[ KKPP DEPARTMENT ORDER NO. 22, S. 1995, August 01, 1995 ]
AID TO INDIVIDUAL/FAMILY IN CRISIS SITUATION SERVICE
Rationale
The Philippines is geographically located in an area frequented by disaster producing phenomena, such as typhoons, flash floods, volcanic eruption, earthquake and other natural hazards, as well as man-made hazards such as armed conflict, social unrest and fire, to name a few.
These situations bring about the emergence of a vulnerable group of distressed/displaced individuals and families to dependency, requiring the timely and immediate provision of basic assistance.
Assistance to the distressed individuals, families and/or group is a commitment of the government in order to uphold the dignity and worth of individuals, families and groups even in time of crisis and emergency situations, to help them survive and provide opportunities which will ultimately enhance their self-reliance.
Oftentimes, when an individual/family is in crisis situation, he is unable to cope with his problems due to socio-economic difficulties which hamper his normal social functioning. Under such circumstances, the timely provision of Aid to Individual/Family in Crisis Situation Service is deemed necessary to help alleviate client's stressful situation.
Pursuant to the implementation of Republic Act 7160 otherwise known as the Local Government Code of 1991, the Department of Social Welfare and Development underwent streamlining and modification on its functions and organizational structures. It has abolished the Regional Offices and its provincial/city branches as implementing arms in the delivery of community-based program/services and devolved the direct service delivery functions of the Department to the Local Government Units (LGUs).
The DSWD Regional Offices were abolished and renamed as Field Offices and became extension units of the Central Office whose function is to provide technical assistance, monitoring and augmentation support to the LGUs in the delivery of basic social services.
It is in this regard that a guideline is developed as basis in implementing the said service at the municipal level.
Service Description
Aid to individual/family in crisis situation service refers to the provision of timely and appropriate aid to individuals/families in distress brought about by a sudden severe event or a series of stressful situations during which their social functioning is impaired and their resources are inadequate to cope with the problem.
Objectives of the Service
A. General Objective
To enable distressed/displaced individuals/families in crisis situation to meet their basic needs and deal with their problems by providing timely and appropriate assistance.
B. Specific Objectives
1. To provide one-dish hot meal to walk-in clients which shall serve as point of entry for other LGUs Social Welfare Services or for case finding.
2. To provide limited assistance in cash or in kind to individual/families who are hampered to function normally because of short-term emergency socio-economic difficulties.
3. To relieve distressed/displaced individual/family of his great stress/helpless situation/anxiety through casework, emotional support, comfort giving, counselling or Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD).
4. To provide food maintenance to the distressed/displaced individuals/families who lack resources so as to meet their basic food requirements until they are helped to engage in productivity activities or until their normal social functioning is restored.
5. To refer clients immediately to appropriate agencies and/or community resources if the LGUs cannot meet their needs using its social welfare programs and services.
Target Clientele
1. Stranded person due to natural or man-made disasters or other unforeseen incidents.
2. Families whose bread earner or other members died and cannot afford burial expenses.
3. Ejected squatters and evacuees going back to home province or other areas.
4. Those with emotional disturbances brought about by death in the family, accident, sudden loss of income, sudden illness or other events.
5. Persons with disability needing transportation/food assistance while undergoing physical restoration/rehabilitation.
6. Families with income below food threshold (P2,432.00 both for urban and rural areas for a family of six) who cannot purchase basic needs at commercial rates due to food shortage and/or high prices.
7. Walk-in clients who may be mendicants, street children, vagrants, push cart families or strandees.
8. Deportees
9. Individual/families whose income level cannot meet food requirement due to sudden death of breadwinner, unemployment and chronic illness of family head/breadwinner.
Service Interventions
1. Provision of Hot Meal
This refers to the provision of a one dish meal to walk-in clients who are either mendicants, stranded individuals, street children, vagrants or push-cart families who at the time of interview by the worker expressed need for food. It is implemented in DSWD community kitchens or feeding centers established in strategic areas where the target population normally roams around. This intervention serves as a strategy or point of entry in case finding for other DSWD services or services of other GOs/NGOs. This intervention should be implemented in highly urbanized areas.
The meal usually consists of rice with toppings of vegetables, fish or meat, depending on the available food supply. The food served shall to the extent possible meet the minimum dietary requirements of the beneficiary for one meal which is 1,800 to 2,000 calories per day for adult and 1,300 to 1,600 calories for minor depending on their age level.
2. Limited Financial/Material Assistance
This is the provision of limited assistance in cash worth P1,000.00 to P1,500.00 or in kind worth P1,000.00 to P1,500.00 food assistance to individual/family who is hampered from functioning normally because of a stressful situation and/or socio-economic difficulty. The difficulty is usually short term and emergency in nature so this assistance is only provided once. This one shot basic assistance is an immediate response to the need on hand of clients but capitalizes on the client's potentials for future problem solving.
