Lisa Furr is a Technical Assistance Advisor for the National Center with over 30 years of experience working in the field of elder abuse and community collaboration. She works at Lifespan of Greater Rochester, NY and is a point person for grantees. She co-facilitates the bi- monthly Peer Leadership Groups and meets with many grantees one on one to brainstorm issues and check in with grantees. She previously served as a Training and Technical Assistance Advisor with NCALL, the National Clearinghouse on Abuse in Later Life. An educator at heart and by training, Lisa holds a master’s degree and lives in Richmond, Virginia.
Why is Community Engagement Important for E- MDTs?
Our theme this month is "Community Engagement." An E-MDT's success and health is so much a function of it being n integral part of the community and for the community to be an integral part of the E-MDT. The Team needs to reflect the community it serves, regarding the social categories of race, gender, orientation, culture, language, socioeconomic issues, geographical, and abilities. The CDC in the “Principales of Community Engagement 2nd Edition” states that:
... groups involved in community engagement have their own particular norms and that all partners in a collaboration will have lessons to learn about each other and the collaborative process. Moreover, we fully appreciate that all who are involved in engaging a community must be responsive to the needs of that community as defined by the community itself. In practice, community engagement is a blend of science and art. The science comes from sociology, political science, cultural anthropology, organizational development, psychology, social work, and other disciplines, and organizing concepts are drawn from the literature on community cultural influences. The art comes from the understanding, skill, and sensitivity used to apply and adapt the science in ways that fit the community of interest and the purposes of specific engagement efforts.1
If the team does not hear the voices of its clients/survivors/victims through its team members, how then can they address the needs of that individual? Community Engagement is the process of thinking strategically about the needs of the community and the individuals within that community. A Team cannot be victim-centered without an understanding of that victim’s specific needs as well as how those individuals fit into their community.
How Can E-MDTs Engage Communities?
It starts by learning about the community where your E-MDT functions. Is it a multi- jurisdictional community? Is it diverse in terms of those social categories listed earlier? Are there organizations that serve a particular subset of the community? How well do you and the Team know this community and its services? How is the Law Enforcement organization structured? What is their philosophy of policing?
After learning about the community, your team and the staff need to build trust with other organizations and members of the community itself. It is vital to know what services are offered or who the organizations serve. This learning is done through outreach and training as well as “showing up” for those organizations and community groups.
Attending or staffing a booth at various festivals or events is one way of being involved with those organizations and supporting their missions and visions. Doing this work is what can build trust between agencies and staff. It creates relationships that can result in agencies and organizations referring cases to your Team and utilizing the Team for their work with clients.
You might consider inviting various agencies to present their work to your Team - giving you an opportunity to educate that organization about the E-MDT and its work. You will be building partnerships with these groups to improve the Team’s ties and knowledge of where they serve.
All of these combine to strengthen the E-MDT and your community as you work together for the needs of those experiencing elder abuse in your community.
1. Weblink for CDC’s publication: https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/communityengagement/pdf/PCE_Report_508_FIN AL.pdf
