Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
1 
of 
71 


A 
Project 
of 


and
“Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access” 


Needs 
Assessment 
Report 
Part 
2 


Disability 
Community 


January 
2009 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 


2 
of 
71 


This 
project 
was 
supported 
by 
Grant 
No. 
2006-FW-AX-K008 
awarded 
by 
the 
Office 
on 
Violence 
Against 
Women, 
U.S. 
Department 
of 
Justice. 
The 
opinions, 
findings, 
conclusions, 
and 
recommendations 
expressed 
in 
this 
publication 
are 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
3 
of 
71 


those 
of 
the 
author(s) 
and 
do 
not 
necessarily 
reflect 
the 
views 
of 
the 
Department 
of 
Justice, 
Office 
on 
Violence 
Against 
Women. 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
4 
of 
71 


Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 


A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
Texas 


Table 
of 
Contents 


I. 
Overview 
of 
collaboration 
II. 
Overarching 
purposes 
and 
goals 
III. 
Methodology 
IV. 
Needs 
assessment 
timeline 
V. 
Strengths 
and 
limitations 
VI. 
Results 
and 
key 
findings 
VII. 
Recommendations 

Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
5 
of 
71 


Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 


A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and SafePlace 
in Austin, 
Texas 


Part 
2 
– 
Disability 
Community 


Overview 
of 
the 
Collaboration 


Introduction 


In 
October, 
2006, 
the 
“Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access” 
initiative 
was 
funded 
by 
the 
U.S. 
Department 
of 
Justice, 
Office 
on 
Violence 
Against 
Women 
(OVW).1 
The 
three 
agencies 
who 
first 
initiated 
this 
collaborative 
were 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
(AI), 
Deaf 
Abused 
Women 
and 
Children 
Advocacy 
Services 
(DAWCAS), 
and 
SafePlace. 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
is 
the 
Texas 
protection 
and 
advocacy 
agency, 
DAWCAS 
was 
the 
local 
domestic 
violence 
service 
provider 
catering 
to 
the 
D/deaf2 
community, 
and 
SafePlace 
is 
the 
local 
domestic 
violence 
and 
sexual 
assault 
service 
provider. 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
has 
regional 
or 
satellite 
offices 
in 
fourteen 
(14) 
communities 
across 
Texas 
and 
partnering 
agencies 
have 
offices 
located 
in 
Austin, 
Texas. 


During 
Year 
I 
of 
this 
project, 
the 
partnering 
agency 
DAWCAS 
was 
dissolved.3 
In 
response 
to 
the 
gap 
in 
services 
left 
by 
the 
closing 
of 
DAWCAS, 
SafePlace 
initiated 
expansion 
of 
its 
domestic 
violence 
and 
sexual 
assault 
services 
to 
the 
D/deaf 
community 
through 
establishment 
of 
a 
new 
Deaf 
Services 
program. 
The 
primary 
goal 
of 
the 
program 
is 
to 
increase 
the 
availability 
of 
domestic 
violence 
and 
sexual 
assault 
services 
to 
the 
local 
Deaf, 
hard 
of 
hearing 
and 
Deaf/blind 
community. 


Staff 
hired 
within 
the 
new 
Deaf 
Services 
program 
at 
SafePlace 
participated 
in 
conducting 
Part 
I 
of 
these 
needs 
assessment 
activities 
and 
will 
take 
active 
roles 
in 
developing 
and 
implementing 
the 
collaboration’s 
strategic 
plan, 
as 
will 
other 


1 
The 
“Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access” 
initiative 
was 
funded 
in 
2006 
by 
the 
U.S. 
Department 
of 
Justice, 
Office 
on 
Violence 
Against 
Women 
through 
an 
Education 
and 
Technical 
Assistance 
Grant 
to 
End 
Violence 
Against 
Women 
with 
Disabilities 
grant 
program. 
2 
Within 
this 
report, 
and 
similar 
to 
other 
documents 
produced 
by 
the 
Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access 
project, 
the 
term 
Deaf 
with 
an 
upper 
case 
D 
is 
used 
when 
referring 
to 
individuals 
who 
are 
Deaf 
and 
identify 
as 
a 
member 
of 
a 
Deaf 
community. 
Individuals 
who 
identify 
as 
“Deaf” 
consider 
themselves 
as 
culturally 
deaf 
and 
have 
a 
strong 
Deaf 
identity. 
Deaf 
individuals 
tend 
to 
have 
attended 
schools/programs 
for 
the 
Deaf, 
while 
individuals 
who 
are 
deaf 
tend 
to 
have 
been 
mainstreamed 
and 
never 
attended 
a 
school 
for 
the 
deaf. 
In 
respect 
for 
both 
groups, 
we 
will 
use 
the 
following 
term 
throughout 
this 
report: 
D/deaf. 
3 
Before 
DAWCAS 
closed, 
staff 
contributed 
significantly 
to 
development 
of 
the 
collaboration’s 
vision, 
mission, 
charter 
and 
needs 
assessment 
plan. 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
6 
of 
71 


collaborative 
members. 
The 
additional 
staff 
participating 
in 
the 
project 
is 
part 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc., 
the 
Texas 
protection 
and 
advocacy 
agency, 
and 
the 
Disability 
Services 
ASAP 
program 
at 
SafePlace. 
Staff 
of 
these 
agencies 
participated 
in 
conducting 
Part 
I 
and 
Part 
2 
of 
the 
needs 
assessment 
and 
will 
have 
active 
roles 
in 
developing 
and 
implementing 
the 
collaboration’s 
strategic 
plans. 


Separate 
needs 
assessment 
activities 
were 
planned 
and 
implemented 
which 
focused 
on 
the 
needs 
of 
the 
D/deaf, 
hard 
of 
hearing 
and 
Deaf/blind 
community. 
A 
report 
(Part 
1 
Needs 
Assessment 
Report) 
detailing 
those 
activities 
was 
previously 
submitted 
to 
and 
approved 
by 
OVW. 
This 
Part 
2 
needs 
assessment 
report 
identifies 
barriers, 
gaps, 
and 
needs 
for 
domestic 
violence 
and 
sexual 
assault 
services 
within 
Austin 
relating 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities. 


During 
the 
first 
year 
and 
a 
half 
of 
this 
project, 
the 
partners 
met 
regularly 
to 
identify 
overarching 
goals 
for 
the 
collaboration, 
and 
to 
determine 
how 
they 
would 
assess 
the 
needs 
of 
abuse 
survivors 
with 
disabilities 
or 
who 
are 
D/deaf, 
hard 
of 
hearing 
or 
D/deaf/blind 
in 
Austin, 
Texas. 
During 
this 
process, 
partners 
increased 
knowledge 
of 
each 
other’s 
missions, 
vocabulary, 
philosophies 
and 
both 
unique 
and 
shared 
visions 
and 
goals 
for 
addressing 
violence 
in 
the 
lives 
of 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
Each 
partner 
contributed 
to 
the 
development 
of 
a 
concrete 
work 
plan, 
project 
timeline, 
and 
the 
process 
for 
initiating, 
developing 
and 
maturing 
working 
relationships 
and 
the 
project. 


The 
following 
activities 
were 
undertaken 
and 
completed 
by 
the 
partners 
during 
the 
initial 
phase 
of 
designing 
this 
needs 
assessment: 


• 
Formalized 
and 
deepened 
existing 
relationships 
among 
partners 
and 
began 
building 
on 
past 
initiatives 
in 
responding 
to 
individual 
survivors 
who 
are 
D/deaf 
or 
who 
have 
disabilities. 
• 
Participation 
in 
all-site 
meetings 
facilitated 
by 
OVW 
and 
Vera 
Institute 
of 
Justice 
(the 
project’s 
technical 
assistance 
provider). 
• 
Development 
of 
a 
vision 
and 
mission 
statement, 
collaboration 
charter, 
project 
timeline, 
and 
goals 
for 
needs 
assessment 
activities. 
• 
Conceptualized 
and 
designed 
methods 
and 
protocols 
for 
conducting 
a 
needs 
assessment 
within 
the 
partner’s 
community. 
• 
Identified 
focus 
groups 
and 
key 
informant 
interviews 
as 
primary 
methods 
for 
gathering 
information/data. 
• 
Organized, 
reviewed 
and 
presented 
the 
information 
gathered 
from 
focus 
groups 
and 
interview 
participants 
in 
the 
form 
of 
this 
needs 
assessment 
report. 
Vision 


The 
shared 
vision 
of 
the 
“Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access” 
partners 
is 
that 
people 
with 
disabilities 
and 
people 
who 
are 
D/deaf 
will 
live 
as 
they 
choose 
without 
experiencing 
violence 
in 
the 
everyday 
course 
of 
their 
lives. 
To 
reflect 
this 
vision, 
the 
following 
guiding 
statement 
was 
adopted 
for 
this 
collaboration 
effort. 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
7 
of 
71 


“We 
envision 
that 
people 
who 
are 
D/deaf 
or 
have 
disabilities 
live 
free 
from 
domestic 
and 
sexual 
violence 
and 
other 
forms 
of 
abuse.”4 


Mission 


The 
mission 
of 
the 
partners 
is 
to 
work 
to 
advance 
change 
within 
our 
own 
agencies 
and 
communities 
to 
ensure 
that 
disability, 
D/deaf 
and 
victim 
services 
are 
available 
to 
all 
people 
with 
disabilities 
and 
D/deaf 
community 
members. 
The 
following 
statement 
was 
adopted 
to 
guide 
our 
planning, 
needs 
assessment, 
and 
implementation 
activities: 


Our 
mission 
is 
“to 
advance 
policies, 
practices 
and 
services 
that 
ensure 
culturally 
aware, 
sensitive 
and 
fully 
accessible 
responses 
to 
members 
of 
the 
disability 
and 
D/deaf 
communities 
regarding 
domestic, 
caregiver 
and 
sexual 
violence.” 


Project 
Scope 


After 
a 
lengthy 
period 
of 
discussion 
and 
deliberation 
among 
the 
partner 
agencies, 
Vera 
Institute 
of 
Justice 
(Vera), 
and 
OVW, 
the 
geographical 
scope 
of 
this 
project 
was 
limited 
to 
Austin, 
Texas 
and 
surrounding 
areas 
(Travis 
County). 
All 
Part 
2 
needs 
assessment 
activities 
were 
conducted 
within 
the 
partners’ 
own 
agencies 
(Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace) 
and 
among 
disability 
community 
members 
and 
disability 
service 
providers. 


Workgroups 
were 
formed 
to 
select 
and 
propose 
assessment 
goals 
representative 
of 
the 
partnering 
agencies’ 
internal 
and 
community-based 
interests. 
The 
selected 
goals 
were 
presented 
and 
reviewed 
by 
the 
full 
project 
team, 
Vera 
Institute 
of 
Justice, 
and 
OVW. 
A 
final 
set 
of 
project 
goals 
were 
selected 
based 
on 
the 
overarching 
purpose 
in 
developing 
this 
needs 
assessment. 


Overarching 
Purposes 
and 
Goals 


In 
developing 
the 
needs 
assessment 
plan, 
our 
purpose 
was 
to 
discover 
what 
is 
needed 
within 
our 
own 
agencies 
and 
community 
so 
that 
people 
with 
disabilities 
living 
in 
Austin 
and 
Travis 
County, 
are 
consistently 
welcomed 
and 
gain 
access 
to 
needed 
domestic 
violence 
and 
sexual 
assault 
services. 


4 
The 
project 
partners 
recognize 
that 
“this 
statement 
does 
not 
reflect 
the 
world 
as 
it 
is, 
but 
rather 
our 
values 
and 
beliefs 
about 
the 
world 
as 
it 
should 
be, 
and 
our 
work 
leads 
us 
closer 
to 
this...our 
dream. 
Our 
work 
is 
about 
believing 
in 
the 
vision 
and 
living 
the 
dream.” 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
8 
of 
71 


Conducting 
the 
needs 
assessment 
provided 
the 
partnering 
agencies 
with 
an 
opportunity 
to 
update 
our 
understanding 
of 
the 
service 
barriers 
and 
needs 
of 
survivors 
with 
disabilities 
in 
Austin. 
In 
a 
less 
formal 
way, 
the 
methods 
of 
data 
collection 
(i.e., 
focus 
groups 
and 
interviews) 
generated 
dialogue 
and 
sparked 
the 
curiosity 
and 
interest 
of 
co-workers 
about 
working 
with 
survivors 
who 
have 
disabilities 
in 
their 
own 
areas 
of 
accountability. 
Subsequent 
to 
the 
approval 
of 
this 
report, 
the 
information 
detailed 
in 
this 
report 
will 
be 
used 
to 
develop 
a 
strategic 
plan 
for 
responding 
to 
the 
gaps 
and 
access 
barriers 
identified. 


This 
needs 
assessment 
was 
designed 
and 
implemented 
according 
to 
the 
following 
purposes 
and 
goals: 


1. 
Identify 
Service 
Gaps, 
Barriers 
and 
Needs 
What 
are 
the 
areas 
of 
need 
by 
people 
with 
disabilities 
related 
to 
domestic 
violence 
and 
sexual 
assault? 


What 
are 
the 
service 
gaps 
and 
barriers 
experienced 
by 
disability 
service 
providers 
when 
working 
with 
survivors 
of 
violence? 


2. 
Build 
Internal 
Capacity 
for 
Providing 
Services 
What 
do 
SafePlace 
staff 
members 
need 
to 
increase 
their 
own 
capacity 
for 
providing 
sensitive 
and 
accessible 
domestic 
violence 
and 
sexual 
assault 
services 
to 
survivors 
who 
have 
disabilities? 


What 
do 
disability 
service 
providers 
(including 
Advocacy, 
Inc.) 
need 
to 
increase 
their 
capacity 
for 
responding 
in 
a 
knowledgeable 
and 
sensitive 
way 
to 
domestic 
and 
sexual 
violence 
survivors 
who 
have 
disabilities? 


What 
is 
the 
role 
of 
disability 
service 
providers 
(including 
Advocacy, 
Inc.) 
in 
responding 
to 
survivors 
of 
domestic 
and 
violence 
that 
they 
serve? 


3. 
Expand 
Outreach 
and 
Provision 
of 
Services 
How 
can 
the 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
outreach 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities 
in 
order 
to 
increase 
their 
access 
to 
domestic 
violence 
and 
sexual 
assault 
services? 


4. 
Build 
Collaborative 
Responses 
What 
Austin-based 
disability 
service 
organizations 
are 
interested 
in 
building 
a 
more 
collaborative 
response 
to 
abuse 
survivors 
who 
have 
disabilities 
through 
partnering 
or 
increased 
service 
referral? 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
9 
of 
71 


In 
what 
ways 
can 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
coordinate 
their 
own 
services 
to 
better 
respond 
to 
domestic 
and 
sexual 
violence 
when 
working 
with 
survivors 
who 
have 
disabilities? 


5. 
Sustain 
Outreach 
and 
Provision 
of 
Services 
In 
what 
ways 
can 
we 
institutionalize 
policies, 
practices, 
and 
other 
strategies 
that 
ensure 
welcoming, 
knowledgeable, 
and 
accessible 
responses 
to 
individuals 
with 
disabilities 
living 
in 
Travis 
County? 


Methodology 


This 
Part 
2 
of 
the 
needs 
assessment 
was 
intended 
to 
gather 
information 
about 
the 
domestic, 
caregiver 
and 
sexual 
violence 
service 
and 
support 
needs 
of 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
To 
accomplish 
this 
goal, 
we 
wanted 
to 
learn 
from 
a 
variety 
of 
sources 
and 
most 
directly 
from 
individuals 
with 
disabilities, 
disability 
service 
providers, 
and 
the 
partnering 
agencies 
(SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc.). 
Part 
2 
needs 
assessment 
activities 
were 
conducted 
between 
July 
and 
November 
of 
2008 
in 
Austin/Travis 
County, 
Texas. 


The 
primary 
methods 
for 
gathering 
information 
from 
stakeholders 
were 
focus 
groups 
and 
individual 
face-to-face 
interviews. 
The 
partnering 
agencies 
recruited 
participants, 
moderated 
or 
co-moderated 
focus 
groups 
and 
interviews, 
and 
de-
briefed 
data 
collection 
activities. 
As 
lead 
agency, 
SafePlace 
agreed 
to 
manage 
the 
logistics 
and 
provide 
note-takers 
for 
each 
focus 
group 
and 
interview. 
Project 
staff 
from 
both 
agencies 
shared 
in 
the 
process 
of 
developing 
and 
revising 
a 
set 
of 
focus 
group/interview 
questions 
until 
they 
clearly 
reflected 
the 
interests 
of 
each 
partnering 
agency 
and 
the 
overarching 
purposes 
and 
goals 
for 
this 
needs 
assessment. 


The 
project’s 
technical 
assistance 
provider, 
Vera 
Institute 
of 
Justice, 
and 
OVW 
staff 
provided 
assistance 
to 
ensure 
focus 
group 
and 
interview 
questions 
and 
necessary 
prompts 
reflected 
the 
purpose 
and 
goals 
of 
this 
grant 
initiative. 
All 
focus 
groups 
and 
interviews 
were 
conducted 
at 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
or 
SafePlace. 


Focus 
groups 
and 
interviews 
were 
conducted 
according 
to 
a 
structured 
protocol 
where 
all 
participants 
received 
the 
same 
instructions 
and 
responded 
to 
the 
same 
pre-determined 
set 
of 
questions. 
Focus 
group 
moderators 
and 
the 
interviewers 
exercised 
flexibility 
in 
the 
use 
of 
prompts 
and 
queries 
but 
overall, 
information 
was 
gathered 
in 
a 
similar 
manner 
for 
all 
participants. 


In 
preparation 
for 
conducting 
the 
focus 
groups 
and 
interviews 
assessment 
activities, 
Vera 
Institute 
of 
Justice 
arranged 
for 
Mary 
Oschwald 
of 
the 
Regional 
Institute 
of 
Portland 
State 
University 
to 
provide 
training 
on 
tips 
and 
strategies 
for 
collecting 
data 
through 
focus 
groups 
and 
interviews. 
The 
training 
provided 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
10 
of 
71 


project 
staff 
with 
information 
on 
the 
current 
practices 
in 
the 
design 
of 
focus 
group 
and 
interview 
protocols 
and 
design 
of 
consistent 
approaches 
for 
moderating 
focus 
groups 
and 
face-to-face 
interviews. 
Staff 
from 
the 
partnering 
agencies 
participated 
in 
the 
training. 


Accessibility 


The 
sites 
where 
focus 
groups 
and 
interviews 
were 
conducted 
were 
accessible. 
Several 
participants 
asked 
about 
the 
physical 
access 
of 
the 
locations 
and 
were 
assured 
of 
the 
access 
into 
and 
throughout 
the 
buildings. 
In 
one 
case, 
participants’ 
access 
to 
the 
reception 
area 
was 
affected 
by 
insufficient 
delay 
time 
on 
the 
automatic 
door 
opener. 
This 
information 
was 
immediately 
submitted 
to 
the 
facilities 
management 
staff 
at 
SafePlace 
for 
repairs. 
There 
were 
no 
other 
specific 
accessibility 
accommodations 
or 
modifications 
requested 
during 
the 
collection 
of 
data 
in 
these 
needs 
assessment 
activities. 
No 
reimbursements 
for 
transportation 
and 
child 
care 
services 
were 
requested. 


Data 
Collection 


Tools 


Partnering 
staff 
generated 
four 
(4) 
sets 
of 
focus 
group 
questions 
and 
one 
(1) 
set 
of 
individual 
interview 
questions 
to 
conduct 
the 
Part 
2 
need 
assessment. 
Each 
question 
set 
was 
designed 
to 
reflect 
the 
key 
areas 
of 
interest 
outlined 
earlier 
in 
this 
report. 
The 
five 
(5) 
sets 
of 
questions 
can 
be 
found 
in 
Appendix 
A 
of 
this 
document. 


Sources 
of 
information 


Focus 
groups 
and 
individual 
interviews 
with 
people 
with 
disabilities 
were 
used 
to 
gather 
information 
about 
the 
access 
gaps, 
barriers 
and 
needs 
for 
domestic 
and 
sexual 
violence 
services. 
These 
same 
methods 
were 
used 
to 
assess 
the 
needs 
of 
disability 
service 
providers, 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff, 
and 
SafePlace 
staff 
for 
education, 
training, 
technical 
assistance, 
policy/protocol 
development 
to 
improve 
supports 
and 
services 
to 
abuse 
survivors 
in 
Austin. 


SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
looked 
first 
within 
their 
own 
agencies 
to 
assess 
gaps 
and 
needs, 
make 
improvements, 
and 
identify 
opportunities 
to 
formalize 
the 
coordination 
of 
services 
between 
the 
partners. 
Staff 
were 
asked 
to 
identify 
their 
needs 
for 
information, 
education, 
training, 
technical 
assistance 
and 
agency 
changes 
to 
support 
work 
with 
abuse 
survivors 
who 
have 
disabilities. 
Staff 
members 
were 
also 
asked 
to 
identify 
gaps 
and 
needs 
to 
ensure 
effective 
coordination 
of 
services 
between 
other 
direct 
service 
staff, 
disability 
service 
providers, 
and 
the 
partner 
agency. 


Disability 
service 
providers 
were 
also 
engaged 
in 
this 
needs 
assessment. 
Project 
staff 
hoped 
to 
identify 
providers 
interested 
in 
expanding 
their 
network 
of 



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available 
resources 
and 
supports 
for 
serving 
their 
clients 
who 
are 
at 
risk 
or 
have 
already 
experienced 
violence. 


A 
total 
of 
twenty-six 
(26) 
needs 
assessment 
activities 
were 
conducted 
with 
a 
total 
of 
ninety-three 
(93) 
participants. 
The 
sources 
of 
information 
for 
this 
needs 
assessment 
are 
summarized 
in 
a 
table 
on 
the 
next 
page. 



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Table 
1: 
Needs 
Assessment 
Participant 
Groups 


CommunityMembersProjectPartnersServiceProviderAgenciesPeoplewithDisabilities•TypesofdisabilitiesrepresentedoPhysicaloCognitiveoMentalHealthoHIV+
oSensory(blindorlowvision)
SafePlaceStaff•Counselingstaff•CrisisInterventionstaff•Hospitaladvocacystaff•Legalservicesstaff•ProgramDirectors•Resourceadvocates•Shelterstaff•TransitionalhousingstaffAdvocacy,Inc.
•CommunityIntegrationteam•ProtectionandCivilRightsteamDisabilityServices•Administrators•Directservicestaff•AgenciesRepresented:
oTexasDepartmentofFamilyandProtectiveServices-AdultProtectiveServices(APS)(Austinregionaloffice)
oAustinResourceCenterforIndependentLiving(ARCIL)
oAustinTravisCountyMentalHealthMentalRetardation
(ATCMHMR)
oCapitalMetrooEasterSealsoEmpowermentOptionsoFamilyEldercareoGoodwillIndustriesoTexasDepartmentofAssistiveandRehabilitationServces
(DARS)--DivisionofBlindServicesoTexasDepartmentofFamily&
ProtectiveServicesoTheArcoftheCapitalArea

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Participant 
Recruitment 


SafePlace 
staff: 
Focus 
groups 
were 
scheduled 
and 
conducted 
with 
SafePlace’s 
direct 
service 
staff 
from 
these 
service 
areas: 
shelter, 
transitional 
housing, 
counseling, 
hotline, 
hospital 
advocacy, 
crisis 
intervention, 
advocacy/case 
management 
and 
legal 
services. 
Staff 
members 
were 
invited 
to 
participate 
by 
project 
staff 
through 
directors, 
managers, 
flyers, 
emails 
and 
face 
to 
face 
invitations. 


Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff: 
Focus 
groups 
were 
conducted 
with 
the 
Community 
Integration 
and 
Protection 
and 
the 
Civil 
Rights 
teams. 


Disability 
service 
providers: 
Project 
staff 
contacted 
and 
invited 
staff 
to 
participate 
from 
organizations 
providing 
services 
to 
or 
who 
have 
contact 
with 
people 
with 
disabilities 
within 
Austin/Travis 
County. 
These 
organizations 
included: 
The 
Arc 
of 
the 
Capital 
Area, 
Austin 
Resource 
Center 
for 
Independent 
Living 
(ARCIL), 
Austin 
Travis 
County 
Mental 
Health 
Mental 
Retardation 
(ATCMHMR), 
Capital 
Metro, 
Easter 
Seals, 
Empowerment 
Options, 
Family 
Eldercare, 
Goodwill 
Industries, 
Texas 
Department 
of 
Family 
and 
Protective 
Services 
-Adult 
Protective 
Services 
(APS) 
and 
Texas 
Department 
of 
Assistive 
and 
Rehabilitation 
Services 
(DARS) 
-
Division 
of 
Blind 
Services. 


Community 
members 
with 
disabilities: 
Participants 
for 
focus 
groups 
and 
individual 
interviews 
were 
recruited 
by 
contacting 
local 
disability 
service 
agencies 
and 
other 
community 
groups 
in 
contact 
with 
people 
who 
have 
disabilities 
and 
live 
in 
Austin. 
Methods 
of 
contact 
included 
email, 
in 
person, 
word-of-mouth, 
and 
various 
listservs. 