For clients who chronically seek assistance, they must be thoroughly assessed to determine the root cause of the problem and decide what other support services that can best meet his needs. Proper assessment of the client's needs and resources shall be undertaken by the worker before any assistance shall be extended to qualified clients. The assistance shall be extended immediately within one day to two days at most from date of application.
The priority clients for this intervention are the stranded person, jobless/unemployed family head, ejected squatters, evacuees, disabled person who is undergoing physical rehabilitation and family of six with P2,432.00 monthly income below food threshold. Crisis intervention units such as that of Ugnayan Pag-asa Center of DSWD NCR shall be open 24-hours to be able to immediately respond to emergency cases.
This aid to Individual/family in crisis situation service shall be extended in the form of any of the following:
a. Food Assistance
b. Transportation - Actual transportation fare using the cheapest means of transportation available in the area.
Rice - 3 kilos per day for a family of six
Sardines - 6 tins per day for a family of six
Noodles - 3 packs per day for a family of six
Sardines - 6 tins per day for a family of six
Noodles - 3 packs per day for a family of six
b. Transportation - Actual transportation fare using the cheapest means of transportation available in the area.
c. Burial support - This is provided to the bereaved family at a minimum of P1,000.00 to a maximum of P2,000.00 based on careful assessment.
d. Clothing - Provision of at least one set of clothing per family member's actual need.
e. Limited Financial Assistance - This is provided in the minimum amount of P500 and a maximum amount of P2,000.00 depending on the assessment of the Social Worker to respond to an immediate crisis/stressful situation that is emergency in nature, short term and is only extended once.
d. Clothing - Provision of at least one set of clothing per family member's actual need.
e. Limited Financial Assistance - This is provided in the minimum amount of P500 and a maximum amount of P2,000.00 depending on the assessment of the Social Worker to respond to an immediate crisis/stressful situation that is emergency in nature, short term and is only extended once.
3. Crisis Intervention Casework/Counseling/Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD)
This is the provision of emotional/psychological support to the individual/family who is under great stress or is in a helpless situation in order to relieve him/the family of tension, anxiety so that he/they can cope with his/their stress or think logically and take action required to resolve his/their problem.
This intervention is aimed at building client's capability to respond to his problem through casework/counselling or comfort giving. Counselling help clients in recovering from the effects of a severe experience or crisis situation. If client needs further psychiatric therapy/treatment, he shall be referred by the worker to a professional psychologist or psychiatrist in the community who can best meet his need.
4. Food Maintenance
This is the provision of food to distressed/displaced, individuals/families who, based on the assessment of the worker, would need a longer period of assistance in terms of meeting their basic food requirements, due to lack of resources caused by death of breadwinner, unemployment, chronic poverty, or chronic illness of head of the family/breadwinner.
The Head Social Worker shall also consider the available resources of the agency, thus, external resources both from other GOs and NGOs shall be tapped to complement food commodities available.
Food worth P65.00 per day shall be provided to a family of six for a maximum. period of fifteen (15) days. In order to help client regain his normal social functioning, while he/family should be assisted to engage in income generating activities to be able to support his family.
5. The Referral Services
This is a strategy use, whereby a client is helped to move on to another agency or resource so as to acquire the assistance/service that he needs which is not available in the agency. The referring agency makes the referral letter which shall be handcarried by the client and presented to the other agency or resource. This referral assistance refer to the mobilization of needs and resource through established networking, inter-agency linkages, collaboration and coordination with other GOs, NGOs and other private/civic organization within a given/specified area coverage.
Implementing Details of Social Work Intervention
1. Provision of Hot Meal
1.1 The provision of Hot Meal shall be implemented by the Field Office that maintains community kitchens or feeding centers especially in highly urbanized areas.
1.2 The Field Office shall identify priority areas for the implementation of this intervention using the following criteria:
1.3 The social worker who is the referring party shall prepare a case study report of the clients referred to facilitate the provision of other services needed. Follow-up shall be made to ensure that problems/needs after provision of hot meals are also responded appropriately.
1.4 The social worker shall keep list of cases referred to the NGOs concerned, and make regular follow-up on these cases related to clients rehabilitation.
1.2 The Field Office shall identify priority areas for the implementation of this intervention using the following criteria:
1.2.1 Presence of pockets of poverty such as slum areas
1.2.2 Prevalence of vulnerable groups such as street children, vagrants, mendicants and cultural communities
1.2.3 Highly urbanized areas/disaster-prone areas
1.2.2 Prevalence of vulnerable groups such as street children, vagrants, mendicants and cultural communities
1.2.3 Highly urbanized areas/disaster-prone areas
1.3 The social worker who is the referring party shall prepare a case study report of the clients referred to facilitate the provision of other services needed. Follow-up shall be made to ensure that problems/needs after provision of hot meals are also responded appropriately.
1.4 The social worker shall keep list of cases referred to the NGOs concerned, and make regular follow-up on these cases related to clients rehabilitation.
