staff should sit closest to the door,without blocking the exit, during theinterview.

• If staff are moving around with clients(for example, escorting them tointerview rooms) staff should alwayskeep the clients in view.

• Staff should be aware of equipmentthat could be used as a weapon (forexample, pens, chairs, the waste bin).

• If an incident occurs at the office, staffshould contact the office manager,security or police. Refer to regionalsafety guidelines for further details.

Home visits: approaching the houseWhen approaching the house for a home visit, staff should:

• drive by the house and observe the premises for potential hazards (for example, locked gates)

• park facing the exit direction to ensureease of exit

• never park in the driveway and alwayshave access to car keys

• be alert and listen for potential staffsafety issues (for example, raisedvoices, fighting, visitors, dogs) beforemaking presence known

• stand to one side of the door whenknocking and not enter until met atthe door by the client

• on greeting the client, ask who else is home

• make a judgement about whether it issafe to do so if requested to removeshoes prior to entering the house

• be vigilant and aware of surroundingswhen conducting a client visit at amultistorey building

• meet police (if doing so) some distancefrom the house and confirm safety plan

• in cases where there appears to be an emergency, consult with theirsupervisor and discuss whether thestaff member needs to call the police.

Note: If it does not feel safe, staff shouldnot enter the house and should contacttheir supervisor immediately.


Home visits to isolated locationsSupervisors will discuss visits and obtaincontact details (for example, the address,land line and mobile telephone numbersof the client or family).

If there are risk factors present, thesupervisor and staff member shoulddecide whether to organise for anadditional worker to attend the homevisit. They will decide this as part ofcompleting the safety plan (see the Work Health Tool Kit, Occupationalviolence prevention policy).

The staff member should:

• take their mobile telephone and aCDMA telephone to maximise thelikelihood of telephone reception

• ensure their car has a full tank of petrolbefore leaving the office

• check where the nearest police stationis located

• telephone their supervisor on arrivingat the family home to advise thesupervisor of their safe arrival

• telephone their supervisor to advisethem of the time of leaving the familyhome and of the expected time ofarrival back at the office

• if going directly to another visit,telephone their supervisor again onarriving at the next destination

• if travelling directly home after thehome visit, telephone their supervisorto let them know, and then telephonethem once home to confirm theirsafe arrival.

Child Protection

• In identified high-risk visits, it isrecommended staff follow the riskcontrol plan outlined in the table insection 5.1.1. Where required, staffshould make arrangements with policeto attend as a safety precaution. Insituations where the risk does notrequire police attendance, staff shouldnote where the home is and thedistance to the closest police station,and consider the time it would takepolice to respond to an emergency.Staff should consult with police priorto making the visit.

Juvenile Justice

• In identified high-risk visits, it isrecommended staff follow the riskcontrol plan outlined in the table insection 5.1.1. If there are high-riskfactors present or if the level of risk isunknown, staff should discuss otherpossible arrangements for the visitwith their supervisor; for example,an alternative site for the visit.

Inside the houseOnce inside the house, staff should:

• observe the exits in the house and stay close to exits in rooms

• not allow themselves to be blocked orlocked in

• sit in a position that allows easy accessto the door (preferably with their backto the wall)

• interview the client in the closestsuitable room to the front door. Avoidthe kitchen (potential weapons) andbedrooms (personal space, firearms)

• scan the environment for dangerousitems or drug paraphernalia

• face the client during the interview

• not block a client’s exit

• attempt to monitor what the client isdoing at all times

• be aware of the location of the co-worker at all times

• consider whether it is safe to acceptoffers of food or drink

• stay alert to anything out of theordinary, such as agitated people

• monitor the presence of threateningpets and request they be secured inanother area of the premises if thestaff member feels unsafe.


Terminating contact

• Staff should stop contact at the firstthought or feeling of concern for safety.The client can always be re-engaged.Staff should follow their personalinstincts.

• If attending with a colleague, and onestaff member feels unsafe and decidesto leave, the other staff member mustaccompany their colleague withoutquestion or discussion. Neither workershould re-enter the house unless bothagree it is safe to do so.

• If a staff member finds themself in an unsafe situation, they must leave,despite potential risk to children. Thestaff member should consider whetherpolice intervention is necessary.

• Staff should use any reason to allow for a safe departure.

• When in a safe location, the staffmember should park the car, contacttheir supervisor and report concerns.

• The staff member and the supervisorshould agree on an immediate plan of action which ensures safety andallows client safety. Options includethe staff member returning to theoffice and organising an officeinterview, or the staff membercontacting police and re-attending the premises with the police.

• The staff member should record in the case notes that the interview wasterminated, the reason for termination,and further action taken or required.

• The staff member should report theincident to their supervisor, complete a DINMA report and an incident report,and seek support.

Conducting outreach visitsSupervisors and staff must be fullyinformed of any potential safety hazards the staff member mightencounter during the outreach visit andof safety check arrangements, includingthe visit location and actions for thesafety check. Refer to section 5.3.2 oncommunication strategies. Safety checksshould be conducted in the followingcircumstances:

• when transporting clients to their homeor placement

• when attending a client’s residentialaddress

• when trying to locate clients.

The following items should be madeavailable to staff during outreach:

• mobile telephone

• pocket first aid kit (in car)

• rubber gloves (in car)

• torch (in car).

Attending courtRefer to Appendix 3, ‘MelbourneChildren’s Court security procedures’. If there are known security risks, staffshould make contact with the courtregistrar prior to the hearing date toinstigate security measures. Staffshould also inform their client’s legal representative of their securityconcerns, either directly or through the department’s legal representative.Staff should also ask the client’srepresentative to request his or herclient to maintain control.

Staff should consider the followingstrategies as part of a court safety plan:

• Use car pooling to court.

• Use taxi vouchers, if available, whentravelling to or from court.

• Do not walk alone to or from court.

Melbourne Children’s Court

In addition to the above strategies,Melbourne Children’s Court hasadditional security measures available.Consider:

• waiting in the Department ofHuman Services office at the court

• using the court-employed securityguards who can assist if safety concern arise

• asking a security guard for permissionto use the secure welfare area on theground floor as a waiting area.

Note: Staff orientation or induction mustcover the Melbourne Children’s Court andlocal court arrangements and be providedto staff before they commence duties.Rural staff should also refer to Appendix 4,‘Rural Children’s Court securityprocedures’.


If unforeseen safety concernsdevelop or a potentially violentsituation escalates, terminate the interview.

Visiting juvenile justice centresRefer to Appendix 5, ‘Professional visits to juvenile justice centres’. Juvenilejustice centres have guidelines governingprofessional visits to clients. To ensureeffective service delivery, it is imperativestaff adhere to these guidelines.

If there are known risks relating toprofessional visits, staff should contactthe relevant juvenile justice centre unitmanager to instigate security measuresprior to the visit.

Transporting clients Staff should assess the safety risks forpassengers, themself and the publicbefore agreeing to transport clients,including children and young people.

Routine precautions

Staff should:

• ensure there is enough petrol tocomplete the journey

• check there is a first aid kit and torchin the car

• put all personal items or objectsconsidered dangerous in the boot

• consider whether there are any itemswithin reach that could cause injury ifthrown (for example, a street directoryor pens). Remove the cigarette lighter

• keep doors locked when waiting in astationary vehicle, particularly at nightand in quiet areas

• remain in the car if it breaks down atnight, lock the doors and windows,and use a mobile telephone to call for assistance

• make sure the correct child restraintsor seats are securely fitted accordingto child restraint regulations

• refer to regional driver safetyguidelines.

Children and young people

If the client needs transport toplacements, court or access, and is oris likely to become distressed, agitated or aggressive, staff should follow thesesafety procedures to minimise the risks:

• Staff should consider the mostsuitable place to seat the clientdepending on their age andcircumstance (for example,if there are two workers, seatone in the back with the client).

• If transporting a sibling group,staff should consider using more than one vehicle.

