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Safety Tips for Home VisitorsPlanning for a Safe Home Visit
Important Community Resources•PittsburghPolice(Getthemonlineatwww.city.pittsburgh.pa.us/police) •CitizenObserver—HelpthePittsburghPolicefightcrimebysigning
upfortheCitizenObserver,asecure,easytouse,andcost-effective
internet-basedcommunityalerttoolset.Itallowslawenforcement
agenciestoquicklyentercontentaboutcrimesorincidents,andwithin
seconds,pushthatinfoouttobusinesses,citizens,watchgroups,and
othersthathavesigneduptoreceivethealerts.
This brochure was made in collaboration with the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, the Allegheny County Health Department (ACHD) and the Home Visiting Network (HVN.) The ACHD and the HVN thank Detective Ashley Thompson for his guidance in preparing this brochure.
Agency PolicyLocateandreadyouragency’spolicyaboutsafetywhileconductinghomevisits.Knowwhetheryouragency
•Haspoliciesrelatedtosafetyinhomevisiting,drivinginpoorweather
orroadconditions.
•Hasacodewordornotificationsystemifyouwereintrouble.
•Allowsforcarryingandusingprotectivedevicessuchaspepperspray.
•Hasproceduresforevaluatingandarrangingforpoliceassistanceand
escortsifneeded.
•Hasaresponseplanifyouarelateinreturningtotheoffice.
•Hasproceduresforcheckingonstaffwhoconducthomevisitsand
ensuringthatanyconcernaboutanyvisitisfollowedupimmediately.
•Keepsaregisterorhasasystemclearlydocumentswherestaffwillbeat
alltimeandprovidesfollow-upforeachinstancewhereastaffmember
hasnotreportedbackatascheduledtime.
•Hasatwo-personvisitpolicyforfirstvisitsandforothervisitsasneeded
•Hasapolicyaboutwhotocallifthereisyelling,screaming,breaking
glassetccomingfromwithinthehomeyouaretovisit.(i.e.,shouldyou
callthepolice?)
About Your Car•Keepyourcarisingoodrunningcondition,makesureithasenough
gas,andiskeptlockedatalltimes;keepaflashlightandafirstaid-kit
andotheremergencysuppliesincar,includeall-weathergear.
•Parkwithindirectsightofthehome’sentryandinawell-lit,
unobstructedarea(donotparknearbushesorotherfoliage).Always
parkonthestreetorinawaytoallowyoutoleavequicklyifnecessary
foryoursafety.
•Parkneartheclient’shome.
•Donotparkyourcarinsomeone’sassignedparkingspace,orblock
anyone’saccesstohis/hercar.
•Donotparkinthedrivewayofthehomedrive(youcouldbeblocked
in)-butifyouneedto,thinkaboutreverseparkingin,soyoucansimply
driveout.
•Parkyourcarclosetothedoor(keepcarfacingoutwhenparked).
•Asyouexityourcar,beattentivetopeopleintheareaandany
unsecureddogs.
•Inaculdesac/deadendstreets,parkinthedirectionoftheculdesac/
deadendstreetexit.
General Safety Tips to Remember•Trustyourinstincts.
•Stayalert.
•Knowwhatbehaviorsinotherssetyouofforprovokeyou,andwaysyou
canrespondtothebehaviorswithoutplacingyourselfindanger.
•Actconfidentandsureofyourself;ignoreprovocativecommentsor
behaviors.
•Keepyourhandsfree.Donotbedistractedbytalkingonacellphone.
Carryapersonalalarmiffeasible–aclip-ononeisbest.
•Don’twalkthroughagroupofpeoplestandingtogetheronthe
sidewalk/street.
•Alwayshaveanexcusetoleavepreparedinadvancejustincase.Leave
thehomeimmediatelyifyousensedanger.
•Dressappropriately
Wearclothesandshoesthatmakeaquickescapepossible;donot
wearclothesandshoesthatcanimpedeyourmovement;pantsare
best.
Leavejewelryathome.
Leavepurseatoffice.
Leaveyourvaluablepossessionsathome.
•CarryonlyyourID/driver’slicense,acellphoneand/orpager,
necessarycash,andkeys. Keep your cell phone close at hand. Keep your
car keys in your pocket or hand. Even if you carry bags, keep your car keys and
mobile phone on person (you can barricade yourself in a room/toilet and use
your phone in an emergency).
•Wearanamebadgeifyouhaveone,butdon’twearonearoundyour
neck;aclip-onisbest.
•Takedogbiscuitsalongtocalm
excited/aggressivedogs.
•Beawareofanydrugparaphernalia
intheareasurroundingthehome.
•Schedulehomevisitsearlyintheday
wheneverpossible.
After the Visit•Beawareofsurroundingsasyouexitthehouse.
•Donotmakephonecallsuntilyouareoutofviewoftheresidence.
