Safeguarding Policy

Safeguarding Policy

Hebron Medical Center Safeguarding Policy

1. Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to protect vulnerable people including hospital’s patients and beneficiaries of aid from any harm that may be caused due to Hebron Medical Center’s programs, operations, and representatives work and to respond promptly and appropriately to damage already incurred.

2. Principle

A

Respect to the rights of the vulnerable: Hebron Medical Center believes that everyone we come into contact with, regardless of age, gender, disability or ethnicity has the right to be protected from all forms of harm, abuse, neglect and exploitation. This policy is based on the UN Convention on the Rights of Child(UNCRC) and UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities(UNCRPD).

B

Do No Harm: Hebron Medical Center does no harm to the vulnerable in the process of patient care and treatment Hebron Medical Center has to do the best to evaluate negative effects on the vulnerable for all works of Hebron Medical Center and reduce possible risks.

C

Zero Tolerance: Hebron Medical Center recognizes that abuse, sexual violence, sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of the vulnerable are serious criminal acts resulting from the imbalanced power, and does not tolerate even minor violations of safeguarding issue.

D

Survivor Centered Approach: Hebron Medical Center will investigate and respond thoroughly on safeguarding incidents and concerns, and make the best decision on the process of response based on the respect of the survivor.

E

Confidentiality: Hebron Medical Center keeps confidentiality maintained at all stages of the process when dealing with safeguarding concerns. Information relating to the concern and subsequent case management should be shared on a need to know basis only, and must be kept secure at all times.

3. Scope

The policy applies to all staff including executive members contracted by Hebron Medical Center and representatives engaged with work or visits related to Hebron Medical Center, including healthcare professionals, patients and visitors, volunteers, contractors, program visitors including sponsors, journalists, and celebrities.

4. Preventive Action

4.1. Recruitment and Contracting

A. Staffs

Hebron Medical Center shall do its best to identify and not to employ persons who intend to harm the beneficiaries of the project or the vulnerable, or who have done unacceptable harm to the vulnerable by abusing their power or position in the past.

These measures are taken in the overall process of recruitment, such as job postings, application reviews, and interviews. This also applies to all other executives and employees, as well as those who conduct face-to-face work or handle personal information.

Hebron Medical Center will require candidates to provide a Police Record Check which is permitted by the law of the country and Hebron Medical Center will not hire people with any crime.

4.2 Consent

All staff and representatives must sign the Code of Conduct before they start working in Hebron Medical Center.

4.3 Training

Hebron Medical Center holds mandatory safeguarding training for all Hebron Medical Center staff and representatives within 1 month after appointment and gives periodic refresher training at least once every two years thereafter.

4. Preventive Action

5.1. Report

Hebron Medical Center will ensure that safe, appropriate, accessible means of reporting safeguarding concerns are made available to staff and the communities we work with including hospital’s patients and visitors.

5.2. How to report a safeguarding concern

Hebron Medical Center staff or representatives who have a complaint or concern relating to safeguarding should report it within 24 hours to their Safeguarding Focal Person or line manager with the written report.

Safeguarding Focal Person will report related decision makers with the written report but may report verbally if there is any concern about the safety of the survivor. Due to the sensitive nature of safeguarding concerns, confidentiality must be maintained during all stages of the reporting process, and information shared on a limited ‘need to know’ basis only.

5.3. Investigation

Safeguarding Focal Person will investigate the report received and report the result to the related decision maker. When it is needed to set up the investigation team, Hebron Medical Center respects the survivor's opinion.

All received reports about safeguarding concerns must be recorded and kept confidential. Incident management processes will be accessible and specific to the needs of those concerned and need to consider their age, gender, language, disability.

5.4. Disciplinary Action

Hebron Medical Center will apply appropriate disciplinary measures to staff and representatives found in breach of policy. It is grounds for discipline up to and including termination of the employment or other affiliation with Hebron Medical Center.

5.5. Refer to Authorities

If this safeguarding concern is related to the law of the country, Hebron Medical Center will refer these cases to local authorities and cooperate in the investigation. Hebron Medical Center considers safety and best interests of survivors.

5.6. Survivor support

Hebron Medical Center will take the necessary steps within the resources available to promote survivor’s welfare and safety and help them to recover. This includes medical, psychosocial, legal or other support services required by the survivors based on their needs and consent. They will also receive appropriate information regarding the outcomes of any incident management procedures.

6. Media and Communication

6.1. Principle

Hebron Medical Center ensures to protect dignity and human rights when filming and using images of the vulnerable including hospital’s patients and visitors and personal information for research, communication, and media, and also when we are treating images of vulnerable people. We ensure images are honest representations of the context and the facts.

6.2. Consent

When Hebron Medical Center films for the photo or video resources, Hebron Medical Center has to ask ‘enough and accessible informed consent from children or adult beneficiaries who are the primary subject. If the primary subject is a child, written consent is also collected from the parent, guardian or other legally required entity or individual.

Informed consent means the subject has a general understanding of the purpose of the reporting or photography, and gives written permission thereof.

6.3. Training

All those involved in taking photos and videos should be briefed on Hebron Medical Center’s Safeguarding and guidelines for the protection of the rights of the vulnerable in the media.

6.4. Compliance on Communication

Hebron Medical Center does not use personal information (photos, videos, related information) beyond the agreed purposes and consent. It is prohibited staff and representatives to upload photos or videos of the vulnerable without consent on their Social Media.

Hebron Medical Center does not expose personal information of the vulnerable (Family name, personal location, etc) which can identify their information on the materials we use. It is important to check GPS information is not automatically recorded when filming photos and videos of the vulnerable.

It is prohibited to have private communication between staff or representatives and the vulnerable through Social Media.

Hebron Medical Center needs to provide the complaints mechanism for the vulnerable to represent their complaints and inconvenience about the use of their personal information.

Even though it is all agreed to participation in any media or research, the vulnerable can request their opinion for rejecting participation anymore and Hebron Medical Center must stop using personal information if there is any harm using personal information or request from the vulnerable.

7. Governance and Accountability

7.1. Roles and Responsibilities

7.2. Monitoring

Monitoring: Hebron Medical Center and Safeguarding Focal person will regularly monitor that the policy integrates safeguarding measures into relevant core internal processes such as managing organizations and planning and program designs.

Policy Review: This policy will be reviewed and if necessary revised every three years or earlier if needed such as blind spot is found in the implementation of Safeguarding, etc.

Hebron Medical Center Safeguarding Policy

Safeguarding

Safeguarding is a set of organisational policies, procedures and practices designed to prevent and respond to ensure that no harm comes to people as a result of contact with an organisation’s program, operations or people.

Safeguarding is to protect vulnerable people from the risk of violence, exploitation and abuse and to institute the report system followed by adequate process if the risk situation happens.

Vulnerable

Any person aged 18 years and older who may be in need of care by reason of mental or other disability, age or illness; and who is or may be unable to take care of him or herself, or unable to protect him or herself against significant harm or exploitation. Note that an adult with or without disabilities has the same legal capacity.

Harm

Psychological, physical and any other infringement of an individual’s rights Psychological harm, Emotional or psychological abuse, including (but not limited to) humiliating and degrading treatment such as bad name calling, constant criticism, belittling, persistent shaming, solitary confinement and isolation.

Sexual abuse

The term ‘sexual abuse’ means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions.

Sexual exploitation

The term ‘sexual exploitation’ means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another. This definition includes human trafficking and modern slavery.

Survivor

The person who has been abused or exploited. The term ‘survivor’ is often used in preference to ‘victim’ as it implies strength, resilience and the capacity to survive, however it is the individual’s choice how they wish to identify themselves.