• If planning to use the child lock on rear doors, staff should consider that:

– for a young, active, suicidal ordepressed child, this might preventinjury to them

– for a drug-affected or angry teenager,this might increase their risk offrustration.

• Staff should discuss their expectationsabout the journey with the client(for example, the destination, the needto wear a seat belt, the requirement forthe client not to smoke, whether thechild lock will be in use).

• During transit, staff should avoidconflict or discussing issues that areknown to anger or distress the client.

• If a child or young person becomesagitated, aggressive or starts to movearound the car and distracts the driver,the driver should pull over and stop the car.

• If a child or young person attempts to leave the car while it is moving,the driver should activate the centrallocking (if available) and pull over assoon as possible.

• Once the car has stopped, staff shouldassess and make a judgement aboutwhether it is appropriate or safe toattempt to physically restrain the child or young person. Necessary orreasonable restraints, as general lawprovides, might be required in caseswhere the child or young person isactively attempting to harm themselvesor others.

• If staff safety is at risk, the drivershould stop the car and not continue totransport the client. The staff membershould contact their supervisor andinform them of the situation anddiscuss alternative strategies, includingabandoning the car or requestingpolice assistance.

Child Protection

• If transporting a client to securewelfare, staff should consider placing two workers in the back: one on eitherside of the client.

• Staff should discuss alternative travelarrangements with their supervisor. If the risk issues are significant, thestaff member and their supervisorshould consider issuing a warrantunder s. 265 of the Children and YoungPersons Act1989.

Parents or carers

It is not the responsibility of staff totransport the parents or carers ofChild Protection or Juvenile Justiceclients; however, in situations where theparent or carer might require assistancewith transport, consider how they couldbe assisted to travel to the destination(for example, by being given advice aboutpublic transport, by being provided withcab vouchers or public transport tickets,or by receiving an offer for the programarea to pay for their petrol). If the safetyassessment indicates risks associatedwith transport, do not transport the client.


Staff must not use their own carsto transport clients.

5.3.5 Personal safety guidelines

Protecting one’s personal securityThe Office for Children supports all staffin endeavouring to ensure their personalsecurity and safety. Protecting personalsecurity and identity is essential, not onlyin situations where specific threats havebeen made, but as a general precaution.These simple strategies are suggested asa means of enhancing staff members’personal safety:

• Become a silent voter.

• Obtain a silent telephone number.

• Carry a charged mobile telephone.

• Avoid calling clients from a personaltelephone. If absolutely necessary, firstdial 1831 to block the number display.

• Never give out home address orpersonal telephone number.

• Vary route to and from work.

• Avoid using a personal car to visitclients where possible.

• Keep car doors locked and windowsshut.

• Keep valuables out of sight, eithercovered or in the boot.

• Park as near to the office building aspossible in an area that will be well litat night.

• Check the back seat of the car beforegetting in.

• If concerns arise about personal safety and security after work, alert acolleague or security officer if availableand request assistance.

• If concerned a car is following,do not go home. Report the matterat a police station.

Note: Under no circumstances shouldstaff give out colleagues’ personal detailsto clients or others.

ClothingClothing can increase or decreasepersonal safety in a violent situation.

• Loose, comfortable and practicalclothing allows easy movement andbreathing and allows staff to flee from a situation.

• Flimsy or high-heeled shoes canrestrict mobility and cause tripping.

• Long-sleeved garments offer someprotection from bites.

• Avoid wearing necklaces, ties, scarvesor security passes because they canbe used for choking.

• Long dangling earrings can be tornfrom ears.

• Handbags, briefcases, documentsatchels and wallets can be used as weapons.

• Jewellery, watches, belt buckles orbunches of keys can cause injury if a scuffle develops.

• Wear a swipe card safely. Use a beltanchor instead of wearing the cardaround the neck, particularly wheninterviewing clients or their families.

• Revealing clothing can jeopardiseworker safety. Given the precarious and impressionable nature of clients,a sensitive and practical approach toclothing is required.

• Professional attire is essential.

Self-defenceIf threatened with an imminent physicalattack, staff should leave the hostilesituation. If unable to do so, self-defencemight be necessary. If a self-defence actis required, staff should do whatever isnecessary to get away using theminimum force required (refer toAppendix 6, ‘The law of negligence’).

Dealing with an angry clientClients of Child Protection and JuvenileJustice can present as angry andfrustrated. In many instances, clientshave limited skills in communicating thisanger and frustration in acceptable ways.Specific defusing skills are required towork with this client group and such skillsare learned through a combination oftraining, observing senior staff, and directexperience. When a client is hostile orverbally abusive, staff should keep inmind the following:

• Staff do not have to tolerate abusive orthreatening behaviour.

• If safety concerns arise, staff shouldorganise time out by terminating thecontact entirely or for a short while.

• Staff should also:

– keep a safe distance from theaggressor

– avoid touching the person they aretrying to calm down

– try to defuse the situation by listening to the client andremaining calm

– be quietly assertive, express factscalmly and avoid heated discussions

– be mindful of power struggles, andremain courteous and respectful

– be sincere in their attempt to helpand avoid an aggressive response

– use simple, direct and briefstatements. They should speakslowly and clearly

– discuss problems and issues in astraightforward manner

– use language the client willunderstand

– try to maintain empathy andparaphrase client’s comments

– time their responses carefully


– help the client to focus on the issuesor problems that are causing angerand to identify solutions

– demonstrate they are trying to findsolutions to problems

– steer clear of potentially hurtfulcomments and avoid belittling clientconcerns

– acknowledge the client’s feelingsand try to place the anger in context.The client might have good cause tobe angry. Acknowledging theirfeelings and trying to place the angerin context can help to contain theanger and prevent it from escalating

– consider using an interpreter ifrequired

– avoid force and physical restraint,except for protecting oneself andothers

– ensure the client views theirinvolvement as professional and notpersonal

– arrange office security guardassistance, where available.

Note: If an incident is occurring in anoffice reception, consult with receptionstaff and follow their guidelines fordealing with threatening clients (refer toAppendix 7, ‘Known environment audit’).For further information, see Front EndRedevelopment Project Report Guidelinesfor the Department of Human Servicesfront end reception physical environment.

Telephone callsStaff do not have to tolerate abusive or threatening behaviour. If threatened or verbally abused on the telephone,staff could consider these procedures:

• Listen to the caller. It might be a client who has a good cause to beangry, and acknowledging this mighthelp contain their concerns.

• Try to calm down the caller andmaintain composure.

• Explain the behaviour is not acceptableand ask the caller to stop. Be specificabout what is unacceptable.

• Warn the caller the call will end if theydo not stop the behaviour.

• If the behaviour continues, tell thecaller you are not prepared to continuethe conversation at this time andterminate the call.

• Invite the caller to call back when theyhave calmed down.

• Tell the client how, when and withwhom they can resume contact. This will be decided on the basis ofstatutory requirements, duty of care,urgency, the staff member’srelationship with the caller and thenature of the threats or abuse.

• On terminating the call, report actionsto the supervisor, make a case noterecord and seek support.

• Complete a DINMA and incidentreport if the contact was abusive or threatening.

• Be aware of personal responses,including any residual reactions, and ifnecessary, talk over the incident furtherwith the supervisor, or refer to section6.3.3, ‘Formal debriefing’.


Any incident involving staff in thedepartment must be reported. Thedepartment provides various supports for staff who are affected. This guidefocuses on preventing the risk ofoccupational violence occurring andmanaging and minimising its effectswhen it does occur. The departmentacknowledges the work staff do can bestressful and it often has an emotionalimpact (see section 6.8, ‘Commonpersonal reactions to occupationalviolence’). As well as ongoing supports,there might be times when staff needspecific assistance to manage theemotional impact of their work. Inaccordance with departmental policy,supervisors should apply the informationin the following sections as appropriate.

6.1 Medical assistanceFollowing any incident, the immediateconcern is staff wellbeing and providingany necessary medical treatment forany person involved. Where medicaltreatment is necessary, the staff membershould obtain a written medical report orcertificate from the medical practitioner.