The 
emails, 
letters 
and 
flyers 
used 
to 
invite 
all 
participants 
outlined 
the 
purpose 
and 
voluntary 
nature 
of 
the 
interviews 
and 
focus 
groups, 
how 
to 
contact 
project 
staff, 
and 
group 
dates 
and 
times. 


Confidentiality 


Every 
effort 
was 
made 
to 
maintain 
participant 
confidentiality 
within 
the 
limits 
of 
the 
law. 
All 
participants 
were 
informed 
that 
no 
personally 
identifying 
information 
would 
be 
recorded 
unless 
the 
participant 
gave 
us 
their 
signed 
consent 
for 
the 
purposes 
of: 
1) 
contacting 
them 
with 
follow 
up 
information 
or 
2) 
contacting 
them 
for 
further 
needs 
assessment 
information. 
Even 
in 
those 
two 
cases, 
the 
contact 
information 
is 
kept 
separate 
from 
the 
data 
gathered. 
Participants 
in 
focus 
groups 
were 
also 
asked 
to 
agree 
to 
maintain 
confidentiality 
about 
each 
other’s 
participation, 
names, 
comments 
or 
answers 
to 
questions. 


Participants 
were 
informed 
of 
two 
exceptions 
to 
our 
consent 
and 
confidentiality 
agreements. 
These 
exceptions 
would 
be: 
1) 
if 
a 
participant 
disclosed 
current 



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abuse, 
and 
2) 
if 
a 
participant 
disclosed 
plans 
to 
harm 
themselves 
or 
someone 
else. 
Texas 
is 
a 
mandatory 
reporting 
state 
and 
information 
in 
these 
cases 
must 
be 
reported 
to 
Adult 
Protective 
Services 
(APS). 
In 
these 
assessment 
activities, 
no 
reports 
were 
made 
to 
APS. 


Informed 
Consent 
to 
Participate 


Disability 
community 
members: 
Participants 
with 
disabilities 
were 
asked 
to 
sign 
an 
informed 
consent 
to 
participate 
document. 
The 
interviewer 
or 
focus 
group 
moderator 
reviewed 
the 
contents 
of 
the 
consent 
form 
with 
participants 
and 
answered 
any 
questions. 
All 
consent 
forms 
were 
signed 
and 
collected 
before 
the 
interview 
or 
focus 
group 
began. 
A 
copy 
of 
the 
consent 
to 
participate 
form, 
developed 
by 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc., 
can 
be 
found 
in 
Appendix 
B. 


It 
was 
important 
to 
project 
staff 
that 
participants 
were 
informed 
that 
the 
focus 
group 
/ 
interview 
was 
going 
to 
focus 
on 
issues 
related 
to 
abuse 
and 
that 
they 
may 
feel 
uncomfortable 
or 
upset 
in 
discussing 
these 
issues. 
Participants 
were 
also 
told 
that 
they 
could 
leave 
the 
room 
and 
talk 
to 
a 
safe 
person. 
The 
following 
key 
elements 
covered 
in 
the 
informed 
consent 
process 
were 
detailed 
and 
discussed 
with 
participants: 


• 
The 
state 
law 
about 
mandatory 
reporting 
of 
abuse 
or 
intention 
to 
harm 
to 
self 
or 
others. 
• 
The 
voluntary 
nature 
of 
their 
participation. 
• 
Right 
to 
pass 
on 
any 
question. 
• 
Right 
to 
stop 
participation 
at 
any 
time 
and 
still 
be 
given 
the 
stipend. 
• 
Access 
to 
a 
safe 
person 
and 
immediate 
supports 
if 
requested. 
• 
The 
potentially 
upsetting 
nature 
of 
the 
topics 
under 
discussion. 
• 
Resources 
available 
after 
the 
focus 
group 
or 
interview. 
• 
Information 
about 
the 
note-taker 
and 
what 
would 
be 
recorded. 
• 
The 
offer 
to 
provide 
a 
copy 
of 
the 
notes 
immediately 
following 
the 
group 
or 
interview. 
Disability 
service 
providers, 
SafePlace 
staff, 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc.: 
Passive 
voluntary 
consent 
was 
considered 
evidenced 
when 
a 
provider 
or 
staff 
member 
participated 
in 
a 
focus 
group 
or 
interview. 


Participant 
Compensation 


Gift 
Cards: 
Participants 
in 
focus 
groups 
for 
disability 
service 
providers 
were 
given 
a 
$5.00 
gift 
card 
to 
a 
local 
ice 
cream 
store 
or 
coffee 
shop 
for 
their 
participation 
in 
the 
focus 
groups. 
These 
$5.00 
gift 
cards 
were 
not 
advertised 
prior 
to 
the 
focus 
groups 
and 
were 
distributed 
at 
the 
conclusion 
of 
the 
service 
provider 
focus 
groups 
in 
appreciation 
of 
their 
participation. 



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Stipend: 
Participants 
from 
the 
disability 
community 
received 
a 
$35.00 
stipend 
for 
their 
participation 
in 
needs 
assessment 
activities. 


In 
addition, 
snacks 
and 
beverages 
were 
offered 
to 
focus 
group 
participants 
and 
individual 
interview 
participants 
were 
offered 
their 
choice 
of 
beverages 
during 
the 
interview. 


Focus 
Groups 


A 
total 
of 
thirteen 
(13) 
focus 
groups 
were 
held 
with 
approximately 
eighty-four 
(84) 
participants 
in 
this 
needs 
assessment 
with 
an 
average 
of 
six 
(6) 
participants 
per 
focus 
group. 
Targeted 
outreach 
to 
potential 
focus 
group 
participants 
was 
made 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities 
in 
Austin, 
Texas.5 
In 
addition, 
project 
staff 
engaged 
local 
disability 
service 
providers, 
domestic 
violence 
and 
sexual 
assault 
agency 
staff 
(SafePlace) 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff. 
Focus 
groups 
were 
held 
at 
SafePlace 
or 
the 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
offices. 


Individual 
Interviews 


A 
total 
of 
thirteen 
(13) 
individual 
interviews 
were 
conducted 
as 
means 
of 
gathering 
information 
to 
help 
improve 
domestic 
and 
sexual 
violence 
services 
and 
supports 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities. 


Targeted 
outreach 
for 
individual 
interviews 
was 
made 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities 
in 
Austin/Travis 
County. 
No 
specific 
recruitment 
of 
survivors 
was 
conducted. 
One 
individual 
community 
member 
interview 
was 
held 
at 
the 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
office, 
while 
the 
remaining 
ten 
were 
held 
at 
SafePlace. 
Key 
informant 
interviews 
were 
also 
conducted 
with 
Program 
Directors 
within 
SafePlace’s 
shelter 
and 
crisis 
intervention/hotline 
programs. 
Project 
staff 
sought 
to 
conduct 
key 
informant 
interviews 
with 
the 
Program 
Directors 
of 
the 
Counseling 
and 
Legal 
Services 
departments 
but 
due 
to 
varying 
reasons, 
these 
SafePlace 
staff 
were 
not 
able 
to 
participate 
in 
an 
interview. 


5Specific 
attention 
was 
given 
to 
recruit 
individuals 
with 
a 
wide 
range 
of 
disabilities 
for 
these 
focus 
groups. 
Individuals 
with 
cognitive/developmental 
disabilities, 
mental 
health 
disabilities, 
physical 
disabilities 
and 
individuals 
with 
sensory 
disabilities 
were 
recruited 
and 
participated 
in 
interviews 
and 
focus 
groups. 



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Focus 
Group 
and 
Key 
Informant 
Interview 
Participation 


TargetGroupNumberofFocusGroupsConductedNumberofFocusGroupParticipantsNumberofIndividualInterviewsConductedNumberofInterviewPartcipantsTotalDisabilityServiceProviders21000PartnerAgencyAdvocacy,Inc.21900DisabilityCommunityMembers4161111SafePlaceStaffTransitionalHousing21300Non-residentialCounseling11300LegalServices/hospitalaccompaniment1300ShelterAdvocatesandCounselors11011CrisisInterventionProviders0011TOTAL13focusgroups84FGparticipants13idividualinterviews13interviewparticipants26Activities97TotalParticipants

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Future 
Contact 
with 
Participants 


Throughout 
the 
course 
of 
conducting 
the 
needs 
assessment, 
participants’ 
interest 
in 
follow 
up 
contact 
was 
explored 
by 
moderators 
and 
interviewers. 
Individuals 
wanting 
future 
contact 
with 
the 
project 
staff 
gave 
us 
information 
about 
how 
and 
when 
they 
could 
be 
safely 
contacted. 
Some 
of 
the 
participants 
wanted 
to 
know 
about 
the 
assessment 
outcomes 
and 
any 
changes 
that 
we 
made 
as 
a 
result. 
The 
follow 
up 
contact 
information 
is 
stored 
as 
confidential 
material 
in 
a 
locked 
file 
cabinet 
at 
the 
lead 
agency. 


Data 
Recording 


Project 
staff 
served 
as 
note-taker(s) 
to 
record 
the 
information 
shared 
by 
participants 
during 
the 
focus 
groups 
and 
interviews. 
Paper 
and 
pen 
and 
laptops 
were 
the 
methods 
used 
to 
record 
information 
shared 
by 
participants. 
The 
transitional 
housing 
team 
was 
quite 
large 
and 
split 
into 
two 
focus 
groups 
held 
concurrently 
during 
their 
weekly 
staff 
meeting. 
For 
these 
groups, 
only 
one 
note-
taker 
was 
available 
for 
each 
group. 
For 
all 
but 
one 
of 
the 
individual 
interviews 
conducted, 
one 
note-taker 
was 
used 
to 
record 
information 
shared 
by 
the 
key 
informants 
(Program 
Directors). 
For 
one 
interview, 
no 
note-taker 
was 
available 
due 
to 
a 
last 
minute 
emergent 
situation. 
In 
this 
case, 
the 
interviewer 
took 
notes 
while 
simultaneously 
conducting 
the 
interview. 


The 
decision 
to 
employ 
one 
note-taker 
was 
strategic 
to 
reduce 
the 
number 
of 
unknown 
persons 
who 
were 
in 
the 
room 
during 
the 
individual 
interviews. 
Interviews 
comprised 
of 
the 
individual 
with 
a 
disability, 
one 
interviewer 
and 
one 
note-taker 
or— 
one 
Program 
Director, 
one 
interviewer, 
and 
one 
note-taker. 


Offer 
of 
focus 
group 
/ 
individual 
interview 
notes 
to 
participants 


Project 
staff 
worked 
to 
ensure 
that 
that 
all 
needs 
assessment 
activities 
were 
transparent 
to 
individual 
participants 
in 
this 
project. 
Although 
offered, 
no 
participants 
requested 
a 
copy 
of 
information 
gathered 
during 
their 
interview 
or 
focus 
group. 
Participants 
did 
express 
general 
interest 
in 
learning 
about 
the 
project 
outcomes 
and 
any 
changes 
that 
would 
be 
implemented 
within 
the 
community. 
These 
requests 
were 
noted 
by 
project 
staff 
and 
will 
be 
honored 
once 
a 
Strategic 
Plan 
is 
created 
and 
approved. 


Transcription 
of 
Notes 


Note-takers 
were 
responsible 
for 
transcribing 
their 
notes 
immediately 
following 
an 
interview 
or 
focus 
group 
and 
submitting 
to 
the 
project 
manager. 
The 
note-
takers 
documented 
the 
method 
of 
data 
gathering 
(individual 
interview 
or 
focus 



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group), 
date, 
note-taker 
and 
interpreter 
name(s), 
and 
the 
total 
number 
of 
participants. 


The 
information 
gathered 
was 
organized 
according 
to 
the 
individual 
questions 
and 
based 
on 
the 
thematic 
content 
of 
responses. 
Individual 
responses 
were 
not 
linked 
with 
participant 
names 
as 
was 
discussed 
earlier 
in 
the 
confidentiality 
section 
of 
this 
document. 
The 
original 
notes 
are 
stored 
in 
a 
locked 
file 
cabinet 
in 
the 
project 
manager’s 
office. 
Electronic 
copies 
of 
this 
data 
are 
stored 
at 
the 
lead 
agency 
where 
access 
is 
limited 
to 
project 
staff 
only. 
The 
information 
will 
be 
stored 
according 
to 
federal 
guidelines 
governing 
the 
collection 
and 
storage 
of 
data. 


Following 
transcription 
of 
the 
notes 
taken 
during 
each 
focus 
group 
and 
interview, 
project 
staff 
organized 
the 
information 
to 
facilitate 
identification 
of 
key 
issues 
and 
areas 
of 
need 
revealed 
by 
individual 
and 
collective 
participants. 
Participant 
responses 
were 
cross 
referenced 
according 
to 
the 
population 
represented 
(i.e., 
survivor, 
service 
provider, 
direct 
service 
staff, 
etc.), 
individual 
questions 
asked, 
and 
the 
core 
themes 
and 
requests. 
Responses 
are 
organized 
in 
the 
results 
section 
of 
this 
report 
according 
to: 
1) 
populations 
represented, 
2) 
issue 
areas, 
and 
3) 
the 
project’s 
purposes 
and 
goals. 


Needs 
Assessment 
Time 
Line 


The 
information 
gathered 
in 
the 
needs 
assessment 
will 
be 
essential 
to 
the 
development 
of 
a 
strategic 
plan 
that 
accurately 
reflects 
the 
resources, 
barriers 
and 
opportunities 
for 
increasing 
accessibility 
to 
victim 
and 
disability 
services 
and 
safety 
options 
for 
people 
who 
have 
disabilities. 


Workgroups 
within 
the 
collaborative 
team 
were 
tasked 
with 
developing 
needs 
assessment 
goals 
that 
represented 
each 
of 
the 
partner 
agencies 
internal 
and 
community 
based 
self-interests. 
These 
goals 
were 
presented 
and 
reviewed 
by 
the 
full 
project 
team 
and 
a 
final 
set 
of 
goals 
were 
selected 
which 
are 
summarized 
earlier 
in 
this 
document. 
The 
focus 
group 
and 
interview 
questions 
were 
developed 
according 
to 
these 
goals 
(see 
p. 
2-3). 


Following 
selection 
of 
our 
goals, 
the 
project 
team 
outlined 
a 
plan 
for 
completion 
of 
the 
various 
activities 
necessary 
for 
conducting 
the 
focus 
groups 
and 
individual 
interviews. 
A 
strategic 
plan 
will 
be 
developed 
and 
proposed 
to 
OVW 
for 
approval 
based 
on 
results 
presented 
in 
this 
report. 
The 
approved 
plan 
will 
reflect 
the 
partners 
recommendations 
and 
will 
guide 
the 
remaining 
project 
activities. 
The 
following 
chart 
details 
our 
estimated 
timeline 
for 
completing 
the 
needs 
assessment 
activities. 



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Month 
Needs 
Assessment 
Plan 
– 
Development 
Timeline 
Major 
Activities 
and 
Milestones 
June 
2007 
Develop 
needs 
assessment 
goals 
representing 
each 
partner 
agencies 
goals 
and 
community 
based 
self-interests. 
July 
-August 
2007 
Select 
teams 
to 
develop 
needs 
assessment 
goals. 
Draft 
protocol 
for 
conducting 
needs 
assessment 
activities 
and 
develop 
focus 
group 
and 
interview 
questions 
based 
on 
needs 
assessment 
goals. 
Continue 
meeting 
as 
collaborative. 
Participate 
in 
training 
by 
Vera 
Associate 
on 
“Best 
Practices 
in 
Moderating 
Focus 
Groups.” 
September 
– 
Develop 
the 
needs 
assessment 
plan 
and 
submit 
to 
Vera 
Institute 
of 
Justice 
November 
2007 
for 
review 
and 
OVW 
for 
approval. 
Finalize 
informed 
consent 
documents 
and 
stipend 
plan 
for 
participants. 
Continue 
meeting 
as 
collaborative. 
Attend 
OVW/Vera 
all-site 
meeting 
in 
St. 
Louis, 
Missouri. 
December 
2007 
– 
January 
2008 
Pending 
OVW 
approval 
of 
the 
needs 
assessment 
plan 
– 
recruit 
participants 
and 
provide 
informed 
consent 
information. 
January 
– 
Develop 
needs 
assessment 
protocol; 
conduct 
focus 
groups 
and 
individual 
November2008 
interviews. 
Continue 
meeting 
as 
collaborative. 
Attend 
OVW/Vera 
all 
site 
meeting 
in 
Louisville, 
Kentucky. 
November 
2008 
– 
Organize 
and 
compile 
needs 
assessment 
data. 
Develop 
findings 
and 
January 
2009 
integrate 
with 
other 
sources 
of 
information 
(census, 
agency 
self-interests, 
priority 
setting 
by 
collaboration, 
etc.). 
Submit 
needs 
assessment 
report 
to 
OVW 
for 
approval. 
February 
2-March 
Hold 
strategic 
planning 
session 
with 
partners, 
Vera 
Institute 
of 
Justice 
and 
2009 
OVW. 
Develop 
strategic 
plan 
based 
on 
results 
of 
needs 
assessment 
data. 
Submit 
strategic 
plan 
to 
OVW 
for 
approval. 
March 
2009 
Pending 
approval 
of 
strategic 
plan 
-begin 
implementation 
of 
strategic 
plan. 


Strengths 
and 
Limitations 


Strengths 


A 
strength 
of 
this 
collaborative 
and 
needs 
assessment 
is 
the 
relationship 
among 
project 
partners. 
In 
2005, 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
worked 
together 
on 
a 
joint 
project 
related 
to 
advocacy, 
disability 
rights, 
and 
accessible 
services 
to 



Partnering 
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Project 
of 
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Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
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individuals 
with 
disabilities 
or 
who 
are 
D/deaf. 
Through 
that 
project, 
AI 
closed 
its 
offices 
for 
two 
days 
so 
that 
agency 
staff 
could 
participate 
in 
an 
introductory 
training 
on 
domestic 
violence 
which 
was 
offered 
by 
SafePlace 
and 
DAWCAS. 
Additionally, 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
held 
a 
two 
day 
meeting 
with 
disability 
rights 
advocates 
to 
discuss 
domestic 
and 
caregiver 
abuse 
related 
issues. 


This 
OVW 
funded 
project 
has 
allowed 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
to 
deepen 
their 
existing 
relationships, 
learn 
more 
about 
each 
other’s 
work, 
agency 
culture, 
and 
roles 
in 
serving 
our 
community. 
Project 
team 
members 
are 
committed 
to 
continuing 
this 
work 
to 
ensure 
that 
women 
who 
have 
disabilities 
or 
who 
are 
D/deaf 
in 
Austin 
or 
Travis 
County 
can 
increase 
their 
personal 
safety 
and 
get 
the 
help 
and 
supports 
they 
need 
when 
domestic 
/ 
sexual 
violence 
occurs. 


An 
additional 
strength 
has 
been 
leadership 
within 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
who 
are 
committed 
to 
providing 
accessible 
services 
to 
individuals 
who 
have 
disabilities. 
In 
the 
course 
of 
conducting 
this 
needs 
assessment, 
co-workers, 
direct 
services 
staff, 
and 
program 
leadership 
readily 
contributed 
to 
identify 
service 
gaps 
and 
barriers 
and 
how 
our 
agencies 
can 
better 
coordinate 
services 
and 
reach 
out 
to 
other 
providers 
in 
our 
community 
to 
better 
serve 
people 
with 
disabilities 
in 
our 
community. 


This 
needs 
assessment 
also 
provided 
an 
opportunity 
to 
communicate 
face-to-
face 
with 
community 
members 
with 
disabilities 
and 
local 
disability 
service 
providers, 
to 
further 
build 
relationships. 
A 
number 
of 
participants 
with 
disabilities 
shared 
that 
their 
participation 
was 
a 
first 
time 
to 
gather 
specifically 
to 
talk 
about 
abuse 
and 
violence, 
victim 
service 
needs 
and 
some 
of 
their 
fears, 
experiences 
and 
barriers 
to 
seeking 
help. 


Limitations 


We 
also 
note 
several 
weaknesses 
regarding 
our 
data 
collection 
methods. 
First, 
we 
relied 
heavily 
on 
self-reporting 
which 
yields 
a 
subjective 
and 
biased 
data 
set. 
Yet, 
for 
our 
purposes, 
this 
method 
served 
well. 
We 
listened, 
face-to-face, 
and 
took 
note 
directly 
from 
people 
with 
disabilities, 
disability 
service 
professionals 
and 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff. 
These 
individuals 
spoke 
with 
us 
about 
the 
service 
gaps, 
barriers 
and 
needs 
related 
to 
domestic 
and 
sexual 
violence, 
from 
a 
personal 
and 
experienced 
perspective. 


Second, 
we 
recorded 
participant 
responses 
during 
focus 
groups 
and 
interviews 
by 
taking 
notes. 
This 
method 
of 
data 
collection 
is 
likely 
to 
yield 
results 
influenced 
by 
our 
human 
tendency 
to 
pay 
attention 
to 
what 
is 
more 
personally 
interesting 
or 
relevant. 
For 
some 
measure 
of 
control 
related 
to 
this 
bias, 
we 
provided 
training 
to 
note-takers 
and 
initiated 
the 
standard 
of 
using 
two 
(2) 
note-takers 
and 
transcribers 
for 
each 
group. 



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and 
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Austin, 
TX 
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Third, 
in 
consideration 
of 
weaknesses 
associated 
with 
reviewing 
the 
data, 
at 
least 
three 
(3) 
staff 
members 
independently 
identified 
and 
summarized 
the 
key 
gaps, 
barriers, 
needs 
and 
requests 
detailed 
in 
the 
recorded 
data. 
These 
sets 
of 
data 
were 
then 
compared 
to 
identify 
the 
similarities 
and 
differences. 
Findings 
with 
higher 
levels 
of 
agreement 
were 
included 
in 
the 
final 
needs 
assessment 
report. 


And 
finally, 
the 
information 
we 
gathered 
is 
limited 
to 
one 
geographic 
area 
and 
collected 
one-time 
during 
focus 
groups 
and 
interviews. 
Generalization 
of 
findings, 
implications 
and 
recommendations 
can 
only 
be 
limited 
to 
the 
single 
geographic 
area 
under 
study 
(Austin 
and 
Travis 
County, 
Texas). 


Despite 
these 
limitations 
and 
challenges, 
the 
methods 
utilized 
and 
the 
geographic 
restrictions 
allowed 
us 
to: 
1) 
focus 
intensively 
on 
engaging 
and 
identifying 
our 
own 
agencies 
needs, 
2) 
learn 
directly 
from 
the 
key 
beneficiaries 
of 
our 
efforts, 
and 
3) 
focus 
attention 
on 
how 
we 
can 
increase 
the 
accessibility 
of 
domestic 
and 
sexual 
violence 
services 
and 
outreach 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities 
in 
our 
community. 


Results 
and 
Key 
Findings 


Gaps, 
Barriers 
and 
Needs 


The 
results 
and 
findings 
detailed 
in 
this 
section 
are 
intended 
to 
guide 
the 
partnering 
agencies 
to 
make 
short 
and 
long 
term 
plans 
for 
improving 
our 
own 
services 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities 
in 
relation 
to 
domestic, 
caregiver 
and 
sexual 
violence. 
Results 
of 
the 
assessment 
will 
also 
guide 
efforts 
to 
increase 
the 
community’s 
awareness 
of 
the 
services 
that 
are 
available 
to 
survivors 
with 
disabilities 
and 
aid 
in 
identifying 
gaps, 
barriers 
and 
needs 
to 
provide 
accessible 
and 
sustainable 
victim 
services 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
The 
following 
stakeholder 
groups 
are 
represented 
in 
these 
assessment 
activities: 


• 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff, 
• 
Disability 
service 
providers, 
• 
People 
with 
disabilities, 
and 
• 
SafePlace 
staff. 
For 
detailed 
tables 
of 
the 
compiled 
information 
provided 
by 
focus 
group 
and 
interview 
participants 
see 
Appendix 
C. 


When 
participants 
were 
asked 
why 
many 
people 
with 
disabilities 
don’t 
ask 
for 
help 
when 
abused, 
a 
range 
of 
barriers 
to 
speaking 
out 
were 
named. 
For 
the 
most 
part, 
responses 
were 
related 
to 
retaliation, 
being 
disbelieved, 
loss 
of 
social 
connections 
and 
loss 
of 
independence. 
One 
person 
said 
the 
abuse 
would 
be 
interpreted 
as 
a 
delusion 
or 
that 
the 
person 
didn’t 
understand 
what 
they 
were 



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to 
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of 
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and 
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in 
Austin, 
TX 
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saying 
(cognitive 
disability). 
A 
main 
barrier 
to 
asking 
for 
help 
was 
the 
fear 
of 
losing 
independence—a 
core 
value 
for 
the 
majority 
of 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
Another 
major 
concern 
about 
speaking 
out 
was 
a 
loss 
of 
supports 
and 
especially 
if 
the 
abuser 
is 
also 
the 
care 
provider. 
For 
many 
people 
with 
disabilities, 
loss 
of 
a 
caregiver 
can 
result 
a 
nursing 
home 
placement 
or 
institutionalization. 


