“Model Description and Introduction
DPH seeks qualified vendors to provide comprehensive, quality Domestic Violence, Substance Misuse and Trauma (DVSMT) residential services for sexual and domestic violence survivors and their children. These services will be culturally relevant, trauma-informed, provide meaningful access to diverse populations across the Commonwealth, and be grounded in social justice principles.
Services to support survivors include:
- Refuge for survivors who need to leave an unsafe situation due to domestic and/or sexual violence and need longer-term recovery support to address substance misuse and/or trauma.
- A range of activities and services designed to support the individual, familial, and social needs of survivors of domestic violence, their children, and/or dependents.
This service model incorporates the principles outlined in the Master Procurement in RFR 008924-Attachment B and utilizes the definitions in RFR 008924-Attachment A. Applicants to this model are expected to adhere to all principles and definitions in developing and the delivering their services. In particular, it is important that applicants promote wellbeing for people experiencing multiple challenges and needs, particularly those struggling at the intersection of poverty, trauma, violence, addiction and oppression. A wellbeing approach is holistic and strengths-based and includes promoting sexual and domestic violence survivors’ social connectedness, sense of mastery (competence and power in decisions that affect them), safety, stability, and meaningful access to relevant resources[1]. Application of a wellbeing framework means staff of programs work in partnership with survivors, their children, and/or dependents to develop a comprehensive understanding of their whole situation, as whole people, in the full context of their lives. Promoting wellbeing goes beyond crisis response to draw upon elements of survivors’ lives that are going well. Bidders should describe a holistic approach to their work with residents versus focusing solely on the specific aspects of their lives (“survivor”, “addict”, “mentally ill”) that brought the survivor and children into the program. The extended timeframe (9-12 months at the discretion of the program) for DVSMT residential services makes the application of a wellbeing approach both necessary and possible.
Bidders must have service delivery locations that are designed and furnished to offer families a welcoming and child-safe environment. Sites must also have exterior physical features that maximize safety, such as adequate outdoor lighting, nearby parking, and unobstructed visibility from the main entrance. Programs should be located in neighborhoods that are accessible to the service population, including diverse racial and ethnic groups and people with disabilities. Sites in urban/suburban settings should also be convenient to public transportation. In rural areas and where public transportation is not available or is not affordable, staff must be able to creatively assist survivors in meeting their transportation needs, ensuring that transportation does not impede access.
Services will be provided in accordance with M.G.L. c. 233 s.20k by trained domestic violence counselors and/or volunteers who are receiving on-going clinical supervision.
[1] The Five Domains of Wellbeing (2015). Full Frame Initiative.”
Excerpted from Massachusetts Department of Public Health “Request for Responses: Domestic Violence, Substance Misuse, and Trauma Shelter”