Part 6 Post-incidentmanagement andsupport


6.2 Disease Injury Near Miss Accident and incident reports

If staff are subjected to any form of assault at work, including threats and verbal abuse, staff must use the department’s incident reporting system,Disease Injury Near Miss Accident (DINMA) and incident reports. Incidents are commonly under-reported for a variety of reasons. It is very important allincidents are reported and recorded in order to:

• ensure staff receive the support they need

• monitor the risks in the working environment

• improve risk minimisation strategies

• develop ongoing strategies to minimise risk.

Staff must:

• inform their supervisor

• complete a DINMA report

• complete an incident report

• consider police involvement.

Note: Staff involved in occupational violence must make a case note record and updatestaff safety alerts on the electronic case management system under ‘Behavioural alert’.

6.3 SupportAssistance that can be provided to staff if they have been subjected toclient-initiated abuse or assault includesformal debriefing, supervision, informaldebriefing with peers, discussions ofissues at team meetings, and reporting to their health and safety representative.

6.3.1 Culture of safety andsupport

Practical and emotional supports mightbe needed if staff are involved in aspecific incident or if a cumulativeresponse to a series of minor incidents or stress arises. The culture of safety andsupport in the work environment willhave a significant impact on how staff arelikely to respond and can influence thelikelihood of an incident occurring in thefirst place.

A culture of safety and support is evidentwhen:

• peers, managers and the organisationas a whole openly and activelyrecognise the realities of dealing withviolent or potentially violent clients

• the often stressful nature of the work,and the impact of this, is recognised

• it is normal and automatic to raise anydoubt, fear or uncertainty, howeversmall, about a client or situation at anearly stage

• all work is considered from a safetyperspective before being undertaken

• safety is regularly raised and discussedat team meetings, user forums andsupervision, not just after incidents

• it is recognised that when one workeris involved in an incident, whole teamsand offices can be affected.

6.3.2 Supervisors

In addition to offering staff direct andimmediate support, supervisors willensure support and assistance isprovided in order to:

• help staff to deal with personalresponses

• organise formal debriefing

• plan a response to the perpetrator

• involve the police if necessary

• manage client-related legal issuesarising as a result of the incident(a court order might need to bechanged)

• review safety procedures for futurecontact, either by the case manageror other staff

• review casework strategies for workingwith the client

• make sure formal reportingrequirements are met (that is,a DINMA and incident report iscompleted and processed)

• manage team issues arising from theincident

• raise issues with the health and safetyrepresentative

• provide training and practice in allsafety procedures during orientation,supervision and staff meetings.

6.3.3 Formal debriefing

Critical Incident Stress Managementservice The Critical Incident Stress ManagementService or CISM service can be accessedfollowing any incident that causes staffdistress. It is free and confidential andprovided by appropriately trained staff.The CISM service can be conducted on a group or individual basis, depending onthe nature of the incident and the peopleinvolved. It will help staff to:

• express emotions

• try to gain a better understanding ofwhat has occurred

• understand normal reactions to suchevents

• receive immediate support

• put the incident into perspective andconfirm they were not responsible forthe incident

• successfully resolve the issue to allowclosure.

6.3.4 Peer debriefing

Peer debriefing provides individuals with an immediate opportunity to express their thoughts and feelings and to receive appropriate supportfrom their own peer group.


Supervisors will organise a formaldebriefing for staff involved in anincident. Although staff are notobliged to attend, they will beencouraged to do so.

6.4 Employee AssistanceProgram The Employee Assistance Program orEAP is a free and confidential counsellingservice provided by external counsellors.Staff can access the service if they areexperiencing personal problems that areaffecting their ability to perform at work.Whether or not a staff member uses EAPis a personal decision. Staff can find outmore about EAP from the department’sKnowledgeNet site or their supervisor orsenior human resources advisor.

6.5 Managing theperpetratorResponding to the perpetrator is primarilythe regional manager or unit manager’sresponsibility. This officer will arrange theresponse in conjunction with the relevantsupervisor. The purpose of the responseis to make sure staff are not furtherharmed, statutory requirements are met,and the client is safe.

The response, which can be a letter or atelephone call to the client or the client’sparents, will provide an opportunity tofurther discuss the incident and will aimto set clear boundaries for future contact.

The regional manager or unit managershould consider consulting the policeabout managing clients who present withthreatening and aggressive behaviours.

6.6 Making complaints tothe policeAll staff members have the right to make a complaint to the police followingassaults and serious threats of harm. If staff are assaulted or threatened (which includes any incident that mightconstitute a criminal offence, includingthreats to harm), they will be stronglyencouraged to make a complaint. Thisapplies whether the threats are madeface-to-face or on the telephone.

It is important to report incidents,even when it is not clear whether there is evidence to prosecute. The evidencemight build up over time or the policemight have other information.

When reporting an incident, staffwill be asked to make a statement.Senior managers should be informed if staff make a complaint to the police.This allows senior managers to make sure staff are supported in taking thisaction and to monitor the degree towhich the department needs to beinvolved in discussions with the policeabout the case. The police decidewhether there is a case to beprosecuted.Consideration could also be given to an intervention order.

6.7 Return to work programThe department is committed toproviding a safe and healthy workenvironment for its employees and,if an injury occurs, to providingrehabilitation and return to workprograms to help staff to return to work. The supervisor or manager workswith injured employees, the regionalcoordinator and treating healthpractitioners to maintain injuredemployees at work where possible or, where the injured employee requires time off, to facilitate theirsafe and timely return to work.

6.8 Common personalreactions to occupationalviolenceThere is a range of common personalreactions to being exposed to assaultand aggression at work. A person mightreact as a result of a single incident ora cumulative response to the impact ofthe work. Staff involved in occupationalviolence might react immediately after anincident or some time later and canexperience any of the following:

• a fear of clients, and particularly ofconfronting clients

• a fear of coming to work

• a fear of reporting the incident

• crying

• disturbed sleep

• feelings of powerlessness

• self-blame and guilt

• anger at work and in personalrelationships

• damaged professional self-image

• headaches

• anxiety or depression.


6.8.1 Managing a personalresponse

Normal responses to threateningsituations include anger and fear. The purpose of these responses is to quickly prepare us for flight or fight. It is important staff are aware of how torespond to threats. This will help them tomonitor and control their responses andto use skills to manage the situation.

Personal reactions are also an importantrisk indicator that should not be ignoredbecause they give the individual cluesabout the potential for attack.

6.8.2 Physical responses

When a person is threatened, thefollowing physical cues might becomeevident:

• rapid, shallow breathing

• rapid, pounding heartbeat

• muscle tension (for example, in thestomach, chest, head or entire body)

• sweating

• clenching of jaw, teeth or fists

• pacing

• wanting to cry

• feeling ill

• trembling

• flushing of the face.

6.8.3 Resilience

An individual’s resilience at any giventime influences their personal responsesto occupational violence. People aremore likely to experience a physicalstress response if they are hungry,tired, sick, frustrated, or there areunacknowledged personal triggerspresent in the situation.

6.8.4 Personal triggers

Nearly everyone has some previousexperience of aggression and violence.These experiences can act as triggers incertain situations. Being aware of one’spersonal triggers will help to extend one’schoices about ways of dealing with futureepisodes of aggression and violence.Staff should think about or discuss thefollowing questions:

• What do you perceive as aggressiveand violent behaviour?

• How do you deal with different types of aggression? Is your tendency tobecome confrontational or to give in or to stay calm?

• What groups of clients (for example,male adolescents, people with mental health problems, parents of abused children) give you mostconcern and why?

• What situations (for example,home visits, couples, groups,families) concern you?

• What might prevent you fromrecognising warning signals?

• What might prevent you from asking for support and protection?


Bowie, V 1989, Coping with violence a guide for the human services,Karibuni Press, Sydney.

Breakwell, GM 1989, Facing physicalviolence, British Psychological Society & Routledge, London.