Individuals 
with 
disabilities 
also 
expressed 
concern 
that 
asking 
for 
help 
from 
others 
would 
only 
result 
in 
being 
blamed 
for 
the 
abuse. 
Specifically 
one 
participant 
said 
that 
a 
person 
might 
have 
their 
counselor 
ask 
them 
directly 
what 
they 
had 
done 
to 
cause 
the 
abuse. 
Closely 
related 
to 
blame 
is 
the 
experience 
of 
feeling 
shamed. 
Participants 
also 
said 
that 
a 
survivor 
may 
not 
speak 
out 
because 
s/he 
feels 
embarrassed 
or 
somehow 
responsible 
for 
the 
abuse 
that 
has 
been 
perpetrated. 
Other 
individuals 
with 
disabilities 
stated 
that 
the 
aftermath 
of 
a 
disclosure 
or 
request 
for 
help 
is 
likely 
to 
result 
in 
Adult 
Protective 
Services 
(APS) 
involvement. 


One 
of 
the 
most 
basic 
concerns 
that 
people 
with 
disabilities 
expressed 
was 
the 
risks 
for 
retaliation. 
This 
very 
real 
concern 
is 
a 
barrier 
for 
any 
survivor 
and 
can 
be 
heightened 
if 
the 
survivor 
has 
a 
disability. 
Any 
efforts 
to 
address 
barriers 
and 
gaps 
in 
service 
systems 
need 
to 
include 
a 
comprehensive 
and 
thoughtful 
review 
of 
the 
possible 
risks 
for 
further 
violence 
and 
safety 
planning. 
First, 
we 
must 
do 
no 
harm. 


Building 
Internal 
Capacities 
for 
Providing 
Services 


Participant 
groups 
identified 
the 
following 
areas 
of 
need 
and 
suggestions 
for 
how 
SafePlace, 
Advocacy, 
Inc., 
and 
disability 
service 
providers 
can 
increase 
capacity 
for 
providing 
knowledgeable 
and 
sensitive 
domestic 
and 
sexual 
violence 
response 
and 
services 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities 
in 
our 
community: 


Accessibility 


Each 
of 
the 
stakeholder 
groups 
identified 
barriers 
specific 
to 
accessibility 
of 
services 
at 
SafePlace 
as 
potential 
focus 
areas 
of 
the 
forthcoming 
Strategic 
Plan. 


Attitudinal 
Accessibility 
– 
People 
with 
disabilities 
told 
us 
that 
attitude 
is 
a 
critical 
aspect 
of 
accessibility. 
One 
participant 
with 
a 
disability 
thought 
SafePlace 
should 
orient 
new 
employees 
so 
that 
they 
know 
staff 
is 
expected 
to 
have 
attitudes 
that 
remove 
barriers 
to 
serving 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
SafePlace 
direct 
services 
staff 
pointed 
out 
that 
new 
employees 
may 
bring 
negative 
experiences, 
fears 
or 
a 
lack 
of 
knowledge 
that 
results 
in 
biases 
toward 
clients 
who 
have 
mental 
health 
or 
substance 
abuse 
issues. 
People 
with 
disabilities 
shared 
that 
friendly 
staff 
at 
the 
front 
reception 
area 
is 
important 
in 
showing 
a 
welcoming 
attitude 
toward 
people 
with 
disabilities. 



Partnering 
to 
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Project 
of 
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Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
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Programmatic 
Accessibility 
– 
Most 
participants 
talked 
about 
barriers 
to 
getting 
in 
for 
services 
that 
people 
with 
disabilities 
experience 
if 
they 
live 
in 
restrictive 
settings 
(e.g., 
staffed 
group 
homes, 
state 
schools 
and 
hospitals, 
etc.). 
For 
example, 
limits 
may 
be 
placed 
on 
telephone 
access, 
access 
to 
computers, 
transportation, 
or 
connection 
with 
people 
other 
than 
caregivers 
or 
roommates. 
These 
limitations 
are 
likely 
to 
prevent 
a 
person 
being 
abused 
from 
reaching 
out 
for 
help. 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
is 
interested 
in 
partnering 
with 
SafePlace 
to 
explore 
ways 
that 
screening 
and 
service 
entry 
for 
people 
with 
disabilities 
who 
live 
in 
these 
restrictive 
settings 
can 
be 
facilitated. 


Several 
participants 
with 
disabilities 
asked 
if 
case 
managers 
could 
accompany 
them 
to 
appointments 
at 
SafePlace. 
Disability 
service 
providers 
recommended 
that 
SafePlace 
set 
up 
a 
voice 
mail 
for 
requests 
for 
services 
and 
follow-up 
with 
individuals 
who 
may 
have 
limited 
or 
sporadic 
access 
to 
a 
telephone. 


Participants 
with 
disabilities 
pointed 
out 
that 
they 
wanted 
staff 
to 
know 
that 
time 
delays 
in 
showing 
up 
for 
appointments 
may 
be 
result 
of 
transportation 
or 
other 
supports 
they 
rely 
on 
others 
to 
provide. 
Participants 
asked 
SafePlace, 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff 
and 
disability 
service 
providers 
to 
make 
sure 
they 
disclose 
the 
mandatory 
reporting 
requirements 
to 
clients 
with 
disabilities 
and 
to 
first 
inform 
survivors 
if 
an 
APS 
report 
is 
going 
to 
be 
made. 


When 
asked 
what 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
could 
do 
to 
improve 
services 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities, 
participants 
made 
some 
of 
the 
following 
observations 
and 
suggestions: 
review 
the 
intake 
process 
and 
paperwork 
to 
make 
sure 
we 
use 
People 
First 
Language; 
simplify 
intake 
paperwork 
for 
survivors 
with 
sensory 
and 
cognitive 
disabilities; 
walk-in 
group 
orientation 
at 
SafePlace 
may 
be 
stigmatizing 
or 
isolating 
for 
survivors 
with 
cognitive 
disabilities; 
explore 
ways 
to 
format 
and 
conduct 
the 
parenting 
classes 
and 
support 
groups 
(e.g., 
simplified 
language, 
shorter 
sessions 
over 
longer 
periods 
of 
time, 
etc.) 
to 
increase 
access 
to 
survivors 
with 
cognitive 
disabilities 
or 
who 
use 
communication 
devices; 
and 
extend 
the 
number 
of 
allowable 
sessions 
or 
time 
limits 
in 
shelter 
as 
a 
reasonable 
modification 
that 
increases 
access 
and 
the 
effectiveness 
of 
our 
counseling 
and 
advocacy 
services. 


SafePlace 
staff 
shared 
concerns 
that 
law 
enforcement 
may 
not 
respond 
well 
to 
survivors 
who 
are 
having 
a 
mental 
health 
crisis. 
SafePlace 
staff 
expressed 
interest 
in 
developing 
more 
of 
a 
relationship 
with 
the 
Austin 
Police 
Department 
and 
Travis 
County 
Sheriff’s 
office 
and 
to 
develop 
a 
formal 
protocol 
with 
trained 
and 
experienced 
mental 
health 
officers 
when 
a 
client 
requires 
crisis 
intervention. 


Disability 
service 
providers 
indicated 
that 
it 
can 
be 
confusing 
and 
seem 
inconsistent 
when 
we 
conduct 
outreach 
and 
then 
they 
or 
their 
clients 
are 
told 
that 
shelter 
is 
full. 
This 
situation 
could 
better 
be 
addressed 
by 
providing 
more 
clarity 
about 
the 
‘intake’ 
protocol 
and 
how 
shelter 
admissions 
are 
prioritized. 
The 
demand 
for 
shelter 
services 
is 
high 
in 
our 
community. 
Service 
providers 
thought 



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Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
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it 
might 
help 
if 
SafePlace 
developed 
a 
“universal 
script” 
for 
use 
when 
shelter 
is 
denied. 


Physical 
Accessibility 
-Stakeholders 
expressed 
significant 
concern 
at 
the 
current 
entry 
system 
on 
the 
SafePlace 
campus. 
Two 
aspects 
of 
the 
system 
were 
highlighted 
as 
barriers. 
The 
doors 
(that 
open 
out) 
create 
a 
barrier 
to 
access 
for 
individuals 
who 
are 
blind 
or 
have 
low 
vision 
and 
create 
potential 
risk 
for 
injury 
during 
the 
entry 
process. 
Also, 
the 
current 
buzzer 
and 
audible 
entry 
system 
both 
at 
the 
main 
reception 
entrance 
as 
well 
as 
the 
walk-in 
gate 
were 
identified 
as 
confusing 
and 
inaccessible 
at 
times 
for 
individuals 
with 
disabilities. 


Other 
physical 
accessibility 
barriers 
identified 
include: 


• 
The 
glass 
door 
in 
the 
reception 
area 
creates 
a 
risk 
if 
it 
closes 
too 
quickly. 
• 
The 
time 
delay 
is 
too 
short 
on 
the 
automatic 
door 
openers 
and 
can 
close 
on 
clients 
using 
a 
wheelchair, 
• 
The 
bathroom 
door 
in 
the 
reception 
area 
bathroom 
is 
too 
heavy 
and 
is 
difficult 
for 
some 
people 
with 
disabilities 
to 
open. 
• 
The 
walk 
in 
gate 
at 
the 
shelter 
needs 
a 
ramp. 
• 
The 
latch 
on 
the 
walk-in 
gate 
in 
front 
of 
the 
Resource 
Center 
is 
too 
high 
for 
someone 
using 
a 
wheelchair 
to 
reach. 
• 
The 
two-door 
security 
system 
in 
the 
entry 
to 
the 
Resource 
Center 
can 
be 
confusing 
to 
clients. 
Participants 
with 
disabilities 
recommended 
that 
staff 
meet 
clients 
in 
the 
atrium. 
• 
Despite 
the 
fact 
that 
20% 
of 
showers 
in 
shelter 
are 
roll-in 
for 
wheelchair 
access, 
some 
people 
with 
disabilities 
thought 
that 
number 
is 
too 
limited. 
• 
Occasionally, 
a 
client 
will 
need 
a 
wheelchair 
and 
it 
can 
be 
difficult 
to 
find 
the 
resource. 
Participants 
with 
disabilities 
also 
identified 
a 
need 
to 
make 
the 
website 
more 
accessible 
such 
as 
using 
simple 
language, 
large 
bold 
wording 
and 
using 
links 
to 
navigate 
to 
other 
parts 
of 
the 
site. 


Building 
Collaborative 
Responses 


Coordination 
of 
Services 


Most 
participants 
identified 
that 
service 
coordination 
needs 
to 
be 
improved 
when 
serving 
individuals 
with 
disabilities. 
This 
section 
will 
outline 
some 
of 
the 
gaps, 
barriers 
and 
needs 
identified 
by 
participants 
as 
related 
to 
the 
coordination 
of 
community 
based 
disability 
and 
domestic, 
caregiver 
and 
sexual 
violence 
services. 


Range 
of 
services 
and 
referral 
information: 
All 
stakeholders 
shared 
that 
many 
people 
with 
disabilities, 
community 
members 
and 
service 
providers 
need 
more 
information 
about 
SafePlace 
and 
may 
not 
know 
the 
range 
of 
services 
that 
SafePlace 
offers 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
Service 
providers 
asked 
that 
we 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
25 
of 
71 


consider 
ways 
to 
make 
sure 
area 
disability 
service 
and 
advocacy 
agencies 
are 
clear 
on 
what 
we 
do 
and 
what 
we 
do 
not 
offer, 
and 
the 
protocol 
for 
making 
a 
referrals 
to 
SafePlace. 
People 
with 
disabilities 
asked 
that 
we 
identify 
back 
up 
contacts 
should 
the 
primary 
contact 
(when 
given 
a 
referral) 
is 
not 
available. 


Peer 
mentoring: 
Two 
stakeholder 
groups 
suggested 
we 
have 
peer 
mentors 
for 
people 
with 
disabilities 
at 
SafePlace. 
For 
example, 
staff 
thought 
that 
clients 
with 
cognitive 
disabilities 
get 
bored 
or 
feel 
neglected 
when 
staying 
in 
shelter. 
In 
addition, 
more 
frequent 
supports 
are 
needed 
for 
survivors 
with 
cognitive 
disabilities 
staying 
at 
shelter 
with 
day-to-day 
activities 
like 
cooking, 
cleaning 
and 
caring 
for 
children. 
Some 
shelter 
clients 
with 
cognitive 
disabilities 
came 
from 
more 
structured 
environments 
with 
fewer 
opportunities 
to 
make 
everyday 
decisions 
about 
their 
activities 
or 
schedule. 
A 
peer 
mentor 
might 
help 
address 
any 
sense 
of 
isolation 
in 
shelter 
while 
supporting 
the 
individual 
to 
build 
more 
independent 
living 
skills. 


Mental 
health 
services: 
Participants 
thought 
that 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
could 
increase 
and 
formalize 
service 
coordination 
with 
MHMR 
(Mental 
Health 
and 
Mental 
Retardation) 
and 
APS 
(Adult 
Protective 
Services). 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff 
is 
interested 
in 
helping 
SafePlace 
staff 
work 
more 
effectively 
with 
MHMR. 
It 
would 
be 
helpful 
to 
SafePlace 
staff 
to 
identify 
a 
person 
or 
formalize 
a 
liaison 
at 
MHMR 
to 
streamline 
referrals 
to 
clients 
wanting 
mental 
health 
services. 
Disability 
service 
providers 
recommended 
that 
SafePlace 
develop 
a 
collaborative 
relationship 
with 
the 
staff 
of 
the 
MHMR 
East 
2nd 
Street 
Clinic. 
The 
ADAPT 
advocacy 
office 
is 
across 
the 
street 
from 
the 
East 
2nd 
Street 
Clinic 
and 
service 
providers 
recommend 
SafePlace 
work 
to 
coordinate 
services 
and 
outreach 
between 
those 
two 
agencies. 


SafePlace 
staff 
also 
indicated 
a 
need 
to 
improve 
our 
relationships 
with 
other 
developmental 
disability 
and 
mental 
health 
service 
providers 
– 
the 
Austin 
State 
School, 
Austin 
State 
Hospital, 
and 
Psychiatric 
Emergency 
Services 
(PES). 
Related 
to 
this 
need, 
SafePlace 
leadership 
discussed 
the 
delayed 
response 
from 
the 
Austin 
State 
Hospital 
as 
an 
area 
where 
more 
coordinated 
services 
may 
improve 
the 
experiences 
of 
SafePlace 
clients 
who 
need 
psychological 
and 
emotional 
support 
during 
a 
crisis. 


SafePlace 
participants 
shared 
that 
it 
is 
quite 
difficult 
to 
find 
trauma-informed 
therapists 
in 
Austin 
who 
accept 
Medicare 
or 
Medicaid. 
As 
a 
result, 
some 
clients 
must 
depend 
on 
the 
MHMR 
system 
for 
mental 
health 
services 
and 
MHMR 
has 
extended 
waiting 
lists. 
SafePlace 
staff 
said 
that 
clients 
with 
mental 
health 
needs 
would 
benefit 
from 
an 
on-staff 
or 
on-site 
mental 
health 
provider 
(e.g., 
psychiatrist, 
psychiatric 
nurse, 
psychologist, 
etc.). 
Staff 
also 
asked 
for 
more 
up 
to 
date 
information 
about 
how 
and 
where 
clients 
might 
better 
access 
routine 
and 
emergency 
mental 
health 
care 
from 
MHMR. 



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and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
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Adult 
Protective 
Services: 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff 
is 
interested 
in 
working 
more 
closely 
with 
SafePlace 
and 
APS 
(Adult 
Protective 
Services). 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff 
believes 
that 
APS 
workers 
need 
additional 
legal 
supports 
in 
making 
their 
cases 
stronger 
regarding 
people 
with 
disabilities 
who 
are 
experiencing 
abuse. 
At 
the 
same 
time, 
SafePlace 
participants 
talked 
about 
needing 
more 
supports 
when 
Child 
Protective 
Services 
(CPS) 
workers 
are 
not 
allowing 
modifications 
that 
would 
support 
parents 
who 
have 
disabilities 
in 
accomplishing 
their 
parenting 
goals. 
In 
addition, 
SafePlace 
staff 
noted 
that 
APS 
workers 
tend 
to 
close 
cases 
when 
a 
client 
comes 
into 
shelter 
rather 
than 
continuing 
to 
support 
the 
client 
in 
preparation 
for 
the 
client’s 
exit. 
When 
clients 
with 
disabilities 
leave 
shelter 
but 
are 
not 
returning 
to 
their 
families, 
it 
can 
be 
difficult 
to 
know 
where 
the 
survivors 
can 
find 
long 
term 
and 
safe 
housing 
options. 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff 
would 
like 
to 
institute 
an 
agreement 
or 
plan 
developed 
with 
SafePlace 
and 
APS 
to 
provide 
safety 
planning, 
and 
follow 
up 
and 
follow-along 
services 
when 
someone 
returns 
to 
their 
perpetrator 
or 
is 
transitioned 
into 
the 
community. 
People 
with 
disabilities 
asked 
for 
some 
degree 
of 
follow 
up 
with 
survivors 
who 
have 
disabilities 
during 
and 
after 
they 
receive 
services 
at 
SafePlace. 


Guardianship: 
Participants 
with 
disabilities 
talked 
about 
their 
risks 
for 
future 
violence 
if 
they 
have 
a 
guardian 
who 
is 
also 
their 
abuser. 
For 
example, 
a 
guardian 
may 
use 
their 
power 
to 
retaliate 
against 
a 
person 
if 
they 
ask 
for 
help. 
In 
these 
cases, 
the 
survivor 
will 
need 
to 
take 
extra 
time 
and 
caution 
to 
decide 
and 
take 
steps 
to 
leave 
their 
perpetrator 
and 
change 
guardianship. 


Resource 
advocacy: 
SafePlace 
participants 
need 
support 
in 
developing 
a 
more 
streamlined 
process 
for 
obtaining 
resources 
or 
negotiating 
waiting 
lists 
for 
clients 
with 
disabilities 
(e.g., 
Home 
and 
Community 
Based 
Services, 
accessible 
housing, 
guardianship 
issues, 
etc.). 
They 
are 
also 
interested 
in 
having 
more 
face-to-face 
contact 
with 
staff 
from 
disability 
service 
and 
advocacy 
agencies 
and 
they 
want 
to 
increase 
their 
knowledge 
about 
resources/services, 
and 
streamline 
the 
referral 
process 
for 
clients 
with 
disabilities. 


State 
institutions: 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
focuses 
on 
the 
needs 
of 
people 
with 
disabilities 
living 
in 
Texas 
state 
institutions. 
Staff 
said 
they 
would 
like 
to 
partner 
with 
SafePlace 
to 
reach 
out 
to 
institutional 
treatment 
teams 
who 
could 
provide 
options 
for 
trauma 
informed 
supports 
to 
abuse 
survivors 
living 
in 
those 
institutions. 
Although 
beyond 
the 
scope 
of 
this 
project, 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff 
also 
talked 
about 
their 
commitments 
to 
research 
and 
development 
of 
how 
they 
can 
work 
with 
state 
entities 
to 
integrate 
personal 
safety 
and 
healthy 
relationship 
education 
into 
the 
transition 
plans 
of 
individuals 
with 
disabilities 
transitioning 
from 
institutional 
to 
community 
based 
settings. 
We 
are 
hopeful 
these 
transitions 
will 
increase 
as 
directives 
are 
issued 
to 
close 
Texas 
institutions. 


Screening 
for 
domestic 
violence: 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
leadership 
wants 
their 
own 
staff 
to 
receive 
additional 
training 
from 
SafePlace 
about 
domestic 
and 
sexual 
violence, 
screening 
for 
abuse, 
responding 
to 
disclosures, 
supporting 
survivors 
after 



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and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
27 
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71 


disclosure, 
and 
how 
to 
make 
more 
referrals 
for 
local 
domestic 
and 
sexual 
violence 
services. 
While 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff 
report 
they 
take 
few 
calls 
related 
specifically 
to 
domestic 
violence, 
they 
also 
recognize 
that 
these 
calls 
may 
be 
identified 
or 
prioritized 
in 
other 
ways. 
Advocacy, 
Inc.’s 
intake 
protocol 
does 
not 
include 
specific 
questions 
about 
domestic 
violence 
or 
sexual 
assault. 
One 
initiative 
suggested 
is 
to 
explore 
how 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
could 
modify 
their 
current 
intake 
to 
screen 
specifically 
for 
domestic 
and 
sexual 
violence 
cases. 
At 
the 
same 
time, 
both 
agencies 
recognize 
this 
initiative 
should 
be 
carefully 
balanced 
so 
that 
workers 
have 
information 
for 
responding 
to 
disclosures 
during 
intake, 
options 
for 
assistance 
in 
safety 
planning, 
and 
an 
effective 
referral 
protocol 
so 
that 
clients 
who 
disclose 
are 
not 
further 
harmed 
as 
result 
of 
that 
disclosure. 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff 
also 
expressed 
an 
interest 
in 
continuing 
to 
work 
with 
SafePlace 
and 
some 
of 
the 
following 
initiatives: 
providing 
a 
forum 
so 
that 
staff 
can 
explore 
the 
legal 
and 
ethical 
obligations 
of 
reporting 
abuse; 
development 
of 
a 
formal 
protocol 
on 
reporting 
abuse; 
and 
partnering 
on 
a 
healthy 
relationships 
initiative. 


Attendant 
care: 
Disability 
service 
providers 
suggested 
that 
SafePlace 
review 
and 
update 
the 
process 
or 
policy 
around 
supporting 
clients 
to 
utilize 
attendant 
care 
services. 
People 
with 
disabilities 
recommended 
that 
SafePlace 
develop 
good 
relationships 
with 
staff 
from 
a 
home 
health 
agency 
to 
streamline 
obtaining 
these 
services 
when 
needed. 
Disability 
service 
providers 
shared 
that 
there 
may 
be 
services 
in 
the 
community 
that 
SafePlace 
is 
not 
currently 
utilizing 
such 
as 
a 
consumer 
abuse 
and 
neglect 
reporting 
system 
administered 
by 
Mental 
Health 
Mental 
Retardation 
(MHMR). 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
are 
interested 
in 
working 
on 
a 
protocol 
so 
that 
people 
with 
physical 
disabilities 
have 
needed 
attendant 
care 
in 
shelter 
or 
transitional 
housing. 


Transportation 


People 
with 
disabilities 
and 
disability 
service 
providers 
identified 
limited 
or 
no 
accessible 
transportation 
(and 
especially 
after 
hours) 
as 
a 
significant 
barrier 
to 
some 
survivors 
with 
disabilities. 
Private 
transportation 
may 
be 
controlled 
by 
a 
person’s 
care 
provider 
or 
abuser. 
And 
public 
transportation 
may 
not 
be 
an 
option 
for 
survivors 
who 
do 
not 
have 
access 
to 
telephones 
or 
money. 
The 
Austin 
Police 
Department, 
Capital 
Metro 
Transit 
Authority 
and 
Medicaid 
were 
identified 
as 
community 
based 
resources 
available 
to 
support 
someone 
who 
needs 
accessible 
transportation. 
Participants 
with 
disabilities 
said 
that 
even 
if 
a 
person 
could 
privately 
pay 
for 
a 
taxi 
cab, 
there 
are 
only 
3-4 
accessible 
cabs 
in 
Austin. 
Given 
these 
and 
other 
transportation 
barriers, 
community 
members 
with 
disabilities 
suggested 
that 
SafePlace 
have 
alternate 
locations 
in 
Austin 
to 
meet 
with 
survivors 
who 
want 
to 
pursue 
services. 


Durable 
medical 
equipment: 
When 
seeking 
safety 
or 
emergency 
shelter 
or 
services 
at 
Advocacy, 
Inc., 
people 
with 
disabilities 
need 
to 
be 
able 
to 
transport 
their 
Durable 
Medical 
Equipment 
(DME) 
(e.g., 
wheelchairs, 
walkers, 
cane 



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Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
28 
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71 


crutches, 
communication 
devices, 
prosthetics, 
etc.). 
Some 
participants 
stated 
that 
they 
would 
probably 
not 
come 
to 
shelter 
if 
they 
had 
to 
leave 
these 
supports 
behind 
or 
if 
they 
knew 
they 
would 
have 
to 
wait 
for 
many 
hours 
or 
days 
to 
get 
replacements. 
Obtaining 
durable 
medical 
equipment 
is 
often 
difficult 
for 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
The 
equipment 
is 
expensive 
and 
insurance 
companies 
may 
not 
cover 
DME 
or 
that 
coverage 
is 
limited. 
Pre-approval 
wait 
times 
can 
be 
months 
long 
and 
getting 
the 
equipment 
after 
placing 
an 
order 
can 
also 
take 
months. 
People 
with 
disabilities 
were 
concerned 
that 
use 
of 
durable 
medical 
equipment 
might 
present 
a 
barrier 
to 
services 
if 
the 
equipment 
is 
interpreted 
as 
evidence 
of 
a 
person’s 
medical 
fragility 
or 
as 
indicator 
of 
the 
seriousness 
of 
a 
person’s 
disability. 
A 
more 
realistic 
interpretation 
of 
durable 
medical 
equipment 
is 
as 
a 
sign 
of 
increased 
independence. 