•Beforeenteringyourcar,checkaroundthecar(underthecar,inback
seat).
•Lockyourcardoorsassoonasyougetin(reasonsarecarjacking
andpeopleopeningpassengerdoors)-manyvehiclesnowadayshave
anabilitytounlockjustthedriverdoor/oratleastcentrallocking
capabilities.
Tips for Dealing with Aggression During a Home Visit:Sometipstoconsiderifyouarefacedwithanaggressionincidentduringahomevisit:
•Ifanaggressiveincidentoccurs,
remembertotryandremainascalm
aspossibleandleavethehomeas
soonaspossible.Thinkaboutyour
organization’sproceduretofollow.
•Tryandkeepabarrier,eg:table,
betweenyouandtheaggressorwhere
practical.
•Speakslowlyandcalmly,takedeepbreaths,trynottosayanythingthat
couldinflamethesituation.
•AttheearliestopportunitycallthePolice,evenifitisonlythethreatof
assault,andfollowyourorganization’sprocedures.
•Trynottowalkbackwardsasyourisktrippingover.
Before the Visit•Ensurethatyouhaveobtainedasmuchinformationaboutyourclient
aspossiblebeforethevisitandmakesurethatallappropriaterisk
assessmentsarecarriedout.
•Callahead.
•Makesureyouhavethecorrectaddress.
•Askquestionsaboutpets,children,otherpotentialvisitorsetc.Ask
familytosecurepetsbeforearrival.
•Alwaysmakesuresomeoneatyouragencyknowsyourvisitingschedule
androute,includingthefamily’sname,address,telephonenumber,the
dateandtimeofyourvisit,andwhenyouexpecttoreturn.
•Ifpossible,canvasstheareaaroundthehome’saddress.Assesspotential
safetyconcernsandtakeprecautions.Ifyouareunfamiliarwiththe
neighborhoodsurroundingthefamily’shome,taketimetolearnabout
itsothatyouknowwhattoexpect.Identifythesafestroutesforgetting
thereandback,andresourcesforgettinghelp,ifneeded.Consider
stoppingatthelocalpolicestationifappropriate.
•Identifysafeareas(i.e.,restaurants,telephones,restrooms,police
stations)withintheneighborhood.
•Consideraneutralmeetinglocationifvisitcannotbemadesafelyat
home(i.e.,library,conferencerooms,restaurants)andthenatureof
thevisitallowsthis.Askfamilymemberstocomeouttomeetyouif
uncomfortablewitharea.
•Inadditiontoconsidering
alternativeprivatesitesfor
visitingwiththefamily,take
abuddy,oragreeonacheck-
intime.
•Ifanupcominghomevisit
presentssignificantsafety
hazards,talkwithyour
supervisororatrustedco-
workerbeforeyoumakethe
visit.
Safety during the Visit•Ifyourclientlocksthefrontdoor(particularlydeadlocks),askthemto
leavethekeyinthelock.
•Neverenterahouseifthereisyelling,screaming,breakingglass,gun
fire,etccomingfromwithinsignsorifyounoticethatweaponsareon
site,etc.
•Alwayssurveythepremisesforexitsandwaysoutinanemergency.
Positionyourselfbetweentheclientandanexitandmaintainclear
accesstoanexitatalltimes.Ifthereareidentifiedrisksforvisitsanda
two-personvisitisnotpractical,arrangeforsomeonetocallyouonyour
mobilephoneneartheendofyourscheduledvisittoestablishthatyou
areokay;establishacodephrasetouseinanemergency.
•Presentyourselfascalm,confident,observantandincontrol.
•Iftherearedogsorotherpetswhichconcernyou,beassertiveand
declineprovidingaserviceuntiltheyaresecuredandposenothreat.
•Sitinahard-backedchair.Avoidsittingonupholsteredcouchesoron
furniturethatmaybeusedtostorehypodermicneedlesorweapons,or
mayharborinfestations.
•Beawareofyoursurroundings;leaveifyourinstinctstellyoutoleave.
•Takeuniversalprecautionbywashinghandsbefore/aftervisit.
•Meetwithclientinacommonroom.Donotbeinanypartofthehome
alonewhichmaytriggerasituationthatyoucouldbeaccusedofstealing
something(i.e.bathroom).
•Payparticularattentiontotheclient’sprotectivenessrelatingtocertain
roomsofthehouse.
•Donotmeetwithfamilymembersinakitchen
wheretheremaybeeasyaccesstosharpobjects
(includingglass),thatmaybeusedasaweapon.
•Ifapersoninthehomeappearsagitatedor
seemstobehallucinatingorseeing“shadow
people”,slowspeech,keepyourhandsvisible,
anddonotmakewrittennotesofyour
observations.
•Donotconfrontsuspecteddrugactivitywhile
inthehome.