Cheshire County Council 2000,Guidance to staff on violence in theworkplace, 3rd edn, Social Services,Cheshire County Council, Chester,United Kingdom.

Cherry, D & Upston, B 1997 Managingviolent and potentially violent situations: a guide for workers and organisations,Centre for Social Health, Melbourne.

1995, Human services minimumstandards for the prevention andmanagement of occupational assault,DHS, Melbourne.

1998, Protecting children: protocolbetween Department of Human Servicesand Victoria Police, DHS, Melbourne.

2000, Duty of care, DHS, Melbourne.

2001, Critical incident stress managementservice guidelines, DHS, Melbourne

2001, Health, safety and wellbeing policy,DHS, Melbourne.

2001, Occupational assault reductionpolicy, DHS, Melbourne.

2003, Child Protection Beginning Practicelearning guide, DHS, Melbourne.

2004, Guidelines for employee assistanceprogram, DHS, Melbourne.

2004, Incident reporting departmentalInstruction , DHS, Melbourne.

2004, Resolving claims of unacceptablebehaviour policy, DHS, Melbourne.

2004, Risk management framework,DHS, Melbourne.

2005, Front end redevelopment projectreport. Guidelines for the Department ofHuman Services front end receptionphysical environment, DHS, Melbourne.

2005, Occupational health and safetyconsultative structure. User guide andsummary, DHS, Melbourne

2005, Occupational health and safetyaccountability framework. User guide and summary, DHS, Melbourne.

2005, Work health tool kit, DHS,Melbourne.

Dyson, M 1999, Safety and wellbeingreport, Youth and Family ServicesNorthern Region, Department of HumanServices, Melbourne.

Katzenbach, J & Smith, D 1993, Crisiscommunication, Harper Collins, New York.

Littlechild, B 1997, Dealing withaggression. A practitioner’s guide,Venture press, Birmingham.

Mayhew, C 2000, Preventing clientinitiated violence. A practical handbook,Australian Institute of Criminology,Research and Public Policy, series no. 30, Canberra.

McLean, J 2000, Violence againstsocial services staff, National Institute of Social Work, London.

Occupational Services of Australia 1999,Managing conflict effectively. Departmentof Human Services participant trainingmanual, OSA, Melbourne.

Sheffield City Council 1998, Violence at work. Guidance pack for employeesand guidance pack for managers, SocialServices Directorate, Sheffield CityCouncil, Sheffield, United Kingdom.

Southwark Council 2000, Policy,procedures and guidelines on violence,aggressive behaviour and harassmenttowards employees, Southwark Council,London.

2003, Prevention of bullying and violenceat work Guidance note, WorkSafe,Melbourne.

Bibliography andfurther reading


PolicyThe Department of Human Services is committed to creating a safe andproductive workplace through improvinghealth, safety and wellbeing at work.Recognising that employees are central to effective service delivery,the department can demonstrate the value it places on employees byimplementing measures which activelyprotect and promote the health, safetyand wellbeing of all staff.

This policy contributes to thedepartment’s human resourcemanagement strategy, and is consistentwith the departmental values whichrecognise the department’s duty of careto staff and clients. An objective of thispolicy is to model within the departmentits own mission to protect and enhancehealth and social wellbeing and to ensureorganisational practice is aligned withhealth and wellbeing philosophy andpractice promoted to the Victoriancommunity.

LegislationThe department will provide as far as ispracticable a safe and healthy workplacefor all employees, clients, contractors and visitors. Employer obligations in theOccupational Health and Safety Act 2004and other relevant occupational healthand safety regulations are the basis on which the department builds its health, safety and wellbeingmanagement practice.

Principles• Senior management commitment is

critical to achieving improvements inthe health, safety and wellbeing ofemployees.

• Health, safety and wellbeing ofemployees is a core managementresponsibility as part of good peoplemanagement and effective servicedelivery.

• Consultation with stakeholders,including Department of HumanService management and employees,and employee representativeorganisations, will provide positive and effective workplace health,safety and wellbeing outcomes.

• Prevention of workplace risks to health, safety and wellbeing is themost effective way to reduceoccupational illness and injury.


Commitments• Health, safety and wellbeing

management will be integrated intodepartmental and local practices.

• Risks to health, safety and wellbeing will be reduced by identifying,assessing, controlling and evaluatingrisks in consultation with stakeholders.

• Where workplace prevention fails andinjury or illness occurs, circumstanceswill be investigated and action taken toprevent a recurrence.

• Continuous improvement in the health,safety and wellbeing of employees willbe managed by setting departmentaland local performance improvementtargets, monitoring health and safetyperformance and reporting onachievements.

• Policies and procedures for reducingrisks to health, safety and wellbeing will be developed in consultation withstakeholders and reviewed at leastevery two years.

• Managers will be provided with theknowledge and skills to enable them to manage workplace health, safetyand wellbeing issues in their area ofaccountability.

• Employees will be provided with theinformation, instruction, training andsupervision necessary to enable themto work safely.

Responsibilities• Managers are responsible for identifying

and managing local health and safety issues, allocating roles andresponsibilities, monitoring performanceand working with employees to achievecontinuous improvement.

• Employees are responsible forco-operating with management toimprove workplace health, safety and wellbeing, observing safe workpractices they have been trained inand, as far as they are able, protectingtheir own and others’ health, safety and wellbeing in the work environment.

• Specific responsibilities forstakeholders are specified in thedocument, Implementation of theHealth, Safety and Wellbeing Policy.Roles and responsibilities, available on the Work Health website<http://intranet_1:8080?hrb/whu.nsf>

Appendix 1: Department of Human Services Health, Safety and Wellbeing


Management roles andresponsibilities

Secretary

• Promote organisational values ofhealth, safety and wellbeing asessential to good people managementand effective service delivery.

• Sponsor health, safety and wellbeingpolicies that define departmentalexpectations in the provision of a safeand healthy working environment.

• Monitor organisational health, safetyand wellbeing performance, andreward and recognise achievements.

Directors, assistant directors andregional executives

• Ensure program and regional managersimplement the organisationalcommitments stated in the Health,Safety and Wellbeing Policy.

• Include and assess health, safety andwellbeing strategies and performancetargets in annual service delivery plansand senior management executiveperformance plans.

• Allocate resources to achieve health,safety and wellbeing performanceimprovement targets.

• Monitor health, safety and wellbeingperformance against agreedperformance targets.

Senior management

• In consultation with employees,develop strategies for incorporatinghealth, safety and wellbeing intoservice delivery and documentstrategies in the regional/programservice delivery plan.

• Include and assess health, safety and wellbeing strategies andperformance targets in managementperformance plans.

• Access resources to implement health,safety and wellbeing strategies toimprove workplace risk prevention.

• Promote the Health, Safety andWellbeing Policy and localimplementation strategies throughmanagement and employee meetingsand health and safety committees.

• Develop, implement and monitorsystems to ensure compliance withstatutory responsibilities to trainemployees in hazards and risksassociated with their work.

• Monitor the implementation and performance outcomes ofregional/program health, safety and wellbeing improvement strategiesand report progress.

Managers/supervisors

• Provide and maintain a healthy andsafe local working environment.

• Consult with employees and health and safety representatives onworkplace health and safetyinformation, issues and opportunitiesfor improvement.

• Identify local risks through workplaceinspections, incident reports, DINMAs,accident investigations and workplaceconsultation.

• Develop and implement health andsafety improvements in consultationwith employees.

• Provide a business case forrecommended improvements to senior managers to secure resources.

• Integrate health, safety and wellbeingstrategies into work procedures andpractices.

• Document health, safety and wellbeingimprovement strategies and monitor foreffectiveness.

• Report on progress and workplacehealth, safety and wellbeing to seniormanagers and employees.

Other stakeholders’ roles and responsibilities

Employees• Participate with management in the

development and implementation ofhealth and safety systems.

• Participate in relevant health, safetyand wellbeing training.

• Take care that activities undertaken orneglected do not cause a risk to healthand safety of any person in theworkplace.

