Engage with the Client System

In the Engage phase, the social worker has two main goals:

1. Understand the development and structure of the organization and how these features facilitate incorporation of technology into service delivery.

This includes the rationale for development, administrative structure, funding, service delivery method, and collaborations necessary to create and continue the organization.

2. Understand the goals of the organization and how the model contributes to their realization.

Goals are used as a basis for evaluation of the program. Evaluation must measure the extent to which the agency is meeting its goals. Further, evaluation should inform adjustments to the intervention approaches, if/when changes are needed to advance the goals.

Answer the questions below

As an introduction to RAINN, visit and explore the RAINN website. You may also want to review more recent research about the proliferation of telehealth and other digital social work interventions, as well as media coverage about the increase in these service options and shifting public and consumer opinion about their efficacy.

Then, assess your own attitudes and beliefs about online services by filling out the Etherapy Attitude Scale.

1. How engaging do you find the RAINN website? What works well about this site? What changes might make it easier for a prospective client or collaborating social worker to engage with RAINN?
2. How trustworthy do you find RAINN based on the website? Why? What have we learned in recent years about how people experience organizations online and what features/approaches facilitate engagement virtually?
3. How easy is it to find the information or services a consumer might need from RAINN? Given what you know about how trauma affects cognition, how should RAINN’s information be presented to reach its target population—most of whom have experienced trauma?
4. What are your own beliefs about the effectiveness of online services? On what do you base these beliefs?
5. How have your beliefs about virtual service delivery changed in the past several years? How do you think others’ experiences with, confidence in, and comfort about online service delivery have changed in the past few years?
6. What do you need to know about economic and social factors in your community that influence individuals’ access to and experiences with online services such as these? How could you approach outreach and building awareness in particular target communities, with an eye towards digital inequities and how people affected by sexual assault may experience them?