Legal 
Advocacy 


SafePlace 
direct 
services 
staff 
asked 
for 
information 
(format 
could 
be 
a 
one-page 
fact 
sheet) 
detailing 
the 
kinds 
of 
legal 
services 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
could 
provide 
to 
clients 
with 
disabilities. 
Staff 
reported 
that 
legal 
issues 
that 
SafePlace 
clients 
tend 
to 
encounter 
are 
housing 
discrimination, 
guardianship 
issues, 
changing 
payees 
for 
incomes, 
and 
denial 
of 
SSI 
or 
SSDI 
benefits. 
Participants 
also 
discussed 
that 
many 
SafePlace 
clients 
attend 
“Project 
Options” 
classes 
to 
learn 
about 
the 
complex 
decisions 
that 
must 
be 
made 
when 
survivors 
of 
family 
violence 
are 
deciding 
whether 
or 
not 
to 
press 
charges 
against 
their 
abuser/perpetrator 


Child 
Protective 
Services: 
Several 
stakeholder 
groups 
brought 
up 
that 
when 
Child 
Protective 
Services 
(CPS) 
is 
involved 
with 
parents 
who 
have 
disabilities, 
for 
whatever 
reasons, 
an 
additional 
burden 
is 
placed 
on 
the 
abused 
parent 
who 
is 
battling 
for 
child 
custody. 
The 
example 
shared 
is 
when 
parents 
with 
mental 
health 
disabilities 
must 
take 
psychotropic 
medications 
to 
be 
compliant 
with 
mandated 
plans 
related 
to 
child 
custody. 
SafePlace 
direct 
service 
staff 
asked 
if 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
could 
work 
with 
them 
and 
survivors 
with 
disabilities 
who 
are 
experiencing 
difficulties 
completing 
mandated 
CPS 
plans. 


Expanding 
and 
Sustaining 
Outreach 
and 
Provision 
of 
Services 


Targeted 
Outreach 


Participants 
in 
this 
needs 
assessment 
told 
the 
partnering 
agencies 
that 
we 
need 
to 
conduct 
more 
intensive 
outreach 
to 
Austin’s 
disability 
community 
and 
disability 
service 
organizations 
about 
the 
range 
of 
services 
and 
supports 
we 
provide. 
Participants 
discussed 
what 
they 
identified 
as 
an 
overlooked 
group 
of 
citizens 
who 
have 
disabilities 
and 
could 
benefit 
from 
our 
services. 
For 
example, 
there 
are 
many 
people 
who 
do 
not 
identify 
as 
a 
person 
with 
a 
disability 
and 
they 
are 
not 
linked 
with 
social 
or 
disability 
service 
systems. 
Since 
there 
is 
a 
group 
of 
people 
with 
disabilities 
who 
choose 
to 
not 
identify 
as 
such, 
they 
would 
best 
get 



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and 
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in 
Austin, 
TX 
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information 
about 
SafePlace 
services 
in 
general 
campaigns 
or 
through 
information 
shared 
in 
public 
places 
like 
grocery 
stores, 
public 
transportation 
systems, 
radio 
spots, 
posters 
placed 
in 
public 
buildings, 
bingo 
halls, 
and 
through 
community 
presentations. 


Service 
provider 
groups 
also 
discussed 
the 
importance 
of 
considering 
unintended 
consequences 
of 
outreach 
efforts 
and 
whether 
or 
not 
we 
will 
be 
putting 
individuals 
with 
disabilities 
at 
a 
higher 
risk 
of 
violence. 
These 
cautions 
were 
welcomed 
and 
consistent 
with 
SafePlace’s 
outreach 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
Decisions 
about 
outreach 
initiatives 
will 
be 
made 
based 
on 
the 
first 
principal— 
do 
no 
harm. 


One 
participant 
with 
disabilities 
recommended 
that 
disability 
service 
providers 
routinely 
screen 
“all” 
clients 
by 
asking 
about 
experiences 
of 
abuse. 
In 
this 
way, 
questions 
about 
abuse 
are 
less 
likely 
to 
become 
a 
red 
flag 
or 
alert 
a 
perpetrator 
and 
that 
could 
help 
reduce 
the 
risk 
with 
a 
perpetrator. 


Participants 
asked 
SafePlace 
to 
make 
sure 
they 
are 
including 
images 
of 
people 
with 
disabilities 
in 
brochures 
and 
other 
printed 
materials 
to 
increase 
community 
awareness 
that 
SafePlace 
also 
serves 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
Participants 
with 
disabilities 
thought 
that 
information 
about 
SafePlace 
does 
not 
consistently 
trickle 
down 
to 
many 
people 
with 
disabilities 
despite 
communication 
with 
providers 
by 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
Another 
suggestion 
to 
increase 
communication 
about 
our 
access 
is 
to 
post 
the 
universal 
disability 
symbol 
on 
our 
website, 
doors 
and 
front 
gates. 


Stakeholders 
said 
that 
the 
following 
general 
knowledge 
about 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
is 
not 
as 
well 
known 
as 
we 
might 
think: 


• 
SafePlace 
services 
are 
free. 
• 
SafePlace 
location 
is 
no 
longer 
confidential. 
• 
Locations 
of 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
• 
Bus 
lines 
located 
near 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
• 
SafePlace 
also 
provides 
services 
to 
survivors 
of 
caregiver 
violence 
and 
sexual 
assault 
• 
Whether 
SafePlace 
makes 
attendant 
care 
services 
available 
if 
a 
person 
in 
shelter 
needs 
those 
services 
Other 
Ideas: 
Participants 
were 
energetic 
in 
offering 
the 
following 
thoughts 
and 
ideas 
about 
how 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
could 
increase 
the 
community’s 
knowledge 
about 
our 
services 
and 
supports. 


• 
Advertise 
the 
issue 
and 
services 
through 
television 
spots. 
• 
Conduct 
outreach 
to 
people 
in 
day 
program 
activities. 
• 
Design 
key 
chains 
and 
magnets 
with 
hotline 
information. 
• 
Develop 
and 
distribute 
t-shirts 
with 
SafePlace 
information 
on 
them. 

Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
30 
of 
71 


• 
Develop 
handouts 
in 
Spanish 
and 
simplified 
language 
• 
Develop 
posters 
and 
brochures 
about 
sexual 
assault 
to 
communicate 
that 
rape 
and 
sexual 
assault 
does 
happen 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
Develop 
posters 
and 
brochures 
detailing 
various 
forms 
of 
abuse 
and 
the 
services 
available 
for 
survivors. 
• 
Distribute 
emails 
or 
submit 
articles 
to 
newsletters 
about 
the 
issue 
of 
violence 
against 
individuals 
with 
disabilities 
and 
SafePlace 
services. 
• 
Increase 
APS 
workers 
knowledge 
about 
how 
to 
access 
SafePlace 
services. 
• 
Partner 
with 
Goodwill 
Industries 
to 
target 
outreach 
to 
Goodwill 
program 
participants. 
• 
Produce 
a 
PSA 
that 
targets 
individuals 
with 
cognitive 
disabilities 
and 
the 
specific 
types 
of 
violence 
that 
may 
be 
experienced. 
• 
Produce 
small 
palm 
or 
business 
cards 
with 
contact 
information. 
• 
Recruit 
survivors 
to 
tell 
their 
stories. 
• 
Update 
211 
information 
about 
SafePlace 
to 
focus 
on 
services 
available 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
Use 
the 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
logo 
as 
an 
easily 
recognizable 
contact 
point 
for 
individuals 
who 
do 
not 
read. 
Some 
of 
the 
specific 
locations 
stakeholders 
identified 
for 
outreach 
efforts 
are 
listed 
next: 


• 
Attendant 
care 
networks 
on 
the 
internet 
• 
Austin 
Mayor’s 
Committee 
for 
People 
with 
Disabilities 
• 
Chamber 
of 
Commerce 
• 
Faith 
communities 
(e.g., 
churches, 
synagogues, 
etc.) 
• 
Disability 
service 
providers 
and 
events 
(e.g., 
day 
programs, 
group 
homes, 
MHMR, 
Muscular 
Dystrophy 
Association, 
Respite 
Care 
providers, 
Austin 
Resource 
Center 
on 
Independent 
Living, 
etc.) 
• 
Durable 
Medical 
Equipment 
(DME) 
providers 
• 
Waterloo 
Counseling 
Center 
• 
Home 
health 
agencies 
• 
Job, 
health 
and 
other 
disability 
fairs 
• 
Libraries 
• 
Narcotics 
Anonymous, 
Alcoholics 
Anonymous 
• 
Physicians, 
therapists 
and 
rehabilitation 
centers 
• 
Planned 
Parenthood 
• 
Public 
Access 
TV 
• 
Retail 
stores 
• 
Social 
Security 
and 
Medicaid 
offices 
• 
Apartment 
complexes 
where 
large 
numbers 
of 
people 
with 
disabilities 
live 
(e.g., 
Stony 
Ridge) 
• 
Students 
with 
disabilities 
offices 
at 
local 
colleges 
and 
universities 
• 
United 
Way 

Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
31 
of 
71 


Durable 
Medical 
Equipment 
providers: 
A 
particularly 
innovative 
outreach 
idea 
was 
identified 
by 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
could 
partner 
with 
local 
DME 
providers 
like 
Travis 
Medical, 
to 
include 
SafePlace 
hotline 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
intake 
number 
listed 
on 
the 
emergency 
number 
sticker 
included 
on 
the 
equipment. 
These 
numbers 
would 
become 
part 
of 
the 
universal 
number 
set 
on 
all 
equipment. 
The 
numbers 
would 
be 
accessible 
to 
a 
person 
when 
and 
if 
they 
should 
need 
them 
without 
arousing 
any 
particular 
suspicions 
on 
the 
part 
of 
a 
perpetrator. 


Group 
homes: 
SafePlace 
staff 
also 
discussed 
the 
gap 
in 
services 
for 
sexual 
assault 
survivors 
who 
are 
living 
in 
group 
homes. 
Since 
the 
mid-90’s, 
SafePlace 
staff 
have 
provided 
personal 
safety 
education 
to 
group 
homes 
and 
group 
home 
residents 
in 
Austin 
and 
surrounding 
areas. 
And 
yet, 
there 
are 
still 
a 
significant 
number 
of 
group 
home 
providers 
who 
do 
not 
respond 
to 
outreach 
related 
to 
sexual 
assault 
services. 
Despite 
the 
incidence 
of 
sexual 
abuse 
experienced 
by 
women 
and 
men 
in 
group 
homes, 
disability 
service 
providers 
do 
not 
routinely 
provide 
supportive 
responses 
or 
seek 
access 
to 
healing 
services 
for 
those 
survivors. 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
were 
encouraged 
to 
explore 
how 
we 
might 
better 
reach 
out 
to 
these 
underserved 
survivors. 


Public 
transportation: 
Service 
providers 
also 
recommended 
that 
we 
make 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy 
Inc.’s 
contact 
information 
available 
on 
placards 
in 
city 
buses 
to 
increase 
access 
and 
the 
community’s 
knowledge 
about 
our 
services 
to 
individuals 
with 
disabilities. 


Education 
and 
Training 


All 
participant 
groups 
identified 
gaps 
and 
needs 
for 
Education 
and 
Training. 


Disability 
Service 
Providers: 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
intake 
workers 
and 
other 
disability 
service 
provider 
staff 
requested 
additional 
education 
on 
screening 
for 
abuse 
and 
responding 
to 
disclosure 
of 
abuse 
within 
the 
time 
constraints 
of 
a 
screening 
call 
or 
intake 
interview. 


Service 
providers 
pointed 
out 
a 
continued 
need 
for 
training 
on 
methods 
of 
identifying 
when 
abuse 
is 
happening 
to 
their 
clients 
and 
basic 
knowledge 
about 
the 
dynamics 
of 
violence 
perpetrated 
against 
individuals 
with 
disabilities, 
the 
different 
types 
of 
abuse 
that 
violence 
can 
take, 
and 
the 
long-term 
effects 
of 
abuse 
(including 
sexual 
violence) 
in 
the 
lives 
of 
people 
with 
disabilities. 


Disability 
service 
providers 
indicated 
needs 
for 
education 
on 
responding 
to 
disclosures 
their 
clients 
make 
after 
participating 
in 
educational 
programs 
on 
personal 
safety 
or 
healthy 
relationships. 
Stakeholders 
also 
indicated 
that 
service 
providers 
need 
to 
continue 
client 
education 
that 
it 
is 
OK 
to 
speak 
out 
and 
ask 
for 
help 
if 
they 
have 
been 
abused. 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
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of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
32 
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71 


First 
responders 
(including 
police 
and 
sheriff’s 
departments) 
need 
continuing 
education 
on 
the 
issue 
of 
violence 
against 
individuals 
with 
disabilities. 


People 
with 
disabilities 
stated 
that 
disability 
service 
providers 
need 
up 
to 
date 
information 
so 
they 
can 
clearly 
identify 
what 
resources 
are 
available 
for 
survivors 
with 
disabilities. 
In 
addition, 
service 
providers 
need 
continuing 
education 
on 
how 
to 
safety 
plan 
with 
individuals 
when 
their 
abuser 
is 
also 
their 
caregiver, 
parent 
or 
guardian. 


Individuals 
with 
disabilities 
also 
want 
staff 
of 
disability 
services 
agencies 
to 
know 
how 
to 
give 
their 
clients 
information 
about 
abuse 
and 
what 
they 
could 
do 
to 
support 
clients 
who 
are 
survivors. 


In 
addition, 
the 
disability 
community 
members 
thought 
that 
service 
providers 
should 
do 
a 
better 
job 
of 
screening 
new 
employees 
[presumably 
to 
screen 
out 
perpetrators]. 
In 
addition, 
participants 
with 
disabilities 
want 
service 
providers 
to 
provide 
more 
training 
to 
their 
staff 
on 
the 
issue 
of 
appropriate 
boundaries 
with 
clients 
they 
are 
serving. 


Service 
providers 
also 
thought 
it 
was 
more 
likely 
that 
they 
would 
identify 
domestic 
violence 
than 
sexual 
assault 
among 
their 
clients. 
One 
response 
to 
sexual 
abuse 
may 
be 
acting 
out 
which 
can 
result 
in 
being 
identified 
/ 
prosecuted 
as 
an 
offender. 
In 
these 
cases, 
a 
survivor 
is 
even 
less 
likely 
to 
be 
provided 
with 
needed 
support 
and 
healing 
services. 
Service 
providers 
in 
congregate 
or 
institutional 
facilities 
also 
need 
education 
and 
training 
on 
the 
differences 
between 
sexual 
abuse 
and 
sexual 
activity 
between 
consenting 
adults. 


Disability 
service 
providers 
who 
participated 
point 
out 
that 
the 
following 
service 
systems 
need 
continuing 
education 
on 
issues 
related 
to 
domestic, 
caregiver 
and 
sexual 
violence: 


• 
Adult 
Protective 
Services 
(facility 
and 
in-home 
workers) 
• 
The 
Arc 
of 
the 
Capital 
Area 
• 
Austin 
Police 
Department 
• 
Austin 
State 
Hospital 
• 
Austin 
State 
School 
• 
Capital 
Metro 
Transit 
• 
Department 
of 
Assistive 
and 
Rehabilitative 
Services 
(DARS) 
• 
Easter 
Seals 
• 
Educare 
• 
Empowerment 
Options 
• 
Family 
Eldercare 
• 
Home 
and 
Community 
Services 
(HCS) 
Group 
Homes 
• 
Kenmar 
Residential 
• 
MacBeth 
Recreation 
Center 
• 
Marbridge 
• 
Mary 
Lee 
Foundation 

Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
33 
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71 


• 
Medical 
providers 
• 
Travis 
County 
Sheriffs 
Department 
• 
Rescare 
• 
Volunteers 
of 
America 
In 
addition 
to 
the 
organizations 
listed 
above, 
participants 
identified 
specific 
training 
gaps 
for 
several 
organizations. 
Home 
health 
agencies 
need 
education 
about 
when 
to 
report 
abuse 
to 
Adult 
Protective 
Service 
or 
DADS 
as 
appropriate. 
Adult 
Protective 
Services 
facility 
workers 
need 
information 
on 
the 
dynamics 
of 
rape, 
molestation 
and 
the 
St. 
David’s 
Hospital 
rape 
exam 
protocol. 
Participants 
recommended 
that 
SafePlace 
offer 
Austin 
Travis 
County 
Mental 
Health 
Mental 
Retardation 
(ATCMHMR) 
and 
BlueBonnet 
Trails 
MHMR 
agencies 
training 
that 
could 
be 
integrated 
into 
their 
annual 
mandatory 
trainings. 
Finally, 
Capital 
Metro 
drivers 
need 
to 
be 
specifically 
trained 
on 
HIPAA 
relative 
to 
their 
riders 
with 
disabilities. 


Service 
providers 
identified 
needs 
for 
information 
on 
how 
to 
stay 
safe 
when 
they 
enter 
someone’s 
home 
and 
what 
to 
do 
if 
an 
allegation 
is 
made 
against 
one 
of 
their 
staff. 
Providers 
would 
also 
like 
to 
see 
more 
training 
in 
the 
community 
about 
the 
intersection 
of 
domestic/caregiver 
violence, 
Post 
Traumatic 
Stress 
Disorder 
(PTSD) 
and 
employment. 


The 
Austin 
Police 
Department 
and 
the 
Travis 
County 
Sheriff’s 
office’s 
mental 
health 
officers 
could 
benefit 
from 
continuing 
education 
on 
how 
to 
better 
manage 
a 
family 
violence 
scene. 
Program 
staff 
at 
SafePlace 
said 
that 
critical 
conversations 
are 
needed 
with 
the 
Austin 
Police 
Department 
detectives 
specific 
to 
their 
services 
provided 
to 
survivors 
with 
disabilities. 


SafePlace 
direct 
services 
staff: 
Participants 
indicated 
that 
SafePlace 
staff 
needs 
continuing 
education 
for 
a 
general 
familiarity, 
comfort 
and 
sensitivity 
in 
working 
with 
individuals 
who 
have 
a 
range 
of 
disabilities. 


Some 
staff 
at 
SafePlace 
indicated 
they 
feel 
overwhelmed 
and 
intimidated 
when 
working 
with 
clients 
who 
have 
disabilities. 
For 
many 
disability 
groups, 
services 
are 
limited, 
waiting 
lists 
are 
incredibly 
long, 
programs 
or 
budgets 
continue 
to 
be 
cut 
or 
frozen, 
and 
financial 
resources 
are 
limited 
if 
non-existent. 
The 
resource 
needs 
and 
the 
lack 
of 
available 
resources 
are 
so 
great 
that 
staff 
can 
feel 
drained 
when 
working 
with 
clients 
with 
disabilities. 


SafePlace 
staff 
members 
feel 
they 
need 
more 
ongoing 
education 
and 
information 
in 
working 
with 
individuals 
with 
mental 
health 
disabilities 
(including 
PTSD), 
hidden 
disabilities, 
seizure 
disorders 
/ 
cognitive 
disabilities, 
and 
substance 
abuse 
issues. 
Staff 
also 
said 
that 
it 
would 
help 
to 
have 
more 
information 
on 
how 
various 
disabilities 
might 
impact 
their 
interactions 
with 
staff. 
Staff 
would 
like 
continuing 
education 
on 
mental 
illness, 
treatment 
options 
and 
how 
symptoms 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
34 
of 
71 


affect 
an 
individual. 
Staff 
also 
expressed 
the 
difficulty 
in 
prioritizing 
clients 
with 
mental 
health 
disabilities 
and 
serving 
sexual 
assault 
survivors 
with 
mental 
illness. 


Given 
experiences 
in 
serving 
people 
with 
disabilities, 
SafePlace 
staff 
requested 
information 
and 
training 
in 
answer 
to 
the 
following 
questions: 


• 
How 
can 
SafePlace 
staff 
better 
serve 
clients 
with 
cognitive 
disabilities? 
• 
How 
can 
SafePlace 
staff 
learn 
more 
about 
taking 
calls 
from 
people 
with 
substance 
abuse 
issues, 
as 
these 
are 
difficult 
calls 
for 
workers? 
• 
What 
are 
the 
recent 
changes 
in 
the 
ADA 
and 
how 
do 
we 
apply 
those 
changes? 
• 
How 
much 
information 
can 
we 
give 
to 
a 
resident 
about 
another 
person’s 
disability? 
• 
Can 
Disability 
Services 
staff 
provide 
training 
at 
our 
monthly 
advocates 
meeting? 
• 
What 
can 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
offer 
our 
clients? 
• 
Given 
recent 
changes 
in 
governmental 
agencies, 
what 
services 
are 
provided 
by 
Department 
of 
Assistive 
and 
Rehabilitative 
Services 
(DARS) 
and 
the 
Department 
of 
Aging 
and 
Disability 
Services 
(DADS)? 
• 
What 
are 
accessible/affordable 
housing 
options 
in 
the 
community 
for 
people 
with 
disabilities? 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff: 
Staff 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
identified 
a 
need 
to 
know 
more 
about 
how 
they 
can 
work 
with 
SafePlace 
to 
better 
support 
their 
clients. 
And, 
SafePlace 
staff 
would 
like 
to 
know 
how 
they 
can 
work 
with 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
to 
support 
their 
clients 
and 
work. 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff 
asked 
to 
learn 
more 
specifically 
what 
resources 
are 
available 
in 
the 
community 
for 
clients 
whose 
cases 
of 
abuse 
were 
determined 
to 
be 
unfounded. 
Staff 
also 
indicated 
a 
need 
for 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
intake 
workers 
and 
managers 
to 
know 
more 
about 
domestic 
violence 
and 
sexual 
assault 
and 
would 
like 
more 
training 
from 
SafePlace. 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff 
reported 
that 
the 
trainings 
SafePlace 
provided 
several 
years 
back 
were 
helpful, 
but 
more 
advanced 
training 
is 
necessary 
to 
make 
changes 
in 
how 
business 
is 
conducted. 
AI 
staff 
also 
requested 
to 
have 
access 
to 
the 
SafePlace 
Disability 
Services’ 
fact 
sheets 
on 
their 
internal 
server. 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff 
also 
indicated 
a 
need 
to 
know 
more 
about 
assessments 
of 
survivors 
to 
ensure 
that 
the 
assessments 
their 
clients 
receive 
from 
institutional 
staff 
are 
complete 
and 
include 
the 
client’s 
trauma 
history. 


People 
with 
Disabilities: 
Community 
members 
with 
disabilities 
would 
like 
to 
have 
continuing 
education 
on 
the 
following 
core 
topics: 


• 
What 
is 
abuse? 
• 
How 
to 
recognize 
abusive 
relationships. 
• 
How 
to 
ask 
for 
help. 
• 
Where 
to 
find 
help. 
People 
with 
disabilities 
want 
information 
about 
where 
they 
can 
get 
counseling 
and 
support 
related 
to 
abuse. 
Additionally, 
individuals 
with 
disabilities 
asked 
for 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
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of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
35 
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71 


information 
on 
sexuality, 
boundaries, 
respect 
and 
definitions 
of 
sexual 
assault. 
If 
people 
with 
disabilities 
were 
to 
experience 
sexual 
assault, 
individuals 
with 
disabilities 
want 
survivors 
to 
know 
that 
St. 
David’s 
is 
the 
hospital 
in 
Austin 
where 
forensic 
exams 
are 
given. 


SafePlace 
staff 
requested 
that 
education 
be 
provided 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities 
who 
are 
clients 
of 
SafePlace 
similar 
to 
the 
current 
community 
education 
classes 
offered 
to 
adults 
with 
disabilities. 
Service 
providers 
recommend 
that 
education 
currently 
offered 
to 
individuals 
with 
disabilities 
be 
presented 
through 
the 
lens 
of 
“healthy 
relationships” 
and 
that 
we 
add 
more 
interactive 
activities. 


Finally, 
community 
members 
with 
disabilities 
indicated 
an 
interest 
in 
continued 
opportunities 
to 
dialogue 
about 
the 
issue 
of 
abuse 
– 
not 
in 
a 
therapeutic 
or 
clinical 
format. 
This 
request 
came 
as 
a 
direct 
result 
of 
the 
focus 
groups 
and 
individual 
interviews 
in 
that 
people 
with 
disabilities 
were 
interested 
in 
sharing 
more 
of 
their 
ideas 
and 
experiences 
in 
an 
informal 
way. 


Recommendations 


The 
following 
overarching 
recommendations 
represent 
the 
areas 
of 
greatest 
need 
identified 
by 
participants 
in 
this 
needs 
assessment. 
These 
will 
be 
utilized 
as 
a 
starting 
place 
to 
develop 
short, 
intermediate, 
and 
long-term 
plans. 