• Report all work-related disease, injury,near misses or accidents to thedepartment.

Occupational health and safetyrepresentatives• Represent their designated work group

in local health and safety consultationprocesses.

• Provide feedback on health and safetyissues to employees in their designatedwork group.

• Assist in the development of health,safety and wellbeing improvements.

• Use the issue resolution process toresolve local health and safety issues.

Occupational Health and SafetyCommittee• Provide a formal structure of

consultation on health and safetyissues and management strategies.

• Participate in the development ofregional/program health and safetystrategies.

• Analyse regional/programperformance and monitor progress.

• Distribute information to employees onthe outcomes of meetings.

Work Health staff• Provide specialist knowledge and

expertise to build health, safety andwellbeing management into coreservice practice.


PolicyThe Department of Human Services is committed to creating a safe andproductive workplace through improvinghealth, safety and wellbeing at work. The client care and working environmentwill reflect the requirements of state andfederal law, and community expectationsfor the protection of clients and staff. The department defines occupationalassault as any incident in whichemployees are abused, threatened orassaulted in circumstances arising outof or in the course of their employment,including verbal, physical andpsychological abuse. The departmentrecognises that occupational assaultinjuries represent a significant proportionof overall injuries and aims to eliminatethe risks associated with these injuriesand to implement controlled solutionswhere elimination is not possible. This policy covers all facets of humanservices’ business where people aremanaging or are exposed to the risk ofinjury resulting from occupational assault.

LegislationThe department will comply with the requirements of the OccupationalHealth and Safety Act 2004 to provide a safe workplace, including safe systems of work.

Principles• Senior management commitment is

critical to achieving improvements in the health, safety and wellbeing ofemployees.

• Consultation with stakeholders,including Department of HumanServices management and employees,and employee representativeorganisations, will provide positive and effective workplace health andsafety outcomes.

• Prevention of health, safety andwellbeing risks in the workplace is themost effective way to reduce illnessand injury.


CommitmentsAll tasks and systems will be examinedusing the framework of hazardidentification, assessment and control,using a monitored process of continuousimprovement. Appropriate resources willbe allocated to enable compliance withlegislative requirement to provide a safeworkplace, with priority allocation tohighest risks.

Consultation• In line with the Department of Human

Services Consultation Policy, staff,occupational health and safetyrepresentatives and management willmanage occupational assault issuesthrough the consultative process.

Systems of workProgram-specific policies and proceduresdesigned to reduce the risk ofoccupational assault hazards will bedeveloped and implemented, with priorityto high-risk groups. Reporting systems for all incidents, including near misses,injuries and illness, will effectivelypromote early reporting.

Client behaviour assessmentand management• Clients in the department’s care will be

assessed using existing systems, andbehaviour management strategies willbe developed and documented.

• Behaviour management strategies willbe reviewed as required, to maintainstaff safety.

Supervision• Supervision will be provided by

managers and other key personnel,in relation to performance of worktasks and personal safety to reducethe risks of occupational assault injury.

• Supervisors will monitor employee skillsand competencies in implementingclient behaviour management strategies.

Post-incident stressmanagement• Management will provide

demobilisation, and staff will be offereddebriefing and defusing through theCritical Incident Stress Management(CISM) service, within recommendedtimelines.

Monitoring implementation• All departmental programs will have

their safety performance monitoredusing the Safety PerformanceManagement System.

Appendix 2: Department of Human Services Occupational Violence Prevention Policy


Service design• Risks of occupational assault injury

to employees will be eliminated where possible, or minimised whendesigning work. Elements to beconsidered are competencies,staffing levels, workloads,work patterns and work plans.

Physical workplace designDesign issues impacting on occupationalassault risks will be incorporated intogeneric briefs and applied when buildingnew facilities or modifying existingfacilities. Worksite or client-specificdesign issues will be managed at a local level.

Recruitment and selection• Job applicants will be informed of

inherent requirements through anaccurate description of the activitiesinvolved in the job.

Information, instruction andtraining• Information and instruction will be

provided in Department of HumanServices’ systems and procedures,and use of equipment. This will beprovided at commencement ofemployment and where there is achange in potential occupationalassault risk or environment.

• Staff will be trained in identifying,assessing and planning for control of occupational assault hazards.Priority will be given to workplaceswhere increased risk of occupationalassault injury is present.

• Instruction and training will be used in conjunction with other strategies to reduce the risk of injuries resultingfrom occupational assault.

• Relevant information and trainingrelating to Department of HumanServices workplace risks will beprovided to contractors whereappropriate.

Responsibilities

Senior managers are responsible for:

• ensuring implementation of the SafetyPerformance Management System

• ensuring policy commitments reduceoccupational assault risks.

Managers are responsible for:

• identifying, assessing and controllingoccupational assault risks

• inducting and training employees in preventing occupational violence

• working with employees andcontractors to prevent and minimiseoccupational assault risks

• investigating all incidents andmaintaining records of incidentinvestigations

• maintaining staff training records

• providing immediate and ongoingsupport for employees exposed tooccupational assault.

Employees are responsible for:

• following work practices designed toreduce occupational assault risk

• identifying and reporting occupationalassault risks to management

• working with management to prevent and minimise occupationalassault risks

• reporting all incidents.


The Children’s Court of Victoria is aspecialist court established under theChildren and Young Person’s Act 1989. It has two divisions the criminal divisionand the family division, which deal with matters relating to children andyoung people.

SignageNew signs have been installed in theground floor entrance, the Family Divisionwaiting area and the Criminal Divisionwaiting area, advising the court is underconstant video surveillance. Signs havebeen installed in the Department ofHuman Services room and the CourtAdvisory Unit room, advising staff ofthe number to call and the name of thelocation they are calling from in the caseof needing urgent security assistance.

Camera surveillanceAll domes are fitted with active videocameras. Chubb Security monitors thevideo screens.

Security staff in theMelbourne Children’s CourtThere are two groups of staff providingsecurity services in the court:

Chubb Security: Two Chubb Security staffare located at the ground floor receptiondesk. They provide a reception serviceand general building security service,including video surveillance.

Protective services officers: Victoria Police employs two officers to constantly patrol all areas of theChildren’s Court building. Their role is to provide a proactive policing function to ensure the safety of all court users.Because of this responsibility, they areunable to provide a full-time bodyguardfunction to individuals. Additional, rovingteams of protective services officers also patrol the Children’s Court buildingon a regular basis. These teams can becalled, on a planned basis or at shortnotice, to provide assistance in particular situations.

Department of HumanServices roomThe Department of Human Servicesroom has been enlarged and nowincorporates the adjoining waiting roomarea. The door to this room has beenfitted with a keypad security lock and a window. Child Protection staff arerequested not to use the old waitingroom door, except in an emergency. To improve security, staff are alsorequested not to prop open the maindoor to the enlarged room.

Secure welfare roomThe secure welfare room door can be locked on the inside or the outside.The key can be obtained from ChubbSecurity at the ground floor desk. Chubb Security monitors the securewelfare room via a video camera. The door will open automatically in theevent of a fire. The current procedures for the supervision of young people atthe court are outlined in a memorandumdated 12 May 2000, entitled: Youngpeople recommended for secure welfareplacements - supervision at MelbourneChildren’s Court and escorting youngpeople to secure welfare.

Procedures for requestingurgent assistanceIn an emergency, staff can contactChubb Security or the protective services officers directly or call extension 778 or 727 for urgentassistance. Chubb Security’s role on these occasions is to summons the protective services officers.

Procedures for planningadditional securityassistanceChild Protection and Juvenile Justice staff who are attending court for a matterwhere there are known or anticipatedsecurity issues should contact thePrincipal Registrar or the DeputyRegistrar on telephone 8601 6700 prior to the day of the court hearingwherever possible so that additionalpreparation can be made to manage the situation effectively.

After the Child Protection staff havemade initial contact, the PrincipalRegistrar or Deputy Registrar will contact the protective services officerwho will then make direct contact withthe Child Protection staff to obtaindetails of the matter and discussmanagement of the situation.

