Support & Recovery
Support Support and Recovery services are for people who have been harmed, or may have been harmed, as a result of the violation of professional boundaries. Although most enquiries concern doctors, psychologists, psychotherapists and counsellors, the professional concerned could be any professional in a position of trust, for example a priest, physiotherapist or teacher. Students and trainees also contact the Clinic about boundary breaches by their mentors, supervisors and tutors.
The first session with the Consultation service is available at no charge. A receptionist (who has no knowledge of boundary violations) will take the initial call, so a brief idea of the nature of the call is all that is needed. Before booking a consultation please consider whether your enquiry is about a breach of professional boundaries. Many people contact us about other serious issues concerning professionals that we do not deal with, such as a failure to provide adequate care, medical negligence and inappropriate psychiatric diagnosis.
After you have contacted the clinic a member of staff will call you back. This will usually be the same day but if not it will be within two working days. We will answer any questions you have and talk to you about what you have experienced. For some people this initial free consultation will be all that is needed to help to move forward. Other people need more time to understand and process their experience and sometimes there is a need for practical help in terms of making a complaint. We can also refer people for free legal advice.
Subsequent services are charged (see individual links) and fall into the following categories:
• Witness Support: for help with making complaints, attending mediation/conciliation meetings and professional conduct hearings.
• Structured recovery program: We are in the process of developing a structured recovery program, which will be introduced in the Autumn of 2011. This has been developed for people who have been affected by professional abuse and want to have a better understanding of their experience. The recovery program takes a manual based approach, which enables people to take control of their recovery and move forward at their own pace. This will appeal to anyone who needs information and support but does not want therapy.
• Specialist psychotherapy to deal with the effects of trauma. This is for people who primarily want to explore the emotional effects of professional abuse or who want to return to therapy but are hampered by a previous bad experience. Therapy at the CfBS begins with an assessment and therapeutic contracts are arranged according to the needs of the individual client. We also offer EMDR where appropriate. We are in the process of compiling a list of therapists, from all over the country, who have an enhanced understanding of boundary violations and expertise in the effects of professional abuse.
Please note: If you are seeking support with reporting a concern or making a complaint you may be able to get free advocacy for NHS complaints from the Independent Complaints Advocacy Service (ICAS), whihc is run independetly by local charities. You may also get support from Patient Advice and Liasison Services (PALS), which operate in every NHS Trust in England.