Question

Once the existence of a genuine dispute is established, what information should be provided to the customer regarding the organisation’s obligations and procedures? Discuss in 100–120 words.

Answer 1

Policies and procedures typically stem from the company vision and objectives, which are usually formed in strategic management meetings at the top level of the organization. In some organizations, department managers also develop department-specific policies and procedures based on the nature of the work tasks.

Policies and procedures are an essential component of any organization. Policies are important because they address pertinent issues, such as what constitutes acceptable behavior by employees. ... Utilizing both policies and procedures during decision-making ensures that employers are consistent in their decisions.

Most community service organisations will have in place policies and procedures that govern and regulate privacy and confidentiality of client information. This concept not only applies to what you can disclose about your clients or your organisations outside of work, but also what can be shared in network meetings. What information can be shared with other organisations, who shares it and how this information is given out should be clearly defined in any effective, professional service. It is often incorporated into a worker’s duty statement or job description.

All organisations should have written policy and procedures, and staff training in the following areas:

• a confidentiality policy
• a clearly defined process for identifying and regularly updating a Community Resource Index so that all workers are aware of what other services are available to refer to (the index contains basis contact details and information about what each service provides)
• processes for networking with other agencies, including attending relevant interagencies (meetings of local service providers)
• guidelines for case conferencing (this will be discussed in more detail a bit later)
• referral protocols, including how referrals should be made, the kind of information that can be shared with other services and any ongoing roles and responsibilities of each service with regard to the client
• a policy for how long client information is kept after clients are no longer involved with the service. For example, different government departments produce documents that outline legal requirements for their staff in relation to storing and maintaining information.