On the morning of a hearing, if additionalsecurity assistance is required and ChildProtection or Juvenile Justice staff havenot already contacted the court, theyshould speak with the Principal Registraror the Deputy Registrar at the secondfloor counter. Staff are urged to consultwith the Registrar or Deputy Registrar theday before the hearing wherever possible.

Appendix 3: Melbourne Children’s Court


Remote witness facilityThe Melbourne Children’s Court has the capacity to hear live evidence fromwitnesses, including family members,Child Protection staff and otherprofessionals, from a ‘remote’ facility. The courts set up to deal with remotewitness evidence are Courts 1 and 5(Family Division) and Court 6 (CriminalDivision) located on the first floor. Thewitness gives their evidence from theremote witness room located elsewherein the building. Staff who wish to use theremote witness facility should:

• contact the court coordinator at theearliest opportunity in the lead-up to the contest date, at which time thecoordinator will note the request andarrange for the ‘independent person’ tobe placed on standby

• contact other parties’ legalrepresentatives to advise them of the request

• request the department’s legalrepresentative to make an applicationto the court on the contest day forthe facility to be used. If any of theparties object to the application,the magistrate will hear the argumenton the contest day.

While the Child Protection orJuvenile Justice staff member is givingevidence in the remote witness facility,they are required by legislation to beaccompanied by an ‘independent person’who the court provides. The role of the‘independent person’ is to assist in thefunction of the remote witness court, tocontribute to the wellbeing of witnesses,and to understand the needs ofwitnesses in ‘special needs’ matters. The ‘independent person’ is able tooperate the remote witness equipment.

Use of the Disease InjuryNear Miss Accident (DINMA)report form bookAny incident that has potential to affectthe safety or health of Department ofHuman Services’ staff while onDepartment of Human Services’ businessat the Children’s Court is required to bereported in the DINMA book located inthe Department of Human Services room, first floor, Children’s Court,477 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne.

Child Protection and Juvenile Justice staff are encouraged to use the DINMAbook to record any incident or injury. An example of this is any occupationalassault that occurs in or around theChildren’s Court. The department definesoccupational assault as any incident inwhich employees are abused, threatenedor assaulted in circumstances arising outof or in the course of their employment,including verbal, physical andpsychological abuse.

The purpose of completing a DINMAform is to provide information to regionsabout an incident in which staff werethreatened or injured in court, to provideinformation that will assist with theprocessing of a WorkCover claim ifappropriate, and to provide informationthat will help the program and the courtto develop better occupational healthand safety strategies

A DINMA book is in the Departmentof Human Services room so thatdepartmental staff can report threats orinjuries involving departmental staff inthe court. The book has instructions forcompleting a DINMA report.

If an incident occurs at court and the staffmember does not immediately completea DINMA report, they can complete thereport at the regional office.

ToiletsChild Protection and Juvenile Justice staffcan use the ‘staff only’ toilet on the firstfloor. If staff are concerned about theirsafety, they can use the toilets on theground floor near the pre-hearingconference rooms after advising ChubbSecurity staff at the ground floor counterof their intention to use these toilets.

Security information and securityprocedures for Child Protection andJuvenile Justice staff. Information preparedby Child Protection and Juvenile JusticeBranch and Melbourne Children’s Court,March 2002.


The children’s court of larger regionaltowns generally employs security staff. If there are known security risks, staffshould contact the court registrar priorto the hearing date to instigate securitymeasures.

The children’s court of smaller ruraltowns does not have security staff;however, a smaller rural town’s children’scourt is often located in close proximityto a police station. If there are knownsecurity risks, staff should contact thecourt registrar or contact the nearestpolice station to arrange for policepresence on the day of the hearing.

Staff should inform the parent’s legalrepresentative of the staff member’ssecurity concerns either directly orthrough the department’s legalrepresentative. The staff member orthe department’s legal representativeshould ask the parent’s legalrepresentative to request his orher client to maintain control.

If the court is in an isolated location andthe parent’s of the staff member’s clientrequire assistance to travel to the court,but there are safety concerns associatedwith transporting the parent, the staffmember should check whether there is a family member or friend available todrive the client if the department pays fortheir petrol. The department is also ableto pay for public transport for the parentif this is available.

Staff should consider the followingstrategies as part of their safety plan:

• If attending court in an isolatedlocation where there is a medium to high risk, consider requesting thatyour supervisor or another workeraccompanies you.

• If you have arranged for police to bepresent at court, arrange to meet thepolice officer at the police station andask them to accompany you to thecourt. Similarly, if you are attending a court that has security guards, askthem to meet you at the entrance ofthe court and accompany you inside.

• If there is a room in which you can waitfor the matter to be called, advise theclerk of court’s and the police officer(if applicable) of where you will be andthen wait in this room.

• If using toilet facilities at the court,ask another worker to accompany you and to wait outside to ensure you are not accosted by the clientin this restricted space. If the situationis high-risk, you should advise thepolice officer in attendance of yourwhereabouts at all times.

• If you have a client in your care duringthe court hearing and there is a highrisk associated with the client havingcontact with his or her parents orother individuals, you should considerrequesting that a police officer monitorthe child while at court.

• When returning from court on isolatedroads, be aware of the car the parentsor other individuals travelled to courtin and regularly check to see if this caris in sight or following you. Ring policeimmediately if you have any concernsabout being followed or harassed while driving.

Appendix 4: Rural Children’s Court


Legal and policy mandate

Children and Young Persons Act1989 (s.139, s.252 and s.270)

There are clear instructions in theChildren and Young Persons Act 1989regarding visitors to Juvenile Justicecentres. Section 252 states that clients(subject to s. 270) are entitled to receivevisits from parents, relatives, legalpractitioners, people acting on behalfof legal practitioners and others. Section 270, which covers offences in relation to people held in centres,defines prohibited activities for visitorsand the penalties they carry.

Procedures

Organising visits

• Visits should be arranged in advance.Professional visitors should book visitsto suit all parties.

On arrival

• Professional visitors must sign thevisitor’s book at each arrival and exit.

• Professional visitors should producephoto identification.

• Professional visitors must leave mobile telephones, wallets, handbags,cigarettes, lighters and other items notrequired in a designated visitor’s lockerand be given its key.

Supervision of professional visits

• Unit coordinators will assess the risklevel of each visit before it commencesand determine the staffing andmonitoring level required.

• Unit staff ensure that professionalvisits, particularly for protectiveservices and Juvenile Justice staff,and legal matters have privacy.

• If the client or the professional visitorrequests staff presence during a visit,staff should accommodate the request.

• If supervising staff have safety orsecurity concerns for the client,visitor or any other person, the visit may be terminated by thesupervising staff member.

(Information prepared from Juvenile Justicecentre operations manual (DHS, 2004)).

Appendix 5: Professional visits to juvenile justice centres


Assault can be internal to the workplace,or external, such as in a client’s home. It can also occur to a client or visitorwithin the workplace. Assault at workcan constitute a criminal assault.

Assault is defined in s. 31(2) of theCrimes Act 1958 as:

the direct or indirect application offorce by a person to the body of,or the clothing or equipment worn by,another person where the applicationof force is:

a) without lawful excuse; and

b) with the intent to inflict or beingreckless as to the infliction of bodilyinjury, pain, discomfort, damage,insult or the deprivation of liberty.

In some programs, for example Child Protection and Juvenile Justice,there are statutory requirements toprovide services in circumstances wherethere is a risk of occupational violence.Consequently, it is difficult to developdefinitive strategies for prevention,control and harm minimisation andmanagers must be proactive inidentifying, assessing and implementingcontrol strategies. Workers also have a responsibility to continually monitortheir work environment for indicators of potential violence.