2. Limited Financial/Material Assistance
2.1. The devolved Social Worker shall assess client's needs and resources before any assistance is extended. Intake Sheet/Form 200, certificate of eligibility, case study report, barangay certificate, death certificate (in case of burial assistance), and referral letter if available, are used as supporting documents.
2.2 Social worker shall enable client to understand that limited material or financial assistance is just an immediate response to his need, and is provided once, as a point of entry in harnessing client's potentials for future problem-solving.
2.3 Assistance shall be extended directly to clients. If incapacitated, the nearest kin or authorized representative shall be allowed to receive the assistance for the client.
2.2 Social worker shall enable client to understand that limited material or financial assistance is just an immediate response to his need, and is provided once, as a point of entry in harnessing client's potentials for future problem-solving.
2.3 Assistance shall be extended directly to clients. If incapacitated, the nearest kin or authorized representative shall be allowed to receive the assistance for the client.
2.4 Client who chronically seek assistance must be assessed to determine the root cause of the problem and determine what other support services can best meet his need.
2.5 Field Offices shall maintain a small stockpile of commodities/supplies and shall have petty cash for AICS cases.
2.5 Field Offices shall maintain a small stockpile of commodities/supplies and shall have petty cash for AICS cases.
2.6 An efficient referral system shall be maintained through networking with GOs/NGOs and regular meetings/dialogues shall be conducted to sustain/strengthen smooth working relationships to ensure effective assistance during crisis.
3. Crisis Intervention Counselling
3.1 Initially, client is made to feel free in expressing his/her feelings, thoughts, and reactions, in relation to his/her problem. The social worker provides the needed emotional/psychological support to distressed/displaced individual/ family who is under stress, brought about by death in the family, accident, sudden loss of income, sudden illness, and other critical events, to build client's capability in dealing positively with his/her problem.
3.2 Once client's emotion is pacified, the social worker enables and facilitates the client to clarify his/her need and analyze his/her situation to look into the following:
3.2 Once client's emotion is pacified, the social worker enables and facilitates the client to clarify his/her need and analyze his/her situation to look into the following:
3.2.1. Unavailability or lack of material provision to meet basic needs for existence.
3.2.2. Client's problem is within himself/herself due to lack of problem solving skills thereby affecting his/her social functioning.
3.2.2. Client's problem is within himself/herself due to lack of problem solving skills thereby affecting his/her social functioning.
3.2.3. Client's problems are both the lack of resources and lack of coping skills in meeting problems/needs.
3.2.4. Client's social reality is harsh thereby there is a need to manipulate the environment to meet his/her need.
3.2.4. Client's social reality is harsh thereby there is a need to manipulate the environment to meet his/her need.
3.3 Should the social worker's assessment of client's problem need further psychiatric treatment, client shall be referred to a professional psychologist/psychiatrist in the community both from GOs or NGOs who can best meet his deep seated emotions.
3.4 If after the social worker's counselling client is able to resolve his/her emotional stress, worker shall assist client to come up with a realistic treatment plan.
4. Food Maintenance
4.1 After his/her initial assessment, the worker identifies distressed/ displaced individual/family who would need a longer period of assistance in terms of meeting their basic food requirements due to lack of resources, to regain his normal social functioning while he/family is assisted to engage in income generating activities to support his family.
This food maintenance at P65.00/day for a maximum period of 15 days provided to the distressed/displaced individuals/families serves as a replacement for his/their temporary loss of income while undertaking skills training and looking for another employment. The food maintenance shall serve as temporary source of livelihood or employment due to:
This food maintenance at P65.00/day for a maximum period of 15 days provided to the distressed/displaced individuals/families serves as a replacement for his/their temporary loss of income while undertaking skills training and looking for another employment. The food maintenance shall serve as temporary source of livelihood or employment due to:
4.1.1. Death of the Breadwinner
4.1.2. Unemployment
4.1.3. Chronic Poverty
4.1.4. Chronic Illness of head of family/breadwinner
4.1.2. Unemployment
4.1.3. Chronic Poverty
4.1.4. Chronic Illness of head of family/breadwinner
4.2 To avoid abuse of the service, the worker determines the time frame for the provision of food maintenance based on the rehabilitation plan set by the client for himself (case management).
4.3 The worker provides counselling service to the beneficiary to increase his level of awareness, and assist him to find stable source of income. This in effect prepares the client for the eventual termination of service, to regain/revitalize his normal functioning to engage in income generating activities, to support his family's basic needs.
4.4 As soon as the distressed/displaced individual/family based on assessment, is ready for re-classification under regular program, the worker should follow through the case, to ensure clients rehabilitation.
The Field Office shall monitor and provide technical assistance to Local Government Units on the implementation of the Service. Furthermore FOs should submit quarterly report to the Secretary indicating significant informations such as types of augmentation support extended, number of distressed individuals/families extended, problems encountered, actions taken and recommendations to solve identified problems.
For strict compliance.
Adopted: 01 August 1995
Secretary