Service 
gaps, 
barriers 
and 
needs: 


• 
Develop 
and 
pilot 
a 
forum 
whereby 
people 
with 
disabilities 
can 
meet 
and 
continue 
to 
dialogue 
about 
victimization 
issues 
and 
provide 
ongoing 
input 
to 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
for 
increasing 
service 
access 
to 
survivors 
with 
a 
range 
of 
disabilities. 
• 
Prioritize 
and 
address 
physical 
and 
attitudinal 
accessibility 
concerns 
within 
SafePlace 
that 
were 
identified 
by 
needs 
assessment 
participants. 
Building 
internal 
capacity: 


• 
Develop 
and 
pilot 
a 
protocol 
within 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
for 
screening 
for 
domestic/sexual/caregiver 
violence, 
responding 
sensitively, 
and 
making 
effective 
referrals. 
• 
Create, 
pilot, 
and 
implement 
a 
simplified 
intake 
process 
within 
SafePlace 
to 
increase 
accessibility 
for 
persons 
with 
limited 
reading 
skills. 
• 
Expand 
program 
evaluation 
activities 
within 
SafePlace 
to 
gather 
information 
from 
clients 
with 
disabilities 
to 
assess 
service 
effectiveness 
and 
use 
this 
data 
to 
continuously 
make 
service 
improvements. 
• 
Develop 
and 
institutionalize 
training 
for 
all 
new 
SafePlace 
employees 
on 
sensitively 
working 
with 
clients 
with 
disabilities 
and 
ensure 
that 
comprehensive 
consultation 
and 
technical 
assistance 
is 
available 
for 
direct 
service 
staff 
when 
working 
with 
clients 
with 
disabilities. 

Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
36 
of 
71 


• 
Implement 
strategies 
for 
increased 
website 
accessibility 
for 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace. 
• 
Develop 
and 
seek 
board 
approval 
for 
a 
domestic 
violence 
in 
the 
workplace 
policy 
for 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
Sustaining 
outreach 
and 
services: 


• 
Develop 
and 
implement 
a 
sustainable 
public 
awareness 
campaign 
targeting 
people 
with 
disabilities 
for 
increased 
visibility 
about 
the 
issue 
of 
abuse 
and 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
as 
resources. 
• 
Design 
a 
targeted 
recruitment 
plan 
to 
engage 
people 
with 
disabilities 
as 
volunteers 
within 
SafePlace 
(including, 
but 
not 
limited 
to, 
a 
Speakers 
Bureau, 
peer 
mentors, 
board 
member 
who 
has 
a 
disability). 
Building 
collaborative 
responses 


• 
Develop 
and 
institutionalize 
an 
MOU 
for 
service 
coordination 
between 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
for 
work 
with 
abuse 
survivors 
who 
have 
disabilities. 
• 
Expand 
collaboration 
to 
add 
on 
at 
least 
one 
additional 
local 
disability 
service 
provider 
partner 
interested 
in 
making 
systemic 
changes 
and/or 
service 
coordination 
to 
address 
abuse/violence 
against 
people 
with 
disabilities. 

Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
37 
of 
71 


Appendix 
A 
Focus 
Group 
and 
Key 
Informant 
Interview 
Questions 



Partnering 
to 
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Service 
Access: 
A 
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of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
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Advocacy, 
Inc. 
Focus 
Group 
Questions 


Advocacy, 
Inc. 
Services 


1. 
How 
do 
issues 
of 
domestic 
violence 
or 
sexual 
abuse/assault 
come 
to 
AI’s 
attention? 
In 
the 
context 
of 
your 
work, 
what 
do 
you 
do 
when 
you 
suspect 
or 
learn 
that 
caregiver 
abuse, 
domestic 
violence 
or 
sexual 
assault 
has 
happened? 
Possible 
Prompts: 
What 
agency 
procedures, 
protocols 
and 
policies 
are 
in 
place 
for 
responding 
to 
abuse? 
How 
could 
policies 
or 
procedures 
be 
added 
or 
expanded 
for 
responding 
to 
abuse? 
What 
is 
working 
well 
currently? 
What 
service 
gaps 
or 
barriers 
have 
you 
identified? 
How 
could 
these 
problems 
be 
resolved 
or 
addresses? 


2. 
What 
have 
been 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
staff’s 
experiences 
around 
obtaining 
protective 
orders 
for 
people 
with 
disabilities 
who 
have 
experienced 
caregiver 
or 
domestic 
violence 
or 
abuse 
in 
their 
homes?* 
Possible 
Prompts: 
What 
problems 
have 
come 
up? 
How 
do 
you 
think 
these 
problems 
could 
be 
addressed? 


3. 
What 
type 
of 
trainings, 
consultation, 
or 
resources 
would 
support 
Advocacy, 
Inc.’s 
staff 
for 
responding 
to 
caregiver 
abuse, 
domestic 
violence 
and 
sexual 
assault? 
Outreach 


4. 
Sometimes 
people 
with 
disabilities 
who 
are 
experiencing 
domestic 
violence, 
caregiver 
violence, 
rape 
or 
abuse 
do 
not 
reach 
out 
for 
help. 
What 
are 
your 
thoughts 
about 
this? 
Possible 
Prompts: 
What 
would 
help 
people 
reach 
out 
for 
help 
if 
they’ve 
been 
abused? 
How 
could 
we 
better 
notify 
people 
with 
disabilities 
of 
available 
services? 


5. 
What 
are 
your 
greatest 
concerns 
about 
domestic 
and 
caregiver 
violence 
and 
sexual 
assault 
committed 
against 
persons 
with 
disabilities? 
Possible 
Prompts: 
What 
might 
prevent 
people 
from 
accessing 
services 
if 
they’ve 
experienced 
violence? 
What 
within 
your 
agency 
would 
help 
eliminate 
barriers 
and 
promote 
solutions? 


Collaboration 


6. 
How 
could 
you 
see 
disability 
advocacy 
and 
domestic 
violence 
/ 
sexual 
assault 
agencies 
working 
together 
to 
address 
abuse 
against 
people 
with 
disabilities? 
How 
could 
you 
see 
SafePlace 
and 
AI 
working 
together? 


*These 
questions 
will 
be 
asked to assess 
needs 
for 
developing a 
Memorandum 
of 
Understanding 
between Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
for 
cross-referrals 
and service 
coordination. 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
39 
of 
71 


Disability 
Service 
Providers 
Focus 
Group 
Questions 


SafePlace 
Services 


1. 
Sometimes 
people 
with 
disabilities 
who 
are 
experiencing 
domestic 
violence, 
rape 
or 
abuse 
do 
not 
reach 
out 
for 
help. 
Why 
do 
you 
think 
this 
is? 
Possible 
Prompts: 
What 
would 
help 
people 
reach 
out 
for 
help 
if 
they’ve 
been 
abused? 
What 
training 
or 
policies/procedures 
could 
support 
you/other 
staff 
to 
talk 
about 
suspicions 
that 
you 
have 
that 
a 
client 
has 
been 
abused? 
What 
training 
or 
policies/procedures 
could 
support 
you/other 
staff 
to 
respond 
to 
clients 
who 
disclose 
abuse? 
What 
ideas 
do 
you 
have 
for 
reducing 
barriers? 
What 
do 
you 
think 
would 
support 
people 
with 
disabilities 
in 
requesting 
support/services 
related 
to 
abuse? 


2. 
What 
advice 
do 
you 
have 
for 
reaching 
out 
to 
the 
disability 
community 
about 
domestic 
violence 
or 
sexual 
abuse 
or 
rape? 
Possible 
Prompts: 
Where 
and 
how 
should 
the 
outreach 
take 
place? 
What 
type 
of 
messages 
should 
be 
included? 
What 
types 
of 
messages 
would 
support 
individuals 
with 
disabilities 
who 
have 
been 
sexually 
abused 
in 
asking 
for 
help? 


Provider 
/ 
Service 
Agencies 


3. 
If 
a 
client 
told 
you 
that 
their 
partner 
or 
spouse 
was 
being 
abusive, 
what 
would 
you 
do? 
Possible 
Prompts: 
What 
is 
already 
working 
well 
in 
your 
agency 
when 
clients 
report 
abuse? 
What 
do 
you 
think 
is 
needed 
to 
do 
better? 
Is 
there 
training 
or 
technical 
assistance 
you 
need 
in 
order 
to 
respond? 


Collaboration 


4. 
How 
do 
you 
see 
domestic 
violence, 
sexual 
assault 
and 
disability 
service 
providers 
working 
together 
to 
respond 
to 
abuse 
against 
people 
with 
disabilities? 
Possible 
Prompts: 
What 
type 
of 
service 
coordination 
do 
you 
think 
needs 
to 
be 
developed? 
Would 
your 
agency 
be 
interested 
in 
talking 
in 
more 
depth 
about 
how 
changes 
could 
be 
made 
for 
recognizing 
and 
responding 
to 
abuse 
your 
clients? 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
40 
of 
71 


SafePlace 
Staff 
Individual 
Interview 
Questions 


SafePlace 
Services 


1. 
In 
general, 
what 
have 
been 
your 
program’s 
experiences 
in 
working 
with 
clients 
who 
have 
disabilities? 
Possible 
Prompts: 
What 
went 
well? 
What 
are 
the 
strengths 
we 
can 
build 
on? 
What 
hasn’t 
gone 
so 
well 
or 
is 
challenging? 
How 
do 
you 
think 
the 
challenges 
(barriers 
or 
gaps) 
could 
be 
addressed? 
What 
are 
the 
areas 
that 
could 
use 
more 
support? 


Provider 
/ 
Service 
Agencies 


2. 
From 
your 
experience, 
how 
are 
disability 
service 
agencies 
responding 
to 
people 
who 
have 
disabilities 
who 
are 
experiencing 
abuse/violence? 
Possible 
Prompts: 
What 
are 
the 
problems 
you 
or 
clients 
have 
identified? 
How 
could 
disability 
service 
provider’s 
responses 
be 
improved 
for 
people 
who 
have 
experienced 
abuse? 


3. 
What 
types 
of 
legal 
issues 
came 
up 
when 
working 
with 
survivors 
with 
disabilities?* 
Collaboration 


4. 
How 
do 
you 
see 
disability 
service 
providers 
and 
domestic 
violence 
/ 
sexual 
assault 
agencies 
working 
together 
to 
address 
abuse 
against 
people 
with 
disabilities? 
Possible 
Prompts: 
What 
has 
it 
been 
like 
for 
you 
when 
you 
(or 
staff 
in 
your 
department) 
have 
tried 
to 
link 
clients 
with 
disabilities 
to 
other 
community 
resources? 
What 
kinds 
of 
collaboration 
or 
agreements 
could 
improve 
options 
for 
persons 
who 
have 
disabilities?* 


Vision 


5. 
What 
does 
your 
department 
need 
to 
make 
our 
work 
successful 
with 
people 
with 
disabilities? 
What 
do 
you 
think 
our 
agency 
needs? 


Possible 
Prompts: 
What 
about 
people 
with 
physical 
disabilities 
[intellectual 
or 
cognitive 
disabilities, 
mental 
illness, 
people 
who 
are 
blind]? 


*These 
questions 
will 
be 
asked to assess 
needs 
for 
developing a 
Memorandum 
of 
Understanding 
between Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
for 
cross-referrals 
and service 
coordination. 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
41 
of 
71 


SafePlace 
Direct 
Service 
Staff 
-Focus 
Group 
Questions 


SafePlace 
Services 


1. 
What 
are 
some 
of 
your 
experiences 
working 
with 
clients 
with 
disabilities? 
Follow 
up 
questions: 
What 
is 
working 
well? 
What 
does 
not 
go 
so 
well? 


Possible 
Prompts: 
When 
do 
you 
feel 
strongest 
in 
working 
with 
people 
with 
disabilities? 
What 
barriers 
do 
you 
come 
up 
against 
(internally 
or 
externally)? 
What 
changes 
would 
your 
make 
in 
the 
way 
we 
do 
things 
that 
might 
better 
support 
clients 
with 
disabilities? 
What 
improvements 
are 
needed 
to 
make 
sure 
services 
are 
more 
effective 
with 
clients 
who 
have 
disabilities? 
Any 
specific 
challenges 
with 
safety 
planning 
related 
to 
persons 
with 
disabilities 
being 
stalked? 


2. 
What 
types 
of 
changes 
do 
we 
need 
to 
make 
internally 
to 
best 
serve 
the 
disability 
community? 
Possible 
Prompt: 
Do 
you 
need 
information/training 
on 
different 
technology 
options 
for 
working 
with 
people 
with 
disabilities? 


Provider 
/ 
Service 
Agencies 


3. 
What 
has 
it 
been 
like 
when 
you’ve 
tried 
to 
link 
clients 
to 
disability 
related 
services 
in 
the 
community? 
Possible 
Prompts: 
If 
you 
could 
change 
one 
thing 
to 
improve 
services 
for 
clients 
with 
disabilities 
what 
would 
that 
be? 
How 
could 
we 
improve 
coordination 
of 
services 
with 
people 
with 
disabilities? 


4. 
What 
have 
been 
the 
legal 
issues 
that 
came 
up 
in 
your 
work 
with 
survivors 
who 
have 
disabilities?* 
5. 
What 
do 
you 
think 
is 
most 
important 
for 
other 
agencies 
to 
know 
when 
helping 
survivors 
who 
have 
disabilities 
and 
have 
been 
hurt 
by 
abuse? 
Possible 
Prompts: 
How 
can 
other 
service 
providers 
improve 
their 
response 
to 
abuse 
against 
individuals 
who 
have 
disabilities? 


Collaboration 


6. 
Are 
there 
any 
kinds 
of 
training 
or 
consultation 
that 
would 
support 
your 
own 
work 
with 
clients 
who 
have 
disabilities? 
Vision 


7. 
What 
is 
your 
vision 
for 
how 
we 
can 
better 
serve 
survivors 
who 
have 
disabilities? 
Possible 
Prompts: 
What 
approach 
should 
SafePlace 
use 
to 
coordinate 
services 
between 
disability 
services 
and 
other 
direct 
service 
programs? 
What 
do 
you 
need 
from 
the 
Disability 
Services 
department 
to 
make 
our 
work 
successful 
with 
the 
disability 
community? 


*These 
questions 
will 
be 
asked to assess 
needs 
for 
developing a 
Memorandum 
of 
Understanding 
between 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
for 
cross-referrals 
and service 
coordination. 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
42 
of 
71 


People 
with 
Disabilities 
Focus 
Group 
Questions 


1. 
What 
are 
your 
thoughts 
about 
why 
people 
with 
disabilities 
may 
not 
reach 
out 
and 
ask 
for 
help 
if 
they’ve 
been 
abused? 
Possible 
Prompts: 
What 
do 
you 
think 
persons 
with 
disabilities 
need 
in 
order 
to 
get 
help 
(services 
and 
supports) 
related 
to 
abuse? 
How 
can 
people 
with 
disabilities 
get 
this 
information? 


2. 
What 
suggestions 
do 
you 
have 
for 
reaching 
out 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities 
about 
abuse? 
Possible 
Prompts: 
What 
types 
of 
messages 
would 
support 
people 
who 
are 
abused 
to 
get 
help? 
What 
can 
SafePlace 
do 
to 
tell 
people 
with 
disabilities 
about 
our 
services? 


3. 
What 
are 
important 
things 
that 
service 
providers 
need 
to 
know 
to 
help 
people 
with 
disabilities 
hurt 
by 
abuse? 
Possible 
Prompts: 
What 
can 
disability 
service 
providers 
do? 
How 
can 
disability 
service 
providers 
create 
an 
environment 
that 
is 
more 
responsive 
to 
the 
needs 
of 
people 
who 
have 
been 
abused? 
What 
can 
SafePlace 
(victim 
service 
providers) 
do? 
How 
can 
SafePlace 
be 
more 
welcoming 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities? 


4. 
What 
do 
you 
think 
can 
help 
people 
with 
disabilities 
being 
abused 
in 
institutions? 
What 
about 
people 
being 
abused 
in 
the 
community? 
Possible 
Prompts: 
Do 
you 
think 
what 
they 
need 
is 
different 
or 
the 
same? 
What 
advice 
would 
you 
have 
about 
safety 
for 
someone 
who 
is 
leaving 
a 
state 
school 
or 
hospital 
and 
moving 
into 
the 
community? 
How 
can 
people 
get 
this 
information? 
What 
could 
help 
people 
with 
disabilities 
who 
are 
being 
abused 
(either 
in 
an 
institution 
or 
in 
the 
community)? 


5. 
What 
kinds 
of 
information 
and 
training 
do 
staff 
in 
institutions 
and 
community 
based 
organizations 
need 
in 
relation 
to 
safety 
and 
abuse? 

Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
43 
of 
71 


Appendix 
B 


Consent 
for 
Participation 
in 
a 
Focus 
Group 
or 
Interview 


Date: 
_________________________ 
Focus 
group 
or 
Interview 
(circle 
one) 
participant 


I 
_______________________________________________________________ 
(participant 
name) 
agree 
to 
be 
part 
of 
a 
focus 
group 
or 
individual 
interview 
and 
talk 
about 
ways 
that 
domestic 
violence 
and 
sexual 
assault 
services 
can 
be 
improved 
or 
made 
better 
with 
people 
who 
are 
D/deaf 
or 
people 
who 
have 
disabilities 
in 
Austin, 
Texas. 


SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
(AI) 
also 
want 
to 
make 
their 
services 
better 
and 
more 
available 
to 
any 
person 
with 
a 
disability 
or 
who 
is 
D/deaf 
by 
finding 
out 
what 
they 
could 
do 
differently. 


I 
will 
be 
part 
of 
this 
project 
by 
answering 
questions 
in 
a 
small 
group 
of 
people 
(focus 
group) 
or 
by 
talking 
individually 
with 
someone 
from 
SafePlace 
or 
AI. 


I 
know 
I 
will 
be 
answering 
questions 
about 
domestic, 
sexual, 
and 
caregiver 
abuse. 


I 
am 
volunteering 
to 
participate 
in 
the 
focus 
group 
and 
interview 
and 
will 
be 
answering 
these 
questions. 


I 
know 
that 
if 
I 
talk 
about 
abuse 
that 
is 
personally 
happening 
to 
me, 
the 
focus 
group 
leader 
may 
need 
to 
call 
Adult 
Protective 
Services 
(APS) 
and 
let 
them 
know 
about 
the 
abuse. 


I 
can 
also 
make 
a 
report 
to 
APS 
about 
the 
abuse 
myself 
by 
calling 
the 
APS 
hotline 
at 
1-800-252-
5400. 


If 
Adult 
Protective 
Services 
staff 
investigates 
or 
talks 
with 
me 
about 
the 
abuse--they 
may 
offer 
me 
services. 
I 
have 
the 
right 
to 
refuse 
or 
accept 
those 
services 
or 
help. 
I 
understand 
that 
this 
is 
the 
law 
in 
Texas. 


I 
can 
change 
my 
mind 
at 
any 
time 
about 
participating. 
I 
can 
also 
say 
“pass” 
if 
there 
is 
a 
question 
I 
do 
not 
want 
to 
answer. 
Even 
after 
the 
focus 
group 
or 
the 
interview 
starts, 
I 
can 
decide 
at 
any 
time 
to 
stop 
and 
leave. 


If 
I 
decide 
to 
leave 
or 
‘pass’ 
on 
any 
question, 
I 
will 
still 
receive 
compensation 
for 
my 
participation. 


If 
I 
do 
stop 
answering 
questions 
or 
decide 
to 
leave, 
I 
can 
talk 
to 
a 
safe 
person 
at 
the 
focus 
group 
or 
interview. 
I 
can 
also 
still 
call 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
or 
SafePlace 
if 
I 
need 
help 
with 
abuse. 
I 
also 
know 
that 
participation 
in 
a 
focus 
group 
or 
interview 
does 
not 
mean 
that 
I 
am 
a 
client 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
or 
SafePlace. 


It 
is 
OK 
with 
me 
that 
a 
project 
person 
from 
SafePlace 
or 
AI 
will 
be 
taking 
notes 
on 
what 
everyone 
is 
talking 
about 
and 
the 
answers 
that 
everyone 
is 
giving. 
This 
person 
is 
taking 
notes 
to 
help 
project 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
44 
of 
71 


staff 
remember 
the 
things 
we 
talked 
about 
until 
they 
can 
write 
a 
report 
with 
all 
of 
the 
information 
from 
everyone. 


After 
the 
focus 
group 
/ 
interview 
is 
over, 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
are 
hoping 
to 
know 
more 
about 
what 
they 
can 
do 
to 
better 
serve 
people 
who 
are 
D/deaf 
or 
have 
disabilities 
and 
who 
have 
been 
abused. 


I 
know 
the 
information 
I 
give 
will 
be 
put 
together 
with 
information 
from 
other 
people’s 
comments 
and 
all 
of 
my 
comments 
and 
answers 
will 
be 
confidential. 


This 
means 
that 
no 
one 
will 
be 
told 
that 
I 
gave 
any 
of 
the 
specific 
comments 
/ 
information 
and 
no 
one 
will 
be 
told 
that 
I 
participated 
in 
the 
focus 
group 
or 
that 
I 
was 
interviewed. 


I 
agree 
that 
I 
will 
keep 
confidential 
and 
not 
share 
names 
of 
individuals 
who 
participate 
in 
focus 
groups 
or 
information 
that 
other 
people 
who 
are 
in 
the 
focus 
groups 
share 
during 
the 
group, 
after 
leaving 
the 
focus 
group. 


I 
know 
that 
SafePlace 
cannot 
guarantee 
that 
other 
people 
in 
the 
focus 
group 
will 
keep 
my 
name 
private, 
but 
everyone 
is 
being 
asked 
to 
keep 
each 
other’s 
names 
private. 


I 
can 
ask 
to 
meet 
with 
someone 
(a 
safe 
person) 
before, 
during, 
or 
after 
the 
focus 
group 
or 
interview 
to 
get 
support 
and 
information 
about 
where 
to 
find 
more 
support 
about 
anything 
hurtful 
or 
confusing 
that 
I 
thought 
about 
or 
felt 
during 
the 
focus 
group 
or 
interview. 


If 
I 
have 
any 
worries 
or 
questions 
about 
the 
focus 
group 
or 
interview 
I 
can 
call 
_______________________ 
or 
write 
by 
email 
to: 
____________________________________. 


I 
____________________________________________________________________ 
(my 
name) 
agree 
to 
be 
part 
of 
this 
project 
called 
“Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access” 
to 
help 
identify 
how 
SafePlace 
and 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
can 
improve 
services 
in 
Austin 
for 
people 
who 
are 
D/deaf 
or 
have 
disabilities 
about 
issues 
and 
needs 
about 
domestic, 
sexual 
and 
caregiver 
violence 
and 
abuse. 


Signature 
_____________________________________________________________ 
(participant) 


Date 
_________________________________________________________________ 


I 
agree 
for 
the 
facilitators 
to 
contact 
me 
at 
the 
following 
telephone 
number 
or 
email 
address 
after 
the 
focus 
group 
or 
interview 
if 
they 
have 
any 
other 
questions. 