In addition to its duty of care under theOccupational Health and Safety Act 2004,the Department of Human Services owes a duty of care to anyone who isreasonably likely to be affected by thedepartment’s activities, whether they are clients, the family or carers of clients,staff, or other groups of people in thebroader community who might beaffected by the department’s actions or failure to act. The department’s Policy on the Law of Negligence (refer to the Duty of Care Policy at<knowledgenet/portfolio/legal/duty_pol.htm>) provides full details ofdepartmental and staff responsibilities inthis area. In summary these are as follows:

Restraint, force and self-defenceThe department has a duty of care toensure staff are provided with adequatetraining, resources and appropriatesystems of work to enable them torespond appropriately to situations ofassault. Mechanisms, such as restraint,time out and sedation, should not be theprimary approach to minimising the risksof assault in departmental workplaces.Such mechanisms should only be usedto provide the necessary protection forstaff and clients where the process ofrisk assessment and control haveidentified and put in place the range of appropriate controls, but some riskof assault still exists.

Physical restraint should only be used where an immediate risk ofinjury exists and no other option forresolving the situation is available. The physical restraint used should be the minimum required.

Reasonable force is the force that issufficient to stop the assaulting personcausing injury or harm to themselves or others-and no more.

In addition to civil law where staff areprovided with a duty of care to clientswhich justifies the use of physicalrestraint, staff owe a duty of care toprotect clients from being assaulted orassaulting others. The use of reasonableforce sufficient to prevent this isacceptable. This includes situationswhere there is an overriding necessity to protect someone.

The ‘emergency’ or ‘rescue’ powers givento departmental workers provide theright (and responsibility) to rescue aperson from a dangerous situation. There are situations the law ‘excusesfrom being assault’, such as:

• implied consent. Everyday activitiesof caring for clients require somephysical contact between individuals.The department’s clients haveconsented to the care provided andtherefore to the physical contactinvolved in that caring. However,consent to such physical contact is not consent to restraint or seclusion.Part 5, Division 3 of the Mental HealthAct 1986, s. 44 of the IntellectuallyDisabled Persons’ Services Act 1986,and ss. 256 (a), (b), and (c) of theChildren and Young Persons Act 1989provide specific detail on the use of restraint and seclusion in thosesettings and should be consulted andcomplied with in relation to the use ofrestraint and seclusion for such clients.Please note these Acts might haverecently been amended and careshould be taken to ensure the mostrecent version is consulted

• self-defence and defence of others.This is permitted where a direct careworker (or someone in care) is attackedor has a reasonable belief there isabout to be an attack.Training in self-defence techniques, including evasiveself-defence, provides employees withcontrolled physical intervention whenall other non-physical strategies havefailed. Services and programs in whichstaff work with clients who mightdisplay aggressive behaviour shouldprovide adequate training for staff incontainment and self-defencetechniques

• reasonable force. The personresponsible might be liable forprosecution for assault if an incidentof aggressive behaviour occurs underprovisions set down in the VictorianCrimes Act 1958. The main defenceagainst assault actions available tostaff is self-defence. Staff behaviourshould therefore be defensive ratherthan aggressive, controlling rather thanpunitive, and use no more force than is

Appendix 6: The law of negligence


necessary in the given situation. The justification of ‘self-defence’ relieson the argument that the level of forceused is reasonable given the threatfaced. The level of force consideredappropriate for self-protection or toensure the safety of others will remaina matter of judgement, depending onthe context of the specific persons and the situation involved

• appropriate responses. Appropriateresponses to aggressive incidents are:

– crisis communication andnegotiation where staff are being verbally abused or verballythreatened

– evasive self-defence to the threatof assault and battery, such as where physical contact or injurymight occur

– physical intervention and controllingself-defence to aggravated assaultonly where serious injury mightbe inflicted.

Use of restraints

General law provides that no person canbe physically restrained against their will;however, in some instances it might beappropriate to place reasonablerestraints on a client in a manner thatis consistent with legal requirements. This applies only to the necessary andreasonable restraints or seclusionrequired to ensure the safety of the client and others, such as staff, otherclients and visitors.

Medication and sedationIf medication is used outside theparameters of normal clinical practiceand procedure and has no other clinicalpurpose or benefit other than sedation,then it is illegal and an assault againstthe person.

Post-incident issuesThere are usually a number of relevantlegal issues following incidents ofoccupational violence. These can include internal requirements,professional ethics, industrial issues,workers’ compensation matters, and civil or criminal actions.

Management must ensure employees are aware of their rights (for example,their entitlement to claim compensation,and their right to report the assault to thepolice) and also the legal requirementsand responsibilities placed on themunder law by the organisation or withrespect to professional ethics.

Management should also make provisionfor employees who are involved in givingevidence in court (if relevant). Theseprovisions should advise on the formatof criminal court procedure and alsoprovide debriefing following the trial(preferably on an individual basis).Managers can seek advice andassistance from the legal unit in relation to these matters.


Appendix 7: Known environment audit


Item Yes No N/A Action Timeframe

Are there factors in the external environment which could increase the risk of assault by a client or other person, such as:

Poor lighting

Unsecured doors

Unsecured windows

Car park poorly lit, blind spots, distance from entrance

Lack of seating/rest areas

Lack of shaded and/or protected areas

People smoking around doorways or verandas

Access to potential weapons - garden tools,pot plants, pool/spa chemicals etc.

Proximity to hotels or clubs

High incidence of crime in the immediate neighbourhood

Are there factors in the internal environment which could increase the risk of assault by a client or visitor, such as:

Furniture or fittings that could be used as weapons

Access to kitchens

Access to sharps

Access to chemicals

Cluttered passageways

Blocked exits

Crowding and poor people movement

No quiet areas

Blind corners

Sharp edges and hard corners

High noise levels from people or radios

In public access areas, are there risk factors that could increase the risk of assault by a client or person, such as:

Money or drugs kept on the premises

Facilities inadequate/access to cafés/toilets

Poor signposting

Poor separation of staff and clients over counters

Inadequate waiting areas/chairs/décor/space

Isolation of meeting rooms

Lack of meeting rooms

In the community, are there risk factors that could increase the risk of assault by a client, such as:

Inadequate facilities to meet the needs of the client

Recommendations

Signature:

(See Occupational violence prevention policy, ‘Risk assessments - known clients/environments’ in the Work Health Tool Kit.)

Some risk factors might not apply in all situations and can be recorded by placing a tick in the N/A (not applicable) column or byputting a line through the section (for example, public places if the environment is a residential facility).

Environment being assessed

Assessor: Date

Appendix 8: Occupational violence -severe hazard identification


The following hazards are classified as ‘severe’, and highly recommended risk controls apply when one or more of the following exist. (See Appendix 9a, ‘Risk management worksheet for client contact’.) Yes No

• Firearms are present or have been present in the past.

• There is an indication of a weapon presence.

• There has been previous police contact relating to assault or convictions of violence.

• There is a history of physical violence or serious verbal threats.

• There is a history of serious sex offence.

• There are staff safety alerts on client files.

• (For Child Protection) Client contact is necessary (due to statutory requirements) prior to confirmation of criminal records and firearms checks.


8a: Occupational violence - hazard identification checklist(To be used in conjunction with the Work Health Tool Kit, Occupational violence prevention policy ‘Hazard identification checklist’.)

Yes No

• Does the client complain regularly about provision of services?

• Does the client have a history of substance abuse?

• Does the client have a history of mental health issues?

• Is the client or are the family members presenting in escalating state of crisis?

• Does the client have associates you do not know or whom you consider problematic?

• Are client visits to isolated, remote or vulnerable areas (for example, high-rise flats, farms, the client’s workplace)?

• Is the impact of intervention likely to precipitate violence (for example, breach of order)?

• Is the client involved with a multitude of services (for example, Child Protection, Juvenile Justice,mental health, disability services or community service organisations)?

• Does the client refuse to cooperate?

• Does the client demonstrate ‘cries for help’ in some way?

• Does the client sexually harass staff?

• Does the client have noticeable mood swings or unprovoked outbursts?

• Does the client make veiled treats?

• Does the client throw, sabotage or steal equipment or property?

• Does the client send violent or sexual comments via email, voicemail or letter?

