The hotline is available, by phone or chat, 24/7, through a link on the RAINN website or via mobile app. Since the inception of the online service, RAINN has prioritized privacy, security, and confidentiality. The hotline promotes secure and anonymous communication through use of secure servers and software that removes the IP address at login so that users cannot be tracked or identified, as well as by layering digital protections to prevent hacking or other data breaches. No record is kept of user chats or conversations, and RAINN provides detailed instructions on how users can make sure that their computer is secure and communications are confidential. To help maintain privacy, the hotline has an escape button for immediate exit—an innovation now utilized by organizations that offer other sensitive services, including for survivors of intimate partner violence and those struggling with substance use disorder. By clicking this button, the user is taken immediately to a nondescript site.
The primary function of the hotline’s staff and volunteers is to provide emotional support and information/referral. To assist visitors (callers or chat clients), RAINN provides them with a comprehensive database of counseling centers nationally, as well as other local and national referral information. A visitor is referred to local resources for specific questions about legal issues. Staff and volunteers use an online self-scheduling program with authentication to schedule their shifts. They also have access to a secure online forum to share strategies and lessons learned.
Professional rape crisis personnel are online during all shifts to assist staff and volunteers or transfer a session in case they need assistance in situations that are beyond their capabilities. Staff and volunteers can reach supervisors through chat sessions at any time, including during a session with a visitor. RAINN blends technology and in-person supervision to support staff and volunteers, address secondary trauma, and incorporate evidence-based practices into the hotline’s operation.
Information and referral and educational materials regarding criminal justice, medical care, and emotional support are available to staff and volunteers to supplement their own knowledge of rape crisis information. Information can be accessed quickly through the staff dashboard during a session with a simple click or it may be provided to users in a chat session. The staff dashboard also has dozens of standard responses that help staff and volunteers navigate difficult sessions and provide consistent support—sort of a virtual ‘coach’ to provide real-time assistance with the most challenging situations. For example, staff and volunteers can utilize the dashboard to engage in contracting in incidences of suicide or self-harm, or to troubleshoot a response to a particularly difficult visitor. Staff are trained on how to edit the standard responses to match the tone of the conversation to avoid sounding automated or too formal.
All 50 states have some mandatory child abuse and neglect reporting laws, and all require professionals such as social workers and counselors to report child abuse. Rape crisis center staff and volunteers are mandatory reporters with regards to child abuse. However, it is often problematic for a hotline that seeks to ensure user privacy to also uphold the legal requirement for reporting child abuse. It is further complicated for a national organization because the laws in each state differ in terms of what kinds and level of abuse must be reported and for what age a report must be made. To support staff and volunteers in navigating this complexity, RAINN worked with the University of California, Berkley Law School to develop guidelines and procedures to meet the mandatory reporting requirement in all 50 states. This information is researched and updated annually by an outside law firm. Information about RAINN’s mandatory reporting policy and a warning that certain disclosures may trigger mandatory reporting are included in the visitor agreement, which is shown to users before they enter a hotline session. NSAOH protocols instruct staff and volunteers to have an initial conversation with a visitor that addresses mandatory reporting. Staff and volunteers encourage users to file reports of abuse when appropriate. All staff and volunteers are trained to alert their National Volunteer Supervisor, who has had additional training on mandatory reporting issues, if a question comes up regarding possible reporting obligations.
Note any similarities and differences between the components of RAINN’s service delivery model—as pertains to the online hotline—and what you have observed in organizations that primarily operate in person.
What are the ethical dilemmas presented by the existence of mandatory reporting obligations, and the requirement that RAINN staff and volunteers practice in accordance with these laws?
How do social work practice skills translate to the unique context of the RAINN online hotline? What additional or unique preparation would be valuable, to equip you for successful practice in this context?