Policy
As a measure of quality assurance Victim Services of Brant will provide a mechanism for addressing complaints regarding service provision. Community members, clients and referring agencies will have access to a clearly defined procedure to register a complaint and Victim Services of Brant will have clearly defined procedures to address the complaints.
Procedure
The Board of Directors, Executive Director and program staff will address complaints and maintain a record of complaints, including the actions taken to resolve the issue.
The Victim Services of Brant Board of Directors will ensure that the procedures for complaints are incorporated into the agency policies.
The Executive Director will ensure that complaints are resolved in a timely manner, are kept confidential and that a record of all complaints is maintained for accountability.
Agency staff is responsible to ensure that any issues, concerns or complaints regarding the services provided by Victim Services of Brant are brought to the attention of the Executive Director.
If the nature of the complaint creates a conflict for the Executive Director, the complaint will bypass the management level and be forwarded directly to the Victim Services of Brant Executive Committee (as listed on the website) and discussed at the next scheduled committee meeting.
Definitions
A complaint is defined as negative feedback to Victim Services of Brant whether it is written or verbal. A statement of concern or a problem is considered a complaint. Requests for information are not considered complaints.
Types of complaints include where a client has been:
– deemed ineligible for a service,
– excluded from a particular service
Or where the client has a complaint about:
– the amount of service provided
– the termination of a service
– the quality of service provided, including the professional conduct of the staff or volunteers providing the service
A client may have a perceived complaint, based on their misinterpretation of the programs’ policies and procedures, about their ability to access services.
“Malicious or vexatious complaints” are complaints motivated solely on the intention of doing harm.
A “conflict of interest” is defined as participation or involvement in decisions where the results of the decision will unduly or unfairly favour one person over another as a result of relationships or preferences based on prohibited grounds.
“Prohibited grounds” under the Human Rights Code include: sex, race, age, creed, colour, marital status, sexual preference, disability, political or religious affiliation or family status.
Confidentiality
Client complaints will be held in strict confidence by all parties involved. All complaints will be kept separate from client files, with the exception of malicious of vexatious complaints.
Client access to their complaint file
Any information regarding a client in the Victim Services of Brant complaint system is considered a part of the client’s personal record. A client will have access to their complaints record when a written request is submitted to the Executive Director.