• Does the client threaten or verbally abuse staff?

• Does the client argue frequently and intensely?

• Does the client have a fascination with weapons or military hardware, or display or use weapons?

• Does the client have a condition that has been associated with an increased potential for violence (for example, paranoid schizophrenia)?

• Does the client have an unstable family life?

• Does the client tend to be solitary, with poor peer relationships?

• Does the client blame others for all difficulties?

• Does the client make strange and exotic claims (losing touch with reality)?

• Does the client have a history of violence?

• Does the client cause anxiety or unrest through aggressive behaviour?

• Does the client tell other clients about their plans to initiate violence?

• Does the client commit sexual assaults or arson?

• Does the client talk about self-harm or suicide?


8b: Indicators of imminent violence (To be used in conjunction with the Work Health Tool Kit, Occupational violence prevention policy.)

Note: A good indicator of a client’s capacity for violence is a history of violence. (Refer to section 4.3, ‘Indicators of imminent violence’.)

Yes No

• Does the client indicate a heightened level of anxiety or depression?

• Does the client have rapid breathing, clenched fists or teeth, flaring of nostrils, flushing, loud talking or chanting, restless and repetitive movements, pacing, or violent gestures, such as pointing?

• Is the client swearing excessively or using sexually explicit language?

• Is the client refusing to cooperate?

• Is the client showing signs of rapid mood swings?

• Is the client threatening violence?


8c: Personal safety planAll personal risk assessments that result in the staff member rating a task or intervention as high or medium risk must have a safety plan.

SAFETY PLAN for (your name)

Task

Location

Time and date

Name and agency if not a Department of Human Services employee

Others (if any) involved in the task

Person responsible for monitoring the task

Name

Telephone number

Manager/team leader


Step 1: Acknowledge the risk

Yes No

Have you considered all the alternatives to undertaking this task?

Will you be working alone?

Others (if any) involved in the task:

What is the nature of the potential violence?

Step 2: Be prepared

Who is the client?

Who else (for example, family, friends, other clients, general public) might be present?

What are the likely triggers?

What are the hazards in the environment?

Have you reviewed possible controls:

• exit strategy

• talk down procedures

• behaviour management plan

• other strategies?

Your mobile telephone number is:

Your car registration is:

How long do you expect this task to take?

Is your personal attire appropriate (jewellery, scarves, footwear)?

Step 3: Control

What is your contact routine?

What is your communication strategy - cues with your co-worker?

What are your backup options?

Signed by you Signed by manager

Step 4: Debrief

Was this task completed without incident? Yes / No

If yes, is there any other information that could be added to the client’s file or to future safety plans for this task?

If no, please review the safety plan with your manager or team leader and make any comments on it prior to filing.

With the support of your manager or team leader, complete the necessary forms (DINMA, Workcover, incident report and police report) as appropriate.

List the forms completed as a result of the incident:

Remember, the impact of an incident might not affect you immediately. Ask for help if you need it.

Signed by you Signed by manager

(See Work Health Tool Kit, Occupational violence prevention policy ‘Safety plan’ for full tool.)

Appendix 9: Risk assessment worksheetfor client contact


Client allocation: Supervisor and allocated case manager should assess potential for violence based on all sources of informationavailable prior to initial client contact. Where hazards are identified, the level of risk should be discussed and control plans andstrategies formulated where necessary.

Are the following hazards present? Assess the risks Action

If yes, what is the likelihood If yes, how severe would Complete risk managementSevere hazards No Yes of the risk occurring? the impact be? worksheet

Could firearms be present or have See recommended control plan.they been present in the past?

Is there any indication of weapon presence? See recommended control plan.

Has there been previous police contact See recommended control plan.relating to assault or convictions of violence?

Is there is a history of physical violence See recommended control plan.or serious verbal threats?

Is there a history of serious sex offence? See recommended control plan.

Are there staff safety alerts on client files? See recommended control plan.

Is contact required (due to statutory order) See recommended control plan.prior to confirmation of criminal records and firearms checks?

Other serious hazards

Has the client got a history of substance abuse? Formulate a risk management strategy.

Has the client got a history of mental health issues? Formulate a risk management strategy.

Is the client or are the family members Formulate a risk management strategy.presenting in escalating state of crisis?

Does the client have associates you do not Formulate a risk management strategy.know or whom you consider problematic?

Are client visits to isolated, remote or vulnerable areas Formulate a risk management strategy.(for example, high-rise flats, farms, the client’s workplace)?

Is the impact of intervention likely to precipitate violence Formulate a risk management strategy.(for example, breach of order)?

Is the client involved with a multitude of services Formulate a risk management strategy.(for example, Child Protection, Juvenile Justice, mental health,disability services or community service organisations)?

Are there any other hazards? Formulate a risk management strategy.

Risk control: If hazards are present, the supervisor and case manager must discuss safety concerns and develop a risk control planwith appropriate strategies to manage the risks. Refer to the document for options and strategies which might be appropriate. Thesafety concern must be documented in the electronic case management system and on the paper file.


9a: Risk management worksheet for client contact

Hierarchy of control:

Elimination. Eliminate or remove the hazard (for example, eliminate or defuse triggers for violence; violent person is removed fromsituation).

Substitution. Replace a hazardous process with a less hazardous one (for example, have the client attend the office, send two staffto visit home, have police or security guard presence).

Engineering. Adjust physical surroundings to minimise the hazard (for example, use a desk as a physical barrier when laying out theinterview room, create calm surroundings, improve security).

Administration. Have policies and procedures for safe work practices (for example, conduct risk assessments before engaging witha client, have occupational health and safety guidelines, provide supervision and training).

Personal protective equipment. Use duress alarms and mobile telephones, consider worker presentation (clothing).

If yes: recommended risk control plan Alternative risk control plan - strategies

Alternative strategies should be formulated through discussions

Severe hazards No Yes Child Protection Juvenile Justice between the supervisor and case manager.

Firearms might be present Staff should not attend Staff should not attend house.or were present in the past. house without police. Alternative arrangements should

Client to attend office. be made (for example, have clientattend office).

There is an indication Staff should not attend Staff should not attend house.of weapon presence. house without police. Alternative arrangements should

Client to attend office. be made (for example, have clientattend office).

There has been previous police Alternative arrangements Alternative arrangementscontact relating to assault or should be made (for example, should be made (for example,convictions of violence. have client attend office, have client attend office,

send two staff to the visit, send two staff to the visit).or attend with police).

There is a history of physical violence Alternative arrangements Alternative arrangements or serious verbal threats. should be made (for example, should be made (for example,

have client attend office, have client attend office,send two staff to the visit, send two staff to the visit).or attend with police).

There is a history of serious sex offence. Alternative arrangements Alternative arrangements should be made (for example, should be made (for example,have client attend office, have client attend office,send two staff to the visit, send two staff to the visit).or attend with police).

There are staff safety alerts on client files. Alternative arrangements Alternative arrangements should be made (for example, should be made (for example,have client attend office, have client attend office,send two staff to the visit, send two staff to the visit).or consult police).

Contact is required Alternative arrangements N/A(due to statutory order) should be made (for example,prior to confirmation of have client attend office,criminal records and firearms checks. send two staff to the visit,

or consult police).


Other serious hazards No Yes If yes: risk control plan

Has the client got a history of substance abuse?

Has the client got a history of mental health issues?

Is the client or are the family members presenting in an escalating state of crisis?

Has the client got unknown or problematic associates?

Are client visits to isolated, remote or vulnerable areas (for example, high-rise flats, farms, the client’s workplace)?

Is the impact of intervention likely to precipitate violence (for example, breach of order)?

Is the client involved with a multitude of services (for example, Child Protection, Juvenile Justice,mental health, disability services or community service organisations)?

Are there other identified hazards?

Review: Supervisor and case manager must regularly review the risk management plan to determine if the control plan put in placeis effective.

Risk assessment and management plan prepared by:

Case Manager: Supervisor:

Date: Assessment no.:

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