Telephone: 


Email 
address: 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
45 
of 
71 


Appendix 
C 


Tables 
of 
Results 
and 
Key 
Findings 


The 
following 
issue 
areas 
were 
identified 
by 
participant 
groups: 


1. 
Possible 
social, 
emotional 
and 
safety 
consequences 
for 
reaching 
out 
for 
help 
when 
abused 
2. 
Transportation 
gaps, 
barriers 
and 
needs 
3. 
Legal 
advocacy 
gaps 
and 
needs 
4. 
Accessibility 
barriers 
5. 
Gaps 
in 
and 
needs 
for 
education 
and 
training 
6. 
Targeted 
outreach 
to 
the 
disability 
community 
7. 
Coordination 
of 
services 

Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
46 
of 
71 


People 
with 
Disabilities: 
Interviews 
Gaps, 
Barriers 
or 
Needs 
According 
to 
Participant 
Group 
Possible 
social, 
emotional 
and 
safety 
consequences 
for 
reaching 
out 
for 
help 
when 
abused 
• 
Retaliation 
from 
family 
for 
violating 
family 
rules 
• 
Loss 
of 
financial 
resources 
• 
Shame, 
embarrassment 
– 
“People 
with 
disabilities 
who 
have 
lived 
in 
the 
community 
are 
held 
to 
a 
higher 
standard 
by 
service 
providers, 
expected 
to 
be 
perfect, 
not 
allowed 
to 
have 
mistakes.
” 
• 
Don’t 
have 
a 
way 
to 
get 
help 
• 
Don’t 
have 
access 
to 
phone 
to 
get 
help 
• 
Escalating 
violence 
• 
Repercussions 
by 
the 
perpetrator 
• 
Loss 
of 
care 
provider 
• 
Blamed 
– 
“Fear 
that 
the 
counselor 
might 
say, 
did 
you 
bring 
it 
on, 
wear 
clothes 
that 
would 
bring 
on 
the 
abuse? 
I 
didn’t 
want 
them 
to 
look 
at 
me 
and 
say, 
what 
did 
you 
do?
• 
Feel 
judged 
• 
Loss 
of 
stability 
• 
May 
lose 
independence 
/ 
right 
to 
self-determination 
• 
May 
have 
confidentiality 
broken 
• 
May 
be 
hit 
or 
injured 
by 
person 
they 
report 
to 
• 
May 
be 
killed 
• 
It’s 
hard 
to 
trust. 
• 
Will 
possibly 
be 
identified 
as 
the 
“person 
who 
got 
abused” 
• 
Won’t 
have 
anyone 
to 
tell 
• 
May 
not 
be 
other 
options 
• 
Staff 
might 
criticize. 
• 
Staff 
might 
break 
confidentiality. 
• 
Staff 
may 
violate 
trust. 
• 
Staff 
might 
contact 
the 
abuser. 
• 
Staff 
might 
add 
to 
the 
abuse. 
• 
Staff 
might 
ignore 
the 
problem. 
• 
People 
may 
not 
understand 
the 
extent 
of 
the 
abuse. 
• 
Staff 
might 
pretend 
to 
relate 
when 
they 
can’t. 
• 
“Scared 
of 
HIV/AIDS” 
• 
“For 
me, 
my 
caregiver 
was 
my 
abuser. 
I 
was 
worried 
that 
the 
bottom 
would 
fall 
out 
of 
my 
life.
” 
• 
“Don’t 
want 
APS 
[involvement].
” 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
47 
of 
71 


People 
with 
Disabilities: 
Interviews 
Possible 
social, 
emotional 
and 
safety 
consequences 
for 
reaching 
out 
for 
help 
when 
abused 
(continued…
) 
• 
“[Might] 
mean 
a 
report 
on 
family 
members 
who 
may 
be 
perpetrating 
abuse. 
[Staff 
should] 
clarify 
under 
what 
circumstances 
the 
police, 
CPS, 
etc. 
are 
reported 
to.
• 
“It’s 
hard 
to 
say 
to 
someone 
that 
I 
need 
a 
type 
of 
care, 
what 
kinds 
[of 
care] 
need. 
People 
may 
not 
be 
able 
to 
say 
these 
are 
my 
needs. 
How 
can 
I 
attain 
them?
• 
“Pets 
are 
important 
– 
I 
have 
cats 
and 
that 
was 
an 
issue 
too. 
I 
didn’t 
want 
to 
leave 
my 
cats.
Transportation 
• 
Lack 
of 
accessible, 
available 
transportation 
acts 
as 
a 
barrier 
to 
disclosure. 
• 
Service 
providers 
may 
not 
know 
about 
accessible 
transportation 
resources. 
• 
Service 
providers 
should 
work 
with 
SafePlace 
and 
provide 
accessible 
transportation 
for 
safety. 
• 
Speaking 
out 
about 
abuse 
might 
cause 
someone 
to 
lose 
their 
transportation. 
Legal 
advocacy 
-gaps 
and 
needs 
• 
None 
detailed 
Accessibility 
barriers 
• 
People 
with 
disabilities 
should 
be 
given 
time 
to 
arrive 
late, 
communicate 
with 
staff 
and 
still 
be 
able 
to 
participate 
in 
services 
at 
SafePlace. 
[Many 
people 
with 
disabilities 
do 
not 
have 
control 
over 
the 
forms 
of 
transportation 
available 
to 
them.
] 
• 
Staff 
should 
meet 
clients 
½ 
way 
into 
the 
building 
[in 
atrium]
. 
• 
Materials 
should 
be 
available 
in 
alternate 
formats. 
• 
All 
areas 
of 
SafePlace 
should 
be 
accessible 
to 
people 
who 
use 
wheelchairs. 
• 
Intake 
process 
should 
put 
the 
person 
first 
and 
reflect 
the 
People 
First 
philosophy. 
• 
Use 
simple 
language, 
links 
to 
other 
pages 
and 
big 
bold 
wording 
on 
the 
website. 
• 
Highlight 
to 
new 
employees 
that 
we 
remove 
attitudinal 
barriers. 
• 
Be 
sure 
that 
individuals 
with 
disabilities 
are 
integrated 
(e.g.
, 
given 
their 
own 
space, 
space 
to 
move 
around 
freely 
but 
not 
secluded 
and 
accommodations 
as 
they 
need 
them)
• 
Staff 
at 
SafePlace 
and 
should 
be 
more 
welcoming 
for 
people 
with 
disabilities 
by 
creating 
space 
where 
people 
can 
watch 
movies, 
receptionists 
are 
nice, 
etc. 
• 
People 
with 
disabilities 
don’t 
always 
have 
access 
to 
a 
phone. 
• 
Time 
periods 
of 
service 
should 
be 
extended. 
• 
“
I 
feel 
safe 
here 
because 
of 
that 
gate.” 
• 
“Address 
fear 
of 
reporting.
” 
• 
“Let 
bring 
own 
caregiver 
to 
shelter.
” 
• 
“Don’t 
make 
assumptions 
that 
someone 
who 
comes 
in 
a 
wheelchair 
is 
going 
to 
be 
nice.
• 
“Keep 
in 
mind 
that 
people 
[who 
has 
disabilities] 
may 
have 
bad 
days 
and 
if 
they’ve 
just 
had 
something 
happen 
to 
them 
they 
may 
be 
different. 
Be 
ready 
for 
that.



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
48 
of 
71 


People 
with 
Disabilities: 
Interviews 
Accessibility 
barriers 
(continued…
) 
• 
“Focus 
on 
the 
person, 
not 
disability.
” 
• 
“No 
condescension.
” 
• 
“Some 
people 
in 
wheelchairs 
may 
not 
want 
you 
to 
engage 
with 
them 
like 
they 
have 
disability 
at 
all; 
because 
they 
are 
doing 
well 
and 
have 
the 
supports 
they 
need.
• 
“It 
may 
take 
a 
longer 
time 
for 
a 
person 
with 
a 
cognitive 
disability 
when 
explaining 
things, 
etc.
” 
• 
“It’s 
important 
to 
regain 
their 
confidence 
– 
and 
that 
can 
be 
done 
in 
small 
conversations.
• 
“Stress 
that 
is 
a 
safe 
haven, 
and 
assure 
people 
that 
you 
are 
actually 
safe 
here: 
the 
fear 
is 
the 
person 
you 
are 
running 
away 
from.
” 
Gaps 
in 
and 
needs 
for 
education 
and 
training 
Gaps 
in 
and 
needs 
for 
education 
and 
training 
(continued…
) 
• 
Disability 
service 
providers 
should 
know 
indicators, 
basic 
dynamics 
and 
long-term 
effects 
of 
abuse 
against 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
Disability 
service 
providers 
should 
know 
that 
it’s 
not 
wrong 
to 
ask 
for 
help. 
• 
Disability 
service 
providers 
should 
know 
that 
there 
are 
a 
lot 
of 
different 
forms 
of 
abuse. 
• 
Disability 
service 
providers 
should 
know 
to 
offer 
services 
but 
don’t 
force 
someone 
to 
participate. 
• 
Service 
providers 
should 
know 
what 
resources 
are 
available 
in 
the 
community 
for 
survivors 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
Disability 
service 
provides 
should 
know 
basics 
of 
safety 
planning 
when 
the 
abuser 
is 
caregiver, 
parent 
or 
a 
guardian. 
• 
Disability 
service 
providers 
should 
know 
when 
they 
are 
required 
to 
report 
to 
Adult 
Protective 
Services. 
• 
Train 
home 
health 
agencies. 
• 
Service 
providers 
need 
to 
give 
information 
about 
abuse 
to 
their 
clients. 
• 
Care 
providers 
should 
know 
to 
think 
outside 
of 
the 
box 
when 
it 
comes 
to 
thinking 
about 
abuse. 
• 
Care 
providers 
should 
know 
that 
verbal 
abuse 
is 
just 
as 
bad 
as 
physical. 
• 
Disability 
service 
providers 
Service 
providers 
should 
know 
to 
say 
“it’s 
not 
your 
fault. 
We 
want 
to 
help 
you. 
We 
want 
you 
to 
be 
ok.
” 
• 
Educate 
people 
with 
disabilities 
that 
it 
[abuse] 
happens 
to 
a 
lot 
of 
people 
and 
there 
are 
counseling 
and 
support 
groups. 
• 
Educate 
people 
with 
disabilities 
on 
sexuality 
education. 
• 
Educate 
people 
with 
disabilities 
about 
boundaries, 
respect, 
what 
sexual 
assault 
is 
and 
risky 
behavior. 
• 
Educate 
people 
with 
disabilities 
so 
that 
they 
can 
stop 
it 
before 
it 
happens 
and 
recognize 
it 
if 
it 
happens. 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
49 
of 
71 


People 
with 
Disabilities: 
Interviews 
• 
Educate 
people 
with 
disabilities 
and 
put 
the 
word 
out 
about 
sexual 
assault. 
• 
Train 
disability 
service 
providers 
to 
ask 
the 
[screening] 
questions 
for 
sexual 
assault. 
• 
Train 
the 
sheriff’s 
office. 
• 
People 
may 
not 
come 
in 
because 
there 
may 
be 
an 
arrest. 
• 
Educate 
disability 
service 
providers 
that 
St. 
David’s 
is 
the 
place 
to 
go 
if 
you’re 
raped. 
• 
Educate 
care 
providers 
that 
it 
may 
take 
time 
for 
people 
to 
acknowledge 
abuse. 
• 
“Know 
that 
we 
didn’t 
ask 
to 
be 
molested.
” 
Targeted 
outreach 
to 
disability 
community 
• 
Go 
to 
different 
agencies 
and 
talk 
to 
peer 
mentors. 
• 
Go 
to 
Alcoholics 
Anonymous 
and 
Narcotics 
Anonymous 
meetings. 
• 
Community 
is 
not 
aware 
that 
SafePlace 
serves 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
People 
with 
disabilities 
may 
not 
be 
comfortable 
disclosing 
to 
disability 
service 
providers. 
• 
Brochures 
and 
materials 
should 
have 
people 
with 
disabilities 
in 
them. 
• 
Community 
does 
not 
know 
where 
SafePlace 
is 
located. 
• 
People 
should 
know 
that 
SafePlace 
covers 
all 
types 
of 
abuse 
(sexual 
assault)
• 
Put 
flyers 
up 
in 
the 
community 
(bingo 
halls, 
doctor’s 
offices, 
service 
providers, 
Wal-Mart, 
etc.)
. 
• 
“Think 
outside 
the 
box 
of 
victim 
service, 
non-profit, 
and 
disability 
services. 
Think 
where 
aren’t 
we. 
There 
are 
people 
with 
disabilities 
who 
are 
experiencing 
abuse 
who 
may 
not 
identify 
as 
having 
disabilities 
or 
be 
connected 
in 
a 
service 
system.
• 
Use 
the 
media. 
• 
Give 
out 
t-shirts 
with 
SafePlace 
logo. 
• 
Work 
with 
ADAPT 
and 
other 
disability 
community 
groups. 
• 
Contact 
Students 
with 
Disabilities 
offices 
at 
local 
colleges 
and 
universities. 
• 
Develop 
different 
brochures 
with 
different 
situations 
for 
people 
with 
cognitive 
disabilities. 
• 
Tell 
the 
community 
that 
SafePlace 
is 
accessible. 
• 
Tell 
the 
community 
the 
bus 
lines 
that 
someone 
can 
use 
to 
get 
to 
SafePlace. 
• 
Tell 
the 
community 
that 
there 
isn’t 
a 
charge 
for 
services. 
• 
Tell 
the 
community 
if 
you 
provide 
attendant 
care 
services 
and 
what 
kind 
of 
services. 
• 
Give 
the 
hotline 
number 
out 
to 
service 
providers, 
including 
MHMR 
East 
2nd 
Clinic. 
• 
Have 
a 
PSA 
specifically 
for 
people 
with 
cognitive 
disabilities. 
• 
Have 
brochures 
that 
talk 
about 
the 
difference 
between 
different 
forms 
of 
abuse. 
• 
Write 
a 
chapter 
in 
the 
DADS 
(Department 
of 
Aging 
and 
Disability 
Services) 
manual 
on 
abuse 
and 
reporting. 
• 
Partner 
with 
service 
providers 
and 
have 
them 
give 
SafePlace 
information 
at 
intake 
universally. 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
50 
of 
71 


People 
with 
Disabilities: 
Interviews 
Targeted 
outreach 
to 
disability 
community 
(continued…
) 
• 
Get 
the 
word 
out 
– 
it 
may 
take 
time 
for 
the 
trust 
issue. 
• 
May 
be 
unsafe 
to 
outreach 
– 
may 
put 
people 
at 
greater 
risk. 
• 
Use 
media 
like 
newspaper, 
television 
etc. 
• 
Distribute 
letters 
community-wide 
that 
SafePlace 
works 
with 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
Have 
a 
condensed 
pamphlet 
that 
says 
“this 
is 
what 
sexual 
assault 
is.
• 
Have 
a 
poster 
with 
someone 
who 
has 
been 
molested, 
raped 
etc. 
• 
Ask 
SafePlace 
clients 
at 
intake 
how 
they 
heard 
about 
SafePlace. 
• 
“[Host] 
open 
house 
and 
tour.
” 
• 
“Share 
stories 
of 
people 
who 
got 
results. 
Would 
help 
to 
know 
how 
it 
can 
turn 
out.
• 
Distribute 
flyers 
to 
o 
Adult 
Protective 
Services 
(facility 
and 
in-home 
workers) 
o 
The 
Arc 
of 
the 
Capital 
Area 
o 
Austin 
Police 
Department 
o 
Austin 
State 
Hospital 
o 
Austin 
State 
School 
o 
Capital 
Metro 
Transit 
o 
Department 
of 
Assistive 
and 
Rehabilitative 
Services 
(DARS) 
o 
Easter 
Seals 
o 
Educare 
o 
Empowerment 
Options 
o 
Family 
Eldercare 
o 
Home 
and 
Community 
Services 
(HCS) 
Group 
Homes 
o 
Kenmar 
Residential 
o 
MacBeth 
Recreation 
Center 
o 
Marbridge 
o 
Mary 
Lee 
Foundation 
o 
Medical 
providers 
o 
Travis 
County 
Sheriffs 
Department 
o 
Rescare 
o 
Volunteers 
of 
America 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
51 
of 
71 


People 
with 
Disabilities: 
Interviews 
Coordination 
of 
services 
• 
Have 
one 
contact 
person 
for 
incoming 
referrals 
to 
SafePlace 
from 
community. 
• 
Have 
a 
back-up 
for 
that 
staff 
person 
in 
case 
they 
aren’t 
available. 
• 
People 
with 
disabilities 
are 
isolated, 
use 
peer 
mentor 
programs 
at 
SafePlace. 
• 
Have 
a 
direct 
line 
to 
a 
peer 
mentor 
on 
the 
hotline. 
• 
Offer 
services 
but 
don’t 
force 
them 
on 
someone, 
ask 
for 
the 
individual’s 
feedback. 
• 
Survivors 
may 
have 
to 
tell 
their 
stories 
to 
3-
4 
different 
people. 
• 
Referrals 
to 
service 
providers 
should 
be 
current 
and 
active 
numbers/organizations. 
• 
… 
“
A 
lot 
of 
people 
will 
shy 
away 
from 
calling 
themselves, 
but 
if 
their 
case 
manager 
gets 
the 
ball 
rolling 
they 
feel 
more 
comfortable.
” 
• 
SafePlace 
staff 
should 
follow-up 
with 
survivors. 
• 
It’s 
important 
to 
hold 
confidentiality. 
• 
Develop 
more 
of 
a 
partnership 
with 
APS. 
• 
Offer 
support 
groups. 
• 
Need 
to 
coordinate 
services 
with 
Easter 
Seals. 
• 
Need 
to 
coordinate 
with 
therapists 
in 
the 
area. 
• 
Need 
to 
partner 
with 
community 
organizations 
like 
the 
Chamber 
of 
Commerce. 
• 
Parents 
might 
have 
guardianship 
[which 
may 
compromise 
a 
person 
from 
accessing 
services]. 
• 
Staff 
may 
need 
to 
communicate 
in 
alternative 
ways 
such 
as 
email 
or 
text. 
• 
Communicate 
with 
clients 
that 
disclose 
sexual 
abuse 
that 
you 
have 
to 
report 
to 
Adult 
Protective 
Services. 
• 
MHMR 
needs 
the 
SafePlace 
crisis 
number. 
• 
“Encourage 
therapy 
and 
support 
groups, 
but 
keep 
in 
mind 
not 
everyone 
else 
is 
pro-therapy. 
Provide 
other 
options, 
like 
journaling, 
art, 
exercise.
” 
• 
“Include 
in 
the 
opening 
statement 
that 
we’re 
here 
to 
help. 
Let 
me 
help 
you 
get 
into 
the 
direction 
where 
you 
want 
to 
be.
” 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
52 
of 
71 


People 
with 
Disabilities: 
Focus 
Groups 
Gaps, 
Barriers 
or 
Needs 
According 
to 
Participant 
Group 
Possible 
social, 
emotional 
and 
safety 
consequences 
for 
reaching 
out 
for 
help 
when 
abused 
• 
Won’t 
be 
believed 
• 
Fear 
• 
Will 
lose 
caregiver 
services 
• 
Lose 
independence 
/ 
risk 
institutionalization 
• 
Lose 
financial 
resources 
• 
Social 
isolation 
• 
Retaliation 
• 
Shame, 
embarrassment 
• 
Poor 
self-esteem 
– 
“Some 
of 
us 
are 
so 
insecure 
that 
we 
feel 
we 
might 
deserve 
all 
of 
this.
• 
No 
support 
from 
others 
• 
May 
have 
confidentiality 
broken 
• 
May 
be 
identified 
as 
a 
“victim” 
• 
“Not 
everyone 
feels 
comfortable 
at 
SafePlace” 
• 
Blame 
• 
Don’t 
believe 
that 
things 
can 
be 
different 
• 
May 
not 
realize 
that 
something 
is 
abuse 
• 
“People 
will 
say 
that 
it’s 
only 
a 
delusion 
and 
that 
it’s 
not 
real” 
• 
“Many 
responders 
may 
believe 
that 
if 
(have 
a 
disability)
, 
you 
have 
no 
mental 
capacity. 
Abuser 
is 
there 
to 
say 
“they 
don’t 
know 
what 
they’re 
talking 
about.
• 
“There 
is 
a 
lot 
of 
finger 
pointing 
at 
the 
victim.
” 
• 
“They 
need 
a 
place 
to 
live 
otherwise 
they’d 
end 
up 
on 
the 
streets. 
Talk 
to 
wrong 
person 
by 
accident 
and 
then 
the 
perpetrator 
may 
find 
out.
” 
• 
“If 
you 
are 
reporting 
someone 
you 
need 
for 
survival; 
(fear 
that) 
I 
won’t 
survive 
anymore.
• 
“Don’t 
want 
to 
get 
a 
bad 
reputation 
from 
attendants.
” 
• 
“It’s 
a 
matter 
of 
how 
much 
you 
can 
put 
up 
with.
” 
• 
“Maybe 
the 
person 
[abuser] 
is 
at 
least 
paying 
attention 
to 
me 
and 
want 
that.
Transportation 
• 
Accessible 
transportation 
is 
needed 
overnight 
for 
people 
trying 
to 
get 
into 
SafePlace 
services. 
• 
Getting 
adaptive 
equipment 
to 
SafePlace 
is 
the 
main 
concern. 
• 
“If 
I 
need 
my 
equipment, 
I 
don’t 
want 
to 
wait 
15-24 
hours.
” 
• 
Southeast 
Austin, 
where 
SafePlace 
is 
located, 
isn’t 
accessible 
– 
another 
meeting 
place 
may 
be 
needed. 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
53 
of 
71 


People 
with 
Disabilities: 
Focus 
Groups 
Transportation 
(continued…
) 
• 
Call 
Blair 
Spikes 
and 
he 
can 
work 
with 
the 
police 
to 
get 
an 
accessible 
bus. 
• 
There 
are 
only 
3-
4 
accessible 
cabs 
in 
Austin. 
Legal 
Advocacy 
– 
gaps 
and 
needs 
• 
“Staff 
in 
group 
homes 
has 
been 
touching 
people 
with 
disabilities 
and 
that’s 
wrong.
Accessibility 
barriers 
• 
People 
with 
disabilities 
don’t 
always 
have 
access 
to 
a 
telephone 
to 
call 
for 
help. 
• 
Lack 
of 
roll-in 
showers 
• 
Wider 
doors 
(36” 
and 
42”
) 
• 
Need 
help 
emptying 
leg 
bags 
• 
SafePlace 
staff 
needs 
training 
on 
disability 
etiquette 
and 
general 
disability 
information. 
• 
Staff 
attitudes 
toward 
people 
with 
disabilities 
are 
important. 
• 
“Attention 
to 
physical 
barriers 
like 
boxes.
” 
• 
“Patience 
with 
speech 
differences.
” 
• 
“Not 
presume 
what 
needs 
are: 
I 
use 
a 
wheelchair 
but 
can 
use 
a 
bathtub 
but 
staff 
needs 
to 
ask 
and 
not 
presume.
” 
• 
“Respect: 
make 
sure 
that 
staff 
don’t 
talk 
down 
to 
people 
with 
disabilities.
• 
“Not 
look 
at 
the 
disability 
as 
the 
cause 
– 
mirror 
back 
to 
person 
that 
you 
know 
that 
the 
disability 
is 
not 
the 
reason 
for 
the 
abuse.
” 
Gaps 
in 
and 
needs 
for 
education 
and 
training 
Gaps 
in 
and 
needs 
for 
education 
and 
• 
Teach 
people 
with 
disabilities 
they 
can 
be 
independent. 
• 
Teach 
people 
with 
disabilities 
that 
it’s 
ok 
to 
ask 
for 
help. 
• 
Care 
providers 
need 
to 
know 
what 
abuse 
is, 
the 
forms 
it 
can 
take. 
• 
Victim 
services 
staff 
needs 
to 
know 
how 
to 
support 
people 
who 
talk 
with 
supportive 
devices. 
• 
Disability 
service 
providers 
need 
to 
do 
a 
better 
job 
of 
screening 
their 
new 
employees. 
• 
Train 
disability 
service 
staff 
on 
boundaries. 
• 
Staff 
should 
know 
the 
long 
term 
effects 
of 
rape. 
• 
Allow 
the 
time 
needed 
to 
process 
the 
emotion 
and 
not 
just 
communicate 
[staff 
need 
training 
on 
responding 
to 
disclosure]
. 
• 
Disability 
service 
providers 
[e.g.
, 
case 
managers, 
counselors, 
etc.
should 
screen 
for 
abuse 
by 
separating 
the 
individual 
from 
other 
people. 
• 
SafePlace 
staff 
should 
have 
some 
general 
knowledge 
of 
disability. 
• 
The 
importance 
of 
education 
[for 
people 
for 
disabilities] 
should 
be 
stressed: 
it’s 
important 
to 
know 
1) 
what 
abuse 
is 
2) 
that 
it 
can 
happen 
to 
you 
and 
3) 
how 
to 
ask 
for 
help. 
• 
“I’d 
like 
to 
come 
back 
again 
and 
be 
with 
other 
people 
with 
disabilities 
about 
this 
[talking 
about 
abuse].
” 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
54 
of 
71 


People 
with 
Disabilities: 
Focus 
Groups 
training 
(continued…
) 
• 
“If 
we 
could 
have 
a 
small 
group 
of 
disabled 
people 
get 
together 
about 
abuse 
that 
would 
be 
great.
” 
• 
“I’d 
like 
to 
do 
anything 
that 
would 
help 
SafePlace, 
like 
this 
group.
” 
• 
“Could 
we 
have 
a 
weekly 
ongoing 
group 
about 
this? 
For 
people 
with 
disabilities.
• 
“If 
there’s 
anything 
you 
do 
after 
this, 
could 
I 
be 
a 
part 
of 
it? 
Is 
there 
anything 
could 
do?
• 
“[Knowledge 
of 
trauma] 
If 
you’ve 
been 
raped, 
that 
that 
type 
of 
stuff 
carries 
throughout 
your 
whole 
life 
and 
this 
might 
lead 
to 
a 
mental 
illness.
” 
• 
“If 
disabled 
from 
birth 
– 
they 
may 
not 
know 
they’ve 
been 
sexually 
abused.
• 
[Service 
providers 
should 
have] 
sensitivity 
to 
the 
possibility 
that 
there 
could 
be 
abuse 
and 
to 
recognize 
the 
signs 
that 
abuse 
is 
happening. 
The 
person 
might 
not 
identify 
certain 
things 
as 
abuse 
– 
especially 
if 
that’s 
what 
they 
have 
grown 
up 
with.
” 
• 
“
I 
wouldn’t 
want 
them 
to 
call 
[APS] 
without 
letting 
me 
know.
” 
• 
[teach 
people 
with 
disabilities] 
“You 
don’t 
deserve 
any 
abuse. 
It’s 
not 
your 
fault.
• 
“Give 
people 
language. 
If 
this 
is 
a 
group 
about 
empowerment 
– 
I’m 
gonna 
give 
you 
some 
ways 
to 
take 
action. 
You 
are 
something 
special 
and 
you 
can 
deal 
with 
this.
• 
“It’s 
awful 
and 
embarrassing. 
I 
didn’t 
know 
what 
to 
say 
as 
a 
friend 
and 
person.
• 
“Probably 
what 
brought 
them 
here 
is 
probably 
a 
lot 
of 
other 
stuff 
like 
abuse 
in 
the 
past 
and 
more 
than 
that 
– 
the 
person 
probably 
already 
felt 
like 
they 
were 
victimized 
from 
past 
experiences.
” 
Targeted 
outreach 
to 
disability 
community 
• 
SafePlace 
could 
have 
a 
booth 
at 
disability 
service 
provider 
events 
and 
go 
to 
job 
fairs. 
• 
Tell 
the 
community 
specifically 
about 
the 
Disability 
Services 
program. 
• 
Get 
the 
word 
out 
that 
rape, 
sexual 
abuse 
really 
does 
happen. 
• 
Have 
survivors 
speak 
out 
about 
sexual 
assault 
in 
the 
disability 
community. 
• 
Educate 
the 
public 
about 
people 
with 
disabilities, 
abuse. 
Medical 
and 
disability 
service 
providers: 
• 
Get 
information 
about 
services 
to 
Home 
Health 
Agencies, 
visiting 
nurse 
agencies 
and 
other 
attendant 
care 
providers. 
• 
Work 
with 
DME 
providers 
and 
have 
SafePlace 
hotline 
listed 
on 
the 
emergency 
number 
sticker 
on 
the 
equipment. 
• 
Doctors 
and 
therapists 
need 
to 
know 
that 
SafePlace 
works 
with 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
Get 
the 
information 
out 
to 
stores 
– 
the 
general 
community. 
• 
Service 
provider 
staff 
needs 
to 
be 
reassured 
that 
SafePlace 
will 
be 
welcoming 
place. 
• 
“People 
in 
public 
need 
to 
be 
educated. 
They 
have 
made 
comments 
about 
how 
we 
(should) 
be 
in 
institutions.
” 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
55 
of 
71 


