Accordion TEST

[Organisation name] aims to prevent complex behaviour becoming a problem, where possible, by practicing good complaint handling. Our [name your organisation’s complaint handling or service delivery policy] explains how we respond to complaints.

Officers will respond to angry or emotional behaviour in the first instance by attempting to defuse the situation. This involves the following sequence of actions:

• Taking control of their own response. At times officers may need to take a break so they can collect themselves. If this is not possible and the matter is not urgent, officers can arrange to speak with the person again at another time.
• Giving the person reasonable time to express themselves and acknowledging what they are saying and how they feel.
• When the person’s feelings are under control enough to speak about the complaint, refocusing the discussion onto the complaint.
• Problem solving using good complaint handling techniques.

Where complex behaviour may be a symptom of manifestation of a disability, officers need to consider [organisation name’s] obligations under the Equal Opportunity Act 2010 (Vic). [Name your organisation’s equal opportunity policy or accessibility action plan] provides advice about avoiding discrimination and making reasonable adjustments so people can access our services.

Officers can consult [name an appropriate officer in your organisation eg your organisation’s equal opportunity representative or legal counsel] where:

• they are unsure about whether or how to make reasonable adjustments
• they believe discrimination may be justified because the person’s behaviour is a risk to health, safety or property.

[Organisation name] does not expect officers to provide crisis support or counselling to people who talk about suicide. Our role is to check if the person is serious and connect them with people or services that can help.

If a person makes statements about harming themselves, officers will:

1. Ask the person clearly and directly if they are thinking about suicide.
   
   
2. Explain that they are concerned and want to make sure the person is safe.
   
   
3. Alert a manager, who will decide what action to take.
   
   

If the person’s safety is at risk or they need immediate help, the manager will contact Victoria Police on 000. [If your organisation has specific secrecy or privacy obligations that limit your ability to provide information to the police, explain how these should be handled]

In other cases, the manager will consider whether to:

• encourage the person to speak with someone they trust, or
• offer information about contacting Lifeline (13 11 14), the Suicide Call Back Service (1300 659 467), SuicideLine Victoria (1300 651 251) or Kids Helpline (1800 55 1800).

Managers will check on the welfare of affected officers following a threat of suicide and ensure appropriate support is available.

If a person’s behaviour is or becomes unreasonable, officers can apply appropriate and proportionate strategies for managing the behaviour. The strategies will depend on the behaviour type of involved:

• bombarding officers with calls or visits that are not warranted
• contacting different officers seeking a different answer
• reframing an old complaint so it looks like there are new issues
• refusing to accept a decision after we have investigated the complaint, provided a decision and reasons, answered questions and provided review options
• questioning the skills or competence of the complaint handler

Strategy

Saying no eg

• asking the person to stop calling or visiting
• setting time limits for discussions
• transferring the person back to the original complaint handler or their manager
• declining to consider new issues that are not supported by information or evidence

• insisting on an immediate response or priority that is not warranted
• insisting on a response to every point, no matter how minor
• demanding information they are not entitled to
• insisting that the head of the organisation handle the complaint when that is not warranted
• instructing officers how to investigate the complaint

Strategy - setting limits

• explaining how you will be dealing with the complaint
• explaining that you will not meet the demand and why
• ‘reality checking’ ie explaining that we deal with many complaints and need to decide when and how they are handled

• sending voluminous amounts of information
• providing little or no information
• presenting information in ‘dribs and drabs’
• refusing to comply with reasonable requests for information

Strategy - Setting conditions to motivate action

• asking the person to take action (eg providing certain information) before you will consider the complaint further

• insisting on the importance of minor issues
• making unsubstantiated allegations eg bias or corruption
• insisting on ‘cause and effect’ without evidence

Strategy - Declining or discontinuing involvement

• requiring evidence before taking a complaint further
• not investigating issues where there is no practical outcome

• verbal abuse, aggressive behaviour, harassment or threats

Strategy - Setting limits and conditions

• naming the behaviour and asking the person to stop
• providing a warning

who the person can contact eg limiting contact to a named officer

what issues we will respond to eg not responding to issues that have already been the subject of an assessment and explanation, unless the person raises new issues that warrant attention

when a person can have contact

where the person can contact us eg limiting locations for face to face meetings to secure areas

how the person can contact us eg confining contact to writing where the person has been verbally abusive.