2.2.5 Communicating by Phone and Email
Supporting a survivor in-person is not always possible. It may be necessary to communicate by phone or electronically, which might include text messaging or email.
It’s extremely important to be sure that that the communication is safe, especially when communicating with survivors of intimate partner violence.
Always ask the survivor, when they are not accompanied by the perpetrator, how to communicate with them safely; follow their lead.
Arranging to meet at the health center: As an advocate, a survivor may contact you by phone or electronically asking you to meet them at the health center. For the purposes of evidence collection, is important that you tell them not to use the toilet, eat or drink until they have been seen by a healthcare provider at the health center.
You may plan to meet them personally or to have someone from your network of advocates meet them, depending on the situation.
Communicating by phone: Phone communication or video messaging involves the same advocacy skills as face-to-face communication, including the following, additional suggestions:
Be sure that you have adequate phone credit and a strong phone signal so that you do not get disconnected.
Find someplace quiet to talk and try to keep background noise to a minimum.
Before you begin, ask if the time of the call is convenient for the survivor and make other arrangements if needed.
Match your tone of voice to what you are communicating. For example, if you are expressing empathy, keep your voice soft and speak slowly. Tone of voice is especially important because you do not have the benefit of visual cues to reinforce your message.
Take notes on your main points before the call so that you do not forget critical information that you need to communicate.
Reassure survivors that you are listening by using phrases such as ‘I see’, so that they know you are giving them your full attention.
Use the same professionalism you would use in an in-person encounter.
Communicating electronically: It might be necessary to communicate with a survivor online to exchange information clearly or to arrange to accompany them to seek medical care.
It’s much easier for a survivor to misinterpret a message received by text or email than it’s face-to-face because there are no nonverbal signals to help convey meaning.