People 
with 
Disabilities: 
Focus 
Groups 
Targeted 
outreach 
to 
disability 
Media 
and 
materials: 
community 
(continued…
) 
• 
Have 
TV 
stations 
donate 
air 
time 
to 
get 
the 
word 
out. 
• 
SafePlace 
could 
use 
a 
linkd-in 
account. 
• 
Have 
people 
with 
disabilities 
in 
ads. 
• 
SafePlace 
could 
advertise 
in 
newsletters 
/ 
New 
Mobility, 
etc. 
• 
Make 
a 
commercial 
– 
sexual 
assault 
in 
the 
disability 
community. 
• 
Include 
the 
international 
sign 
of 
disability 
on 
your 
website. 
• 
Have 
a 
little 
wallet 
card 
with 
SafePlace’s 
information 
on 
it. 
Email 
lists 
• 
SafePlace 
could 
send 
emails 
out 
through 
community 
email 
lists. 
• 
ADAPT 
e-mail 
list 
• 
Outreach 
groups: 
• 
Different 
cultural 
groups 
(different 
groups 
identify 
abuse 
differently) 
12 
step 
groups 
• 
Churches 
• 
Elderly 
people 
with 
disabilities 
• 
Gay 
and 
lesbian 
community 
• 
Students 
with 
disabilities 
offices 
at 
ACC, 
UT 
and 
St. 
Edwards 
• 
Consumer 
groups 
Coordination 
of 
services 
• 
Have 
one 
contact 
person 
at 
SafePlace 
for 
referrals 
from 
other 
agencies. 
• 
Have 
a 
weekly, 
ongoing 
support 
group 
for 
survivors 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
Service 
providers 
should 
have 
a 
place 
where 
the 
client 
can 
identify 
preferences 
for 
attendants 
and 
types 
of 
care. 
• 
SafePlace 
staff 
should 
communicate 
with 
disability 
service 
providers 
when 
clients 
with 
disabilities 
are 
not 
“appropriate” 
for 
group 
– 
to 
ensure 
they 
are 
still 
engaged 
in 
services. 
• 
Work 
with 
Travis 
Medical, 
they 
are 
responsive. 
• 
Have 
a 
resource 
person 
with 
one 
of 
the 
attendant 
care 
agencies. 
• 
SafePlace 
should 
provide 
a 
helper 
in 
shelter, 
and 
in 
community. 
• 
“Wait 
to 
get 
at 
what 
the 
person 
is 
saying. 
It’s 
hard 
to 
disclose.
” 
• 
[attendant 
abuse] 
“I’ve 
experienced 
more 
abuse 
for 
attendants 
than 
anyone 
else.
• 
[attendant 
abuse] 
“When 
you 
have 
someone 
else 
take 
care 
of 
you 
all 
kinds 
of 
things 
happen. 
It’s 
scary 
you 
don’t 
know 
who 
is 
going 
to 
come 
into 
your 
house.
• 
“
I 
want 
to 
hear 
about 
what 
other 
people 
have 
been 
through.
” 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
56 
of 
71 


SafePlace 
Direct 
Services 
Staff 
Gaps, 
Barriers 
or 
Needs 
According 
to 
Participant 
Group 
Possible 
social, 
emotional 
and 
safety 
• 
Stigma 
in 
society 
– 
“The 
stigma 
and 
myths 
associated 
with 
people 
in 
group 
homes 
keep 
consequences 
for 
reaching 
out 
for 
people 
from 
being 
able 
to 
pursue 
the 
services.
” 
help 
when 
abused 
• 
No 
access 
to 
financial 
resources, 
payee 
• 
Isolation 
Transportation 
• 
Transportation 
is 
a 
barrier. 
• 
“
A 
number 
of 
people 
who 
need 
the 
counseling 
at 
Austin 
State 
School 
but 
they 
can’t 
get 
them 
here, 
or 
they 
won’t.
” 
Legal 
advocacy 
– 
gaps 
and 
needs 
• 
A 
lot 
of 
the 
burden 
to 
pursue 
services 
lies 
with 
the 
survivor. 
• 
“Can 
AI 
attorneys 
help 
with 
people 
who 
apply 
for 
SSDI? 
To 
change 
payee?
• 
[Can 
AI 
help 
with] 
housing 
discrimination 
against 
individuals 
with 
disabilities? 
• 
[Can 
AI 
help 
with] 
custody 
– 
Child 
Protective 
Services 
involvement 
with 
parents 
who 
have 
disabilities? 
• 
[Can 
AI 
help 
with] 
CPS 
mandated 
plans 
requiring 
survivor 
with 
mental 
health 
disability 
to 
take 
medication? 
• 
Sexual 
Assault 
as 
a 
form 
of 
family 
violence 
in 
group 
homes 
is 
a 
nexus 
for 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
• 
AI 
could 
help 
with 
parents 
who 
have 
cognitive 
disabilities 
who 
are 
completing 
mandated 
CPS 
plan. 
• 
AI 
attorneys 
need 
extensive 
training 
on 
survivor 
issues. 
• 
[Can 
AI 
help 
with] 
“Getting 
fired, 
losing 
SSDI?
” 
• 
Need 
one 
page 
document 
that 
talks 
about 
what 
AI 
does/doesn’t 
do. 
• 
Need 
help 
for 
people 
who 
have 
severe 
disabilities. 
• 
“Agreement 
that 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
would 
be 
called 
if 
someone 
showed 
up 
at 
the 
hospital.
• 
[Can 
AI 
help 
with] 
“Texas 
Rural 
Legal 
Aid 
(TRLA)
: 
Family 
law 
cases 
of 
people 
who 
have 
bipolar 
disorder 
or 
who 
have 
schizophrenia 
because 
they 
are 
too 
intense, 
beyond 
the 
worker’s 
ability 
to 
cope.
” 
Accessibility 
barriers 
• 
“The 
walk-in 
group 
orientations 
have 
not 
gone 
well 
for 
people 
with 
disabilities 
(specifically 
people 
with 
cognitive 
disabilities).
” 
• 
Walk-in 
group 
orientations 
stigmatize 
survivors 
with 
cognitive 
disabilities. 
• 
Paperwork 
(intake) 
is 
not 
accessible 
to 
individuals 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
“My 
client 
who 
uses 
a 
wheelchair 
got 
caught 
in 
the 
glass 
door 
in 
reception 
area.



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
57 
of 
71 


SafePlace 
Direct 
Services 
Staff 
Accessibility 
barriers 
(continued…
) 
• 
Bathroom 
door 
is 
inaccessible 
for 
person 
attempting 
to 
open 
the 
door 
(reception 
area 
bathroom)
. 
• 
Parenting 
classes 
are 
not 
accessible 
for 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
SafePlace 
support 
groups 
are 
not 
accessible 
for 
people 
who 
use 
communication 
devices. 
• 
Counseling 
offices 
are 
upstairs 
at 
the 
shelter. 
• 
The 
walk-in 
gate 
[to 
shelter] 
doesn’t 
have 
a 
ramp. 
• 
The 
walk-in 
gate 
system 
is 
difficult 
to 
use 
/ 
understand. 
• 
Not 
having 
enough 
personnel 
is 
a 
barrier. 
• 
Group 
home 
residents 
can 
be 
put 
onto 
the 
waiting 
list 
but 
may 
not 
be 
able 
to 
call 
back. 
• 
“Clients 
with 
hidden 
disabilities 
come 
in 
and 
staff 
thinks 
they 
[clients] 
are 
resistant, 
interpret 
it 
as 
defiance, 
not 
disability.
” 
• 
“[Staff 
need 
to] 
support 
people 
with 
disabilities 
in 
expressing 
themselves 
sometimes 
in 
alternative 
ways 
(through 
stories, 
playing 
games, 
having 
a 
less 
typical 
way 
of 
expressing 
themselves).
” 
• 
“[There 
used 
to 
be] 
a 
policy 
of 
doing 
long 
term 
work 
and 
extending 
deadlines 
for 
people 
with 
disabilities.
” 
Gaps 
in 
and 
needs 
for 
education 
and 
training 
• 
Staff 
feel 
overwhelmed 
or 
intimidated 
by 
working 
with 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
Client 
with 
PTSD 
was 
intimidating. 
• 
Disability 
service 
systems 
have 
changed 
and 
staff 
need 
updated 
information 
about 
what 
resources 
are 
available 
(DARS, 
DADS, 
etc.)
. 
• 
SafePlace 
staff 
is 
not 
sensitive 
to 
hidden 
disabilities. 
• 
Information 
on 
what 
Disability 
Services 
program 
at 
SafePlace 
can 
offer 
• 
Information 
on 
Family 
Medical 
Leave 
Act 
(FMLA) 
• 
Need 
to 
know 
resources 
available 
in 
the 
community 
for 
survivors 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
Applying 
the 
ADA 
to 
SafePlace’s 
work 
with 
clients 
• 
Staff 
need 
training 
on 
working 
with 
individuals 
who 
have 
mental 
health 
disabilities 
including 
what 
is 
it, 
what 
does 
it 
look 
like 
and 
how 
does 
it 
affect 
the 
person. 
• 
How 
to 
prioritize 
one 
client’s 
needs 
over 
another 
when 
one 
has 
mental 
illness. 
• 
Our 
staff 
needs 
to 
know 
the 
ways 
that 
disability 
manifests 
itself 
in 
interactions 
with 
staff. 
• 
Group 
home 
staff 
needs 
information 
on 
basic 
dynamics 
of 
violence 
and 
indicators 
of 
abuse. 
• 
Our 
staff 
needs 
general 
familiarity, 
comfort 
and 
sensitivity 
in 
working 
with 
individuals 
who 
have 
disabilities. 
• 
Mental 
illness 
and 
substance 
abuse 
issues 
come 
up 
all 
the 
time. 
• 
“We 
need 
guidance 
on 
identifying 
levels 
of 
disability 
we 
don’t 
serve 
here.



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
58 
of 
71 


SafePlace 
Direct 
Services 
Staff 
Gaps 
in 
and 
needs 
for 
education 
and 
training 
(continued…
) 
• 
“We 
need 
information 
on 
where 
to 
get 
support 
if 
client 
is 
draining 
staff.
• 
“We 
don’t 
know 
how 
much 
information 
to 
give 
other 
residents 
about 
someone 
else’s 
disability.
” 
• 
“Training 
on 
where 
to 
funnel 
a 
client 
whose 
needs 
are 
too 
great 
for 
our 
services” 
• 
Better 
training 
for 
Mental 
Health 
Officers 
at 
domestic 
violence 
scene 
• 
Training 
for 
SafePlace 
staff 
on 
working 
with 
children 
with 
disabilities 
• 
Overview 
of 
accessibility 
issues 
for 
SafePlace 
staff 
for 
visually 
impaired, 
Deaf 
etc. 
• 
SafePlace 
staff 
would 
like 
training 
on 
how 
Austin 
Police 
Department 
makes 
decisions 
about 
the 
outcomes 
(jail, 
state 
hospital, 
etc.
) 
of 
a 
domestic 
violence 
call 
when 
the 
survivor 
has 
disability 
(especially 
mental 
illness)
. 
• 
Train 
Sexual 
Assault 
advocates 
on 
responding 
to 
survivors 
with 
mental 
illness. 
• 
Have 
internal 
classes 
for 
people 
with 
disabilities 
on 
empowerment 
and 
healthy 
relationships. 
• 
Incorporate 
Disability 
Services 
trainings 
into 
agency 
wide 
advocate 
meetings 
(last 
Friday 
of 
every 
month)
. 
• 
“There 
is 
a 
lot 
more 
sensitivity 
training 
as 
an 
entire 
shelter 
staff 
that 
we 
could 
do.
Targeted 
outreach 
to 
disability 
community 
• 
People 
who 
live 
in 
group 
homes 
are 
assaulted 
and 
underserved 
by 
SafePlace. 
• 
People 
with 
profound 
disabilities 
requesting 
services 
are 
low. 
Places 
for 
outreach: 
o 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
o 
AIDS 
Services 
of 
Austin 
o 
Any 
Baby 
Can 
o 
APS 
(Adult 
Protective 
Services) 
o 
ARCIL 
(Austin 
Resource 
Center 
for 
Independent 
Living) 
o 
David 
Powell 
Clinic 
o 
Easter 
Seals 
o 
Family 
Eldercare 
o 
OSAR 
(Outreach, 
Screening, 
Assessment 
and 
Referral) 
– 
Bluebonnet 
Trails 
MHMR 
o 
PES 
(Psychiatric 
Emergency 
Services) 
o 
Social 
Security 
Offices 
Coordination 
of 
services 
• 
“Have 
someone 
on 
staff 
that 
you 
could 
go 
to 
and 
say 
I 
have 
a 
client 
with 
these 
issues, 
can 
you 
give 
me 
suggestions 
and/or 
background 
on 
this 
disability, 
etc. 
When 
we 
need 
info, 
need 
someone 
NOW 
who 
can 
help 
us.
” 
• 
[St. 
David’s 
hospital 
should 
be 
held 
accountable 
for 
calling 
a 
social 
worker 
as 
support 
for 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
59 
of 
71 


SafePlace 
Direct 
Services 
Staff 
Coordination 
of 
services 
(continued…
) 
sexual 
assault 
survivor 
with 
mental 
health 
needs, 
rather 
than 
expecting 
the 
sexual 
assault 
accompaniment 
staff 
or 
volunteer 
to 
provide 
mental 
health 
services.
• 
Interfacing 
with 
other 
agencies 
(e.g. 
Austin 
State 
School) 
is 
difficult. 
• 
CPS 
does 
not 
make 
accessibility 
accommodations 
/ 
modifications 
for 
clients 
with 
communication 
devices 
[don’t 
know 
if 
this 
is 
an 
isolated 
case 
or 
practice]
• 
Have 
a 
SafePlace 
specific 
MHMR 
liaison. 
• 
There 
isn’t 
a 
question 
on 
the 
project 
options 
registration 
form 
re 
disability. 
• 
Need 
to 
know 
how 
to 
access 
emergency 
and 
routine 
mental 
health 
services 
for 
clients 
• 
Difficult 
to 
find 
therapists 
for 
survivors 
who 
accept 
Medicaid, 
Medicare. 
• 
External 
referrals 
to 
other 
agencies 
have 
long 
waiting 
lists. 
• 
SafePlace 
needs 
an 
on-site 
or 
on-staff 
psychiatrist. 
• 
More 
opportunities 
for 
face-to-face 
contact, 
introductions 
with 
other 
service 
providers 
• 
Need 
contact 
person 
at 
other 
agencies 
to 
streamline 
referrals 
to 
those 
agencies. 
• 
We 
need 
an 
actual 
person 
for 
technical 
assistance 
at 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
• 
Internal 
services 
(within 
SafePlace) 
are 
not 
known 
by 
staff 
who 
works 
with 
survivors 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
Need 
Mental 
Health 
Officers 
to 
come 
to 
SafePlace 
and 
provide 
training 
about 
their 
protocol 
and 
criteria 
for 
making 
an 
emergency 
in-patient 
commitment 
for 
psychiatric 
services. 
• 
Need 
a 
cheat 
sheet 
on 
SafePlace’s 
server 
with 
disability 
service 
providers, 
their 
mission 
and 
services, 
and 
how 
to 
refer. 
• 
Partner 
with 
Austin 
Police 
Department 
to 
have 
“critical 
conversations” 
with 
detectives. 
• 
Have 
a 
resource 
guide 
on 
the 
(internal) 
server. 
• 
“Shelter 
isn’t 
referring 
clients 
with 
disabilities 
for 
transitional 
housing 
who 
are 
needing 
more 
support 
and 
could 
be 
successful 
at 
SHP 
[Supportive 
Housing 
Program].



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
60 
of 
71 


Advocacy, 
Inc. 
Staff 
Gaps, 
Needs 
and 
Barriers 
According 
to 
Participant 
Group 
Possible 
social, 
emotional 
and 
safety 
consequences 
for 
reaching 
out 
for 
help 
when 
abused 
• 
Lose 
financial 
stability 
• 
There 
are 
limited 
services 
available 
and 
then 
less 
will 
be 
provided 
if 
someone 
speaks 
out 
about 
abuse 
– 
“In 
MHMR 
system, 
bringing 
up 
issues 
of 
abuse 
would 
mean 
that 
the 
consumer 
would 
be 
jeopardizing 
the 
other 
services/counseling 
that 
they 
need.
• 
Relocation 
may 
be 
necessary 
• 
Restraint 
used 
• 
There 
may 
be 
media 
accounts 
of 
the 
experience 
• 
Investigation 
• 
May 
need 
protective 
order 
• 
Institutionalization 
• 
“If 
[the 
person] 
is 
in 
facility 
or 
institution 
for 
a 
long 
time… 
no 
hope 
and 
increased 
danger.
• 
Violence 
escalates 
when 
there’s 
an 
investigation. 
Transportation 
• 
Partnering 
with 
Medicaid 
(and 
Greyhound 
bus 
system 
program) 
may 
provide 
relationship 
needed 
to 
increase 
access 
to 
accessible 
transportation. 
Legal 
advocacy 
– 
gaps 
and 
needs 
• 
Only 
assisted 
with 
one 
protective 
order 
since 
priority 
area 
was 
changed 
to 
include 
domestic 
violence 
cases. 
Accessibility 
barriers 
• 
AI 
and 
SafePlace 
could 
partner 
to 
develop 
policies/procedures 
for 
programs 
to 
support 
people 
in 
institutions 
who 
may 
not 
have 
access 
to 
email/phone 
and 
yet 
need 
to 
pursue 
services. 
• 
SafePlace 
and 
AI 
could 
address 
the 
needs 
of 
people 
to 
have 
caregiver 
services 
in 
shelter. 
• 
SafePlace 
needs 
to 
be 
accessible 
to 
men 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
“SafePlace 
response 
needs 
to 
be 
good 
if 
someone 
with 
a 
disability 
calls 
and 
requests 
services.
” 
• 
“Lack 
of 
returned 
calls 
from 
SafePlace 
to 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
clients 
and 
AI 
staff. 
never 
heard 
back 
from 
anyone 
I 
tried 
to 
call 
(at 
SafePlace)
. 
She 
got 
lost 
in 
the 
system.
Gaps 
in 
and 
needs 
for 
education 
and 
• 
Physical 
violence 
is 
more 
readily 
identified 
compared 
to 
sexual 
assault 
“More 
DV 
than 
training 
sexual 
abuse. 
SA 
still 
happens, 
just 
more 
barriers 
to 
disclosure 
and 
also 
because 
physical 
Gaps 
in 
and 
needs 
for 
education 
and 
and 
other 
forms 
of 
violence 
are 
more 
evident.
” 
training 
(continued…
) 
• 
Staff 
with 
allegations 
made 
against 
them 
(in 
institutions) 
are 
put 
on 
paid 
leave 
during 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
61 
of 
71 


Advocacy, 
Inc. 
Staff 
investigation. 
• 
Sometimes 
consensual 
sexual 
activity 
between 
clients 
is 
seen 
as 
abuse. 
• 
Sometimes 
people 
with 
developmental 
disabilities 
are 
prosecuted 
as 
offenders 
when 
it’s 
their 
responses 
to 
sexual 
abuse 
that 
causes 
the 
acting 
out 
behaviors. 
• 
AI 
staff 
should 
focus 
on 
validating 
the 
individual 
whether 
APS 
determines 
[
case 
is] 
founded 
or 
not. 
• 
AI 
staff 
needs 
to 
know 
what 
resources 
are 
available 
if 
the 
case 
is 
unfounded. 
• 
Need 
to 
know 
how 
to 
give 
emotional 
validation 
to 
survivors. 
• 
Need 
to 
know 
how 
to 
refer 
clients 
with 
domestic 
/ 
sexual 
violence 
issues 
to 
healing 
resources 
such 
as 
local 
Domestic 
Violence 
program 
• 
Need 
to 
know 
what 
SafePlace 
can 
do, 
has 
done. 
• 
Information 
on 
what 
the 
important 
parts 
of 
assessments 
are 
(not 
so 
AI 
can 
do 
them 
but 
so 
they 
can 
ensure 
clients 
get 
what 
they 
need) 
• 
Previous 
training 
offered 
to 
AI 
staff 
by 
SafePlace 
staff 
was 
helpful. 
• 
Intake 
and 
managers 
need 
more 
information 
on 
domestic 
violence 
and 
sexual 
assault. 
• 
First 
responders 
need 
to 
be 
educated 
on 
domestic 
violence. 
• 
Intake 
workers 
need 
information 
about 
how 
and 
when 
to 
ask 
about 
abuse. 
• 
“AI 
staff 
needs 
to 
know 
what 
to 
do 
if 
a 
person 
makes 
an 
allegation 
against 
them 
(AI 
staff)
How 
should 
staff 
respond 
to 
the 
person? 
How 
can 
staff 
deal 
with 
the 
personal 
impact 
of 
having 
an 
allegation 
made? 
These 
allegations 
happen 
because 
someone 
has 
been 
abused 
in 
the 
past 
by 
care 
providers 
but 
not 
by 
AI 
staff 
but 
it 
gets 
carried 
over.
• 
AI 
needs 
to 
make 
the 
SafePlace 
fact 
sheets 
available 
on 
the 
AI 
intranet. 
• 
“SafePlace 
could 
educate 
AI 
staff 
on 
what 
to 
do 
if 
people 
call 
for 
help.
• 
“In 
an 
institutional 
setting, 
people 
who 
make 
allegations 
that 
result 
in 
unfounded 
[cases] 
are 
punished 
with 
restricted 
access 
to 
the 
telephone 
because 
the 
person 
is 
seen 
as 
threatening 
or 
as 
a 
problem 
to 
staff.
” 
• 
“MHMR 
staff 
not 
adequately 
trained 
to 
identify 
or 
document 
or 
adequately 
treat 
people 
who 
have 
been 
hospitalized 
and 
have 
a 
trauma 
history.
” 
Targeted 
outreach 
to 
disability 
community 
Targeted 
outreach 
to 
the 
disability 
community 
(continued…
) 
• 
Expand 
use 
of 
posters. 
• 
AI 
caseworkers 
could 
have 
a 
card 
and 
distribute 
in 
the 
field. 
• 
Make 
education 
about 
abuse 
part 
of 
the 
(30-45 
day) 
transition 
plan 
when 
clients 
leave 
institutions. 
• 
AI 
could 
follow-up 
after 
transition, 
screen 
for 
abuse 
[and 
refer]
. 
• 
Intake 
workers 
could 
screen 
for 
abuse. 
• 
SafePlace 
and 
AI 
could 
work 
with 
the 
Centers 
for 
Independent 
Living 
to 
get 
the 
word 
out 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
62 
of 
71 


Advocacy, 
Inc. 
Staff 
about 
abuse. 
• 
Outreach 
through 
local 
Social 
Security 
and 
Medicaid 
offices. 
Coordination 
of 
services 
Coordination 
of 
services 
(continued…
) 
• 
“We 
only 
have 
contact 
once 
and 
you 
don’t 
have 
much 
time 
to 
establish 
rapport.
• 
There 
is 
no 
formal 
policy 
in 
place 
(other 
than 
mandatory 
reporting 
and 
reporting 
to 
managers) 
to 
report 
and 
respond 
to 
abuse. 
• 
In 
state 
school 
system, 
AI 
staff 
might 
need 
to 
provide 
direct 
intervention. 
• 
“Restraint 
often 
acts 
as 
a 
cloak 
for 
caregivers 
to 
abuse 
a 
consumer.
• 
Sometimes 
AI 
develops 
a 
safety 
plan 
but 
not 
a 
lot 
of 
outside 
resources 
will 
help. 
• 
Reach 
out 
to 
institutional 
treatment 
teams 
and 
ensure 
trauma-informed 
care 
is 
provided. 
• 
Need 
help 
to 
institute 
a 
seclusion 
and 
restraint 
policy. 
• 
AI 
staff 
doesn’t 
have 
a 
lot 
of 
feedback 
about 
referrals 
of 
clients 
to 
DV 
programs. 
• 
SafePlace 
needs 
to 
work 
with 
AI 
to 
do 
assessments 
of 
people 
with 
disabilities 
including 
their 
trauma 
history. 
• 
AI 
and 
SafePlace 
could 
partner 
on 
the 
Developmental 
Disabilities 
Council 
initiative 
on 
healthy 
relationships. 
• 
AI 
and 
SafePlace 
could 
begin 
to 
institute 
education 
about 
healthy 
relationships 
during 
deinstitutionalization. 
• 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
could 
develop 
a 
data 
system 
to 
review 
trends 
and 
patterns 
of 
allegations 
of 
abuse 
(DV/SA)
. 
• 
SafePlace 
and 
AI 
can 
promote 
independence 
training 
by 
talking 
with 
disability 
services 
staff 
about 
how 
to 
identify 
abuse, 
how 
to 
report. 
• 
SafePlace, 
AI 
and 
Adult 
Protective 
Services 
can 
work 
with 
APS 
investigators 
so 
that 
stronger 
cases 
are 
made 
when 
abuse 
is 
perpetrated 
against 
individuals 
with 
cognitive 
disabilities. 
• 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
could 
have 
an 
agreement 
for 
a 
supervised 
referral 
process 
after 
intake 
workers 
screen 
callers 
– 
with 
one 
contact 
person 
(in 
order 
to 
streamline 
the 
referral 
process)
. 
Could 
include: 
o 
“3-way 
call” 
o 
“Releases 
to 
share 
information” 
o 
“Screening 
question 
for 
abuse 
[to 
use] 
with 
callers” 
o 
“Provide 
information 
back 
and 
forth 
about 
services. 
(For 
instance, 
AI 
staff 
needs 
to 
know 
about 
attendant 
care, 
length 
of 
shelter 
stay, 
etc.)
” 
• 
ICF/MR 
allegations 
are 
processed 
differently 
than 
other 
allegations.
• 
Referring 
cases 
to 
APS 
has 
not 
been 
helpful. 
• 
No 
support 
in 
place 
for 
AI 
staff 
to 
explore 
the 
legal/ethical 
obligations 
of 
reporting 
abuse 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
63 
of 
71 


Advocacy, 
Inc. 
Staff 
• 
Need 
to 
work 
with 
SafePlace 
to 
intervene 
when 
the 
treatment 
milieu 
has 
been 
jeopardized 
• 
Need 
to 
work 
with 
SafePlace 
to 
more 
effectively 
work 
with 
MHMR 
• 
AI 
staff 
could 
have 
more 
detailed 
conversations 
to 
support 
and 
increase 
the 
work 
that 
is 
done. 
• 
Develop 
a 
formalized 
safety 
plan 
to 
be 
used 
during 
transition 
planning 
when 
working 
with 
an 
individuals 
moving 
out 
of 
an 
institution. 
• 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
could 
partner 
with 
APS 
to 
provide 
training 
on 
how 
to 
interview 
individuals 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
Train 
AI 
staff 
on 
the 
education 
and 
housing 
needs 
that 
SafePlace 
can 
provide. 
• 
Have 
a 
community 
integration 
project 
available 
for 
SafePlace 
[rather 
than 
traditional 
intake 
process]
. 
• 
“[AI} 
is 
well 
known 
for 
the 
rights 
issues, 
but 
people 
don’t 
come 
to 
us 
for 
abuse; 
don’t 
see 
us 
as 
someone 
who 
could 
be 
helpful 
in 
that 
way.
” 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
64 
of 
71 


Disability 
Service 
Providers 
Gaps, 
Barriers 
or 
Needs 
According 
to 
Participant 
Group 
Possible 
social, 
emotional 
and 
safety 
consequences 
for 
reaching 
out 
for 
help 
when 
abused 
• 
Lose 
services 
• 
Not 
be 
believed 
– 
“If 
you 
have 
paranoia, 
used 
to 
not 
being 
believed 
because 
of 
your 
history 
of 
delusions.
” 
• 
Guilt 
• 
Low 
self-esteem 
• 
Bad 
experience 
attempting 
to 
call 
SafePlace 
for 
help 
• 
Disruption 
in 
level 
of 
care 
if 
abuser 
is 
caregiver 
• 
Reprisal 
• 
Lose 
one 
of 
few 
relationships 
• 
Won’t 
have 
the 
same 
voracity 
• 
Shame 
• 
Stigmatization 
• 
May 
not 
know 
who 
they 
can 
transition 
to 
• 
Lack 
of 
control 
over 
their 
lives 
• 
Abuser 
may 
control 
medication, 
access 
to 
food, 
access 
to 
toileting 
and 
personal 
hygiene 
• 
Retaliation 
• 
No 
network 
to 
get 
emergency 
support 
• 
Person 
can’t 
verbally 
disclose 
the 
abuse 
• 
May 
not 
consider 
SafePlace 
a 
resource 
• 
The 
power 
differential 
[stronger 
level 
of 
dependency] 
may 
prevent 
disclosure 
• 
No 
confirmation 
from 
society 
about 
the 
person’s 
value 
• 
Even 
if 
it’s 
abuse 
– 
there’s 
a 
level 
of 
comfort 
• 
May 
not 
believe 
that 
they 
deserve 
a 
healthy 
relationship 
• 
May 
have 
limited 
mobility 
• 
Person 
may 
not 
see 
that 
they 
have 
a 
right 
to 
ask 
for 
help 
• 
“If 
you’re 
living 
with 
the 
abuser 
and 
you 
report, 
you’ll 
be 
on 
the 
street.
• 
“If 
I 
fire 
my 
attendant, 
who 
will 
help 
me 
get 
to 
bed?
” 
[according 
to 
service 
provider 
with 
disability] 
• 
“To 
report 
that 
would 
jeopardize 
what 
little 
social 
interaction 
you 
do 
have.
• 
“Social 
isolation 
and 
lack 
of 
human 
contact 
is 
pervasive.
” 
Transportation 
• 
None 
detailed 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
65 
of 
71 


Disability 
Service 
Providers 
Legal 
advocacy 
– 
gaps 
and 
needs 
• 
None 
detailed 
Accessibility 
barriers 
• 
SafePlace 
workers 
[hotline] 
could 
use 
a 
script 
when 
denying 
services 
so 
the 
same 
answer 
is 
given 
in 
a 
way 
that 
allows 
a 
person 
to 
understand 
what 
is 
happening. 
“One 
client’s 
reaction 
was, 
See, 
I 
told 
you 
they 
can’t 
help 
me.
” 
• 
Some 
people 
with 
disabilities 
don’t 
have 
access 
to 
phones 
to 
call 
for 
help. 
• 
The 
shelter 
is 
often 
full. 
• 
People 
with 
disabilities 
need 
to 
know 
how 
to 
get 
to 
SafePlace 
and 
how 
to 
physically 
enter 
the 
premises. 
• 
The 
latch 
on 
the 
walk-in 
gate 
(in 
front 
of 
resource) 
is 
too 
high 
for 
someone 
who 
uses 
wheelchair. 
• 
The 
secrecy 
of 
SafePlace 
is 
a 
barrier. 
• 
Clients 
should 
be 
able 
to 
bring 
their 
case 
managers 
with 
them 
to 
SafePlace. 
• 
“Communication 
disabilities 
can 
be 
exacerbated 
with 
stress.
” 
Gaps 
in 
and 
needs 
for 
education 
and 
training 
• 
Hotline 
workers 
at 
SafePlace 
need 
information 
on 
working 
with 
people 
with 
cognitive 
disabilities. 
• 
Hotline 
workers 
are 
sometimes 
terse 
with 
callers. 
• 
First 
responders 
need 
education 
on 
violence 
against 
individuals 
with 
disabilities.
• 
Home 
health 
agencies 
need 
training 
on 
when 
to 
report 
abuse. 
• 
Austin 
Travis 
County 
Mental 
Health 
Mental 
Retardation 
(ATCHMHMR) 
and 
BlueBonnet 
Trails 
require 
training 
and 
SafePlace 
could 
be 
integrated 
into 
those 
trainings. 
• 
Adult 
Protective 
Services 
workers 
on 
the 
facility 
side 
need 
to 
know 
more 
about 
rape, 
molestation 
and 
the 
rape 
exam 
protocol. 
• 
Training 
on 
the 
link 
between 
employment, 
domestic 
and 
caregiver 
violence 
along 
with 
PTSD 
symptoms 
needs 
to 
be 
provided 
to 
the 
community 
service 
providers. 
• 
Home 
and 
Community-based 
Services 
(HCS) 
programs 
need 
information 
on 
signs 
and 
indicators 
of 
abuse. 
• 
Disability 
service 
providers 
need 
information 
on 
how 
to 
keep 
themselves 
safe 
if 
they 
enter 
someone’s 
home. 
• 
Service 
providers 
need 
information 
on 
what 
to 
do 
if 
there’s 
an 
allegation 
made 
against 
them. 
• 
Build 
opportunities 
for 
social 
interaction 
and 
build 
self-esteem. 
• 
Train 
Austin 
Police 
Department 
during 
their 
2 
year 
recertification 
or 
40 
hour 
Crisis 
Intervention 
Team 
trainings. 
• 
Train 
MHMR 
staff 
during 
the 
yearly 
training 
day. 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
66 
of 
71 


Disability 
Service 
Providers 
Gaps 
in 
and 
needs 
for 
education 
and 
training 
(continued…
) 
• 
Incorporate 
education 
into 
existing 
programs. 
• 
Train 
MHMR 
unit 
managers 
on 
SafePlace 
services 
and 
present 
on 
domestic/sexual/caregiver 
abuse 
at 
MHMR 
new 
workers 
training. 
• 
Train 
APS 
workers 
on 
how 
to 
tailor 
their 
services 
to 
people 
with 
specific 
disabilities. 
• 
Provide 
concrete 
examples 
and 
opportunity 
to 
practice 
if 
someone 
discloses. 
• 
“Train 
people 
with 
disabilities 
to 
train 
their 
peers.
” 
• 
Agencies 
need 
education 
on 
abuse 
against 
individuals 
with 
disabilities: 
o 
Adult 
Protective 
Services 
o 
The 
Arc 
of 
the 
Capital 
Area 
o 
ATCMHMR 
(Austin 
Travis 
County 
Mental 
Health 
Mental 
Retardation) 
o 
Austin 
State 
Hospital 
o 
Austin 
State 
School 
o 
Capital 
Metro 
Transit 
o 
Department 
of 
Assistive 
and 
Rehabilitative 
Services 
(DARS) 
o 
Easter 
Seals 
o 
Educare 
o 
Empowerment 
Options 
o 
Family 
Eldercare 
o 
HCS 
Group 
Homes 
o 
Kenmar 
Residential 
o 
Marbridge 
o 
Mary 
Lee 
Foundation 
o 
MacBeth 
Recreation 
Center 
o 
Medical 
Providers 
o 
ResCare 
o 
Volunteers 
of 
America 
Targeted 
outreach 
to 
disability 
community 
• 
Increase 
knowledge 
of 
SafePlace 
services 
in 
the 
community. 
• 
People 
need 
to 
know 
that 
SafePlace 
serves 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
Relationships 
with 
at-risk 
communities 
(East 
2nd 
clinic) 
need 
to 
be 
built. 
• 
SafePlace 
representation 
in 
places 
other 
than 
day 
programs 
• 
Cap 
Metro 
drivers 
need 
information 
regarding 
abuse. 
• 
Have 
SafePlace 
business 
cards 
available 
on 
the 
buses 
(including 
Para 
transit)
• 
Get 
free 
or 
discounted 
placards 
for 
the 
buses. 
• 
Day 
program 
participants 
need 
education 
on 
violence. 
• 
Adult 
Protective 
Services 
workers 
need 
to 
know 
how 
to 
access 
SafePlace 
services. 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
67 
of 
71 


Disability 
Service 
Providers 
Targeted 
outreach 
to 
disability 
community 
(continued…
) 
• 
Information 
on 
211 
needs 
to 
be 
updated. 
• 
Send 
out 
information 
on 
email 
lists 
in 
Austin. 
• 
Don’t 
ask 
people 
to 
come 
to 
SafePlace 
for 
programs, 
go 
to 
agencies. 
• 
Materials 
need 
to 
be 
available 
in 
simple 
language 
and 
Spanish. 
• 
Use 
Public 
Access 
TV. 
• 
Larger 
classes 
can 
increase 
comfort. 
• 
Educate 
local 
service 
providers 
on 
the 
services 
that 
SafePlace 
can 
offer 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
Need 
to 
be 
high 
profile 
in 
news, 
commercials, 
TV 
and 
radio. 
• 
There 
is 
an 
attendant 
network 
on 
the 
internet. 
• 
Awareness 
of 
the 
issue 
of 
abuse, 
when 
to 
report, 
who 
to 
report, 
how 
to 
report 
needs 
to 
be 
increased 
and 
can 
be 
addressed 
by 
Goodwill 
and 
SafePlace 
together. 
• 
Marbridge 
participates 
in 
the 
Community 
Action 
Network 
(see 
below)
• 
Use 
the 
logo 
as 
an 
icon 
in 
case 
people 
can’t 
read. 
• 
Have 
a 
presence 
at 
health 
and 
disability 
fairs. 
• 
Business 
cards 
for 
MHMR 
caseworkers 
could 
help 
get 
the 
word 
out. 
• 
Present 
at 
consumer 
groups 
(Cap 
Metro 
has 
a 
list)
. 
• 
Provide 
a 
20 
minute 
in-service 
every 
6 
weeks 
at 
MHMR 
brown 
bag 
meetings. 
• 
Contact 
private 
Medicaid 
waiver 
programs 
and 
use 
payers 
to 
mandate 
trainings. 
• 
Get 
the 
word 
out 
about 
SafePlace 
services 
through 
respite 
care 
providers. 
• 
Go 
to 
agencies 
and 
do 
in-service 
presentations 
on 
SafePlace 
services. 
• 
SafePlace 
could 
use 
devoted 
time 
mandated 
by 
[Federal 
Communications 
Commission] 
FCC 
for 
[Public 
Service 
Announcement] 
PSA. 
• 
Engage 
people 
with 
disabilities 
into 
SafePlace 
events 
such 
as 
the 
SafePlace 
walk. 
• 
Tailor 
the 
classes 
to 
the 
audiences 
you 
are 
providing 
them 
to. 
• 
Have 
your 
programs 
build 
self-esteem. 
• 
Have 
an 
outreach 
person 
refer 
to 
more 
resources. 
• 
Coordinate 
with 
Cap 
Metro 
to 
do 
outreach 
to 
the 
community. 
• 
Target 
people 
through 
the 
Austin 
Mayor’s 
Committee 
for 
people 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
Outreach 
through 
the 
upcoming 
ADA 
celebration. 
• 
MHMR 
could 
institute 
a 
screen 
saver 
that 
SP 
works 
with 
sexual 
assault 
survivors. 
Coordination 
of 
services 
• 
Peer 
support 
could 
help 
with 
emotional, 
social 
and 
safety 
consequences 
of 
speaking 
out. 
• 
In 
partnering, 
need 
to 
focus 
on 
prevention 
because 
intervention 
is 
not 
effective. 
• 
Disability 
services 
direct 
care 
workers 
who 
have 
allegations/proven 
abuse 
are 
free 
to 
go 
to 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
68 
of 
71 


Disability 
Service 
Providers 
Coordination 
of 
services 
(continued….
) 
other 
providers 
and 
work. 
• 
MHMR 
has 
a 
consumer 
abuse 
and 
neglect 
reporting 
system 
separate 
from 
criminal 
system. 
• 
The 
Developmental 
Disabilities 
Planning 
Partnership 
of 
the 
Community 
Action 
Network 
meets 
3rd 
Thursday 
of 
every 
other 
month. 
• 
The 
reporting 
process 
to 
Adult 
Protective 
Services 
needs 
to 
be 
streamlined. 
• 
Need 
a 
contact 
person 
at 
SafePlace 
to 
streamline 
the 
referral 
process 
from 
external 
agencies. 
• 
A 
team 
approach 
to 
respond 
supportively 
to 
the 
survivor 
could 
help 
support 
staff 
of 
service 
providers. 
• 
Travis 
County 
Health 
and 
Human 
Services 
has 
a 
variety 
of 
services. 
• 
Allow 
clients 
to 
bring 
their 
case 
managers 
with 
them 
to 
SafePlace. 
• 
Develop 
a 
SafePlace 
community 
voice 
mail 
to 
receive 
requests 
for 
services 
and 
follow-up 
with 
people 
who 
don’t 
have 
access 
to 
phones. 
• 
SafePlace 
staff 
can 
go 
to 
East 
2nd 
Clinic 
and 
there’s 
opportunity 
for 
cross-referral 
with 
MHMR 
and 
ADAPT. 
• 
Build 
relationships 
with 
agencies 
to 
increase 
response 
to 
disclosures 
after 
educational 
programs 
are 
provided. 
• 
Train 
disability 
service 
providers 
on 
how 
to 
inquire 
about 
abuse 
and 
respond 
to 
disclosures. 
• 
“Don’t 
ask 
people 
to 
come 
to 
SafePlace 
because 
people 
will 
think, 
I’m 
victim. 
Why 
have 
been 
singled 
out?
” 
• 
“
A 
lot 
of 
people 
with 
disabilities 
are 
phone 
dependent 
would 
be 
more 
comfortable 
talking 
with 
someone 
over 
the 
phone, 
they 
wouldn’t 
feel 
as 
threatened.
” 



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
69 
of 
71 


SafePlace 
Leadership 
Gaps, 
Barriers 
or 
Needs 
According 
to 
Participant 
Group 
Possible 
social, 
emotional 
and 
safety 
consequences 
for 
reaching 
out 
for 
help 
when 
abused 
• 
None 
detailed 
Transportation 
• 
None 
detailed 
Legal 
advocacy 
– 
gaps 
and 
needs 
• 
“Having 
to 
change 
payee 
is 
an 
issue 
that 
comes 
up.
” 
• 
Problems 
with 
guardianship 
• 
Child 
custody 
battles 
linked 
to 
disability 
Accessibility 
barriers 
• 
“We 
try 
to 
get 
the 
information 
on 
the 
hotline 
but 
survivors 
may 
not 
disclose 
their 
disability.
• 
When 
residents 
arrive 
to 
shelter, 
we 
may 
not 
know 
what 
they 
need 
re 
their 
disability. 
• 
“Survivors 
in 
shelter 
have 
kept 
“watch” 
over 
other 
resident 
who 
was 
suicidal 
(this 
keeps 
people 
from 
working 
on 
their 
own 
stuff).
” 
• 
No 
Braille 
signage 
is 
available 
for 
people 
who 
are 
blind. 
• 
Sometimes 
have 
to 
move 
clients 
around 
when 
someone 
needs 
one 
of 
the 
accessible 
rooms. 
• 
Don’t 
have 
staff 
to 
help 
with 
physical 
needs, 
other 
residents 
help. 
• 
People 
with 
cognitive 
disabilities 
don’t 
always 
work 
well 
in 
shelter 
(bored, 
neglected)
• 
Need 
a 
person 
to 
be 
with 
people 
with 
cognitive 
disabilities 
to 
help 
with 
cooking 
etc. 
• 
People 
with 
brain 
injury/seizure 
sometimes 
get 
targeted 
by 
other 
residents 
because 
they 
have 
a 
difficult 
time 
regulating 
interactions. 
• 
Residents 
need 
to 
access 
wheelchairs 
4-
5 
times 
/ 
year. 
• 
Intake 
process 
is 
cumbersome 
and 
overwhelming 
for 
people 
with 
cognitive 
disabilities. 
• 
Some 
staff 
has 
biases 
against 
individuals 
with 
mental 
health 
disabilities 
and 
substance 
abuse 
issues. 
• 
Police 
push 
survivors 
with 
substance 
abuse 
issues 
or 
mental 
health 
disabilities. 
• 
Police 
do 
not 
respond 
well 
to 
survivors 
in 
mental 
health 
crisis. 
• 
Staff 
spent 
more 
time 
giving 
physical 
help 
than 
to 
clients 
without 
disabilities. 
• 
Buzzer 
system 
isn’t 
accessible. 
• 
Pulling 
the 
door 
out 
isn’t 
accessible 
to 
people 
who 
are 
blind. 
• 
It’s 
hard 
for 
people 
with 
disabilities 
to 
live 
in 
a 
communal 
environment. 
• 
Sometimes 
need 
to 
write 
not 
to 
Deaf 
individual 
and 
this 
is 
“low 
tech.



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
70 
of 
71 


SafePlace 
Leadership 
Accessibility 
barriers 
(continued…
) 
• 
“Sometimes 
needs 
exceed 
what 
we 
can 
do 
but 
philosophy 
says 
we 
go 
extra 
mile. 
Leadership 
demands 
we 
do. 
There 
are 
no 
excuses 
find 
out 
what 
you 
need 
and 
do 
it.
• 
“Don’t 
screen 
out 
anymore. 
There’s 
definitely 
been 
a 
philosophical 
shift 
since 
2001 
when 
we 
moved 
into 
the 
new 
shelter.
” 
• 
“Been 
helpful 
to 
work 
with 
supervisors 
to 
move 
away 
from 
the 
idea 
that 
we 
need 
to 
protect 
people 
with 
disabilities.
” 
• 
“We’ve 
also 
moved 
from 
a 
goal 
for 
controlling 
the 
environment 
to 
a 
model 
where 
we 
are 
working 
with 
prevention 
and 
then 
responding 
to 
problems 
as 
they 
come 
up.
• 
“[Some 
staff] 
just 
can’t 
get 
past 
their 
own 
values.
” 
Some 
suggestions 
are: 
o 
Hire 
folks 
knowledgeable 
and 
willing 
to 
think 
outside 
the 
box. 
o 
Training 
o 
Leadership 
o 
Meet 
needs 
as 
they 
come 
up. 
o 
Allow 
folks 
time 
in 
supervision 
to 
talk 
about 
what 
came 
up. 
o 
[We 
are] 
comfortable 
going 
to 
Disability 
Services. 
o 
The 
informal 
chatting 
o 
“It’s 
most 
helpful 
to 
be 
able 
to 
contact 
someone 
from 
[Disability 
Services] 
program 
to 
be 
able 
to 
present 
a 
scenario 
and 
then 
ask 
for 
help. 
Is 
there 
a 
way 
to 
put 
something 
more 
formal 
in 
place 
for 
this?
” 
o 
“If 
there 
was 
a 
way 
to 
feed 
information 
and 
resources 
to 
all 
of 
our 
advocates 
and 
case 
managers. 
They 
could 
keep 
that 
information 
and 
pull 
it 
up 
when 
they 
need 
it.
Gaps 
in 
and 
needs 
for 
education 
and 
training 
• 
“Staff 
are 
fearful 
of 
people 
who 
have 
seizures 
– 
[could 
there 
be] 
technology 
that 
could 
alert 
us 
when 
someone 
needs 
help 
regarding 
a 
seizure?
” 
• 
Calls 
on 
the 
hotline 
when 
the 
person 
has 
substance 
abuse 
issue 
are 
difficult 
for 
workers. 
• 
Staff 
need 
information 
and 
resources 
about: 
o 
Disabilities 
themselves 
o 
Accessible 
housing 
o 
Resources 
and 
supports 
available 
in 
the 
community 
Targeted 
outreach 
to 
disability 
community 
• 
None 
detailed 
Coordination 
of 
services 
• 
There 
are 
long 
wait 
periods 
for 
clients 
with 
mental 
health 
disabilities 
who 
pursue 
services 
from 
Austin 
Travis 
County 
Mental 
Health 
Mental 
Retardation 
(ATCMHMR)
• 
It 
takes 
months 
to 
get 
help 
from 
Home 
and 
Community-based 
Services 
(HCS)



Partnering 
to 
Increase 
Service 
Access: 
A 
Project 
of 
Advocacy, 
Inc. 
and 
SafePlace 
in 
Austin, 
TX 
71 
of 
71 


SafePlace 
Leadership 
Coordination 
of 
services 
(continued…
) 
• 
Staff 
is 
willing 
to 
go 
to 
Disability 
Services 
staff 
for 
help. 
• 
Need 
a 
connection 
in 
the 
community 
for 
individuals 
with 
disabilities 
who 
leave 
shelter 
but 
don’t 
return 
to 
their 
families. 
• 
APS 
workers 
close 
case 
because 
person 
is 
in 
shelter. 
• 
APS 
workers 
don’t 
help 
to 
develop 
safety 
plans 
for 
the 
clients. 
• 
Staff 
spends 
more 
time 
finding 
resources 
for 
clients 
with 
disabilities. 
• 
Had 
to 
call 
Austin 
State 
Hospital 
twice 
for 
intervention.