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Victim Service Unit brings comfort, help

In observance of Crime Victims’ Rights Week, April 2-8, the Daily Press will be publishing a series of editorials authored by local agencies that support local crime victims.

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ESCANABA — The Delta County Sheriff’s Victim Service Unit (VSU) is designed to comfort and help the victims and survivors immediately at the scene, provide short-term crisis intervention, and make referrals to appropriate agencies and services within the community, according to their particular needs; serve as a go-between for victims, survivors, their families and the scene officials or emergency service providers; help whenever and wherever needed. The advocates strive to offer comfort, compassion, support, referrals, etc., for the victim or family members.

The Michigan Sheriffs’ Association brought the concept of the VSU to the state in 1988; in 1989, the program received the Presidential Citation for Private Sector Initiatives regarded as model for the rest of the nation. There are over 40 units established in the state of Michigan; majority of them are under the sheriff offices umbrellas.

The unit is comprised of trained volunteers from the county, who provide short term crisis intervention after a critical/traumatic event. The volunteers are dedicated to helping victims and families survive a crisis or crime against them, or traumatic event in their lives. The volunteers or advocates, as they are often referred to, are the “Helping Hands,” of police, fire, medical, and other emergency personnel. Thus, advocates free up emergency response personnel to do their jobs, without leaving the victim feeling excluded, forgotten or ignored. The VSU objective is to avoid further victimization. The advocates’ mission is to assist all persons that have experienced any type of trauma.

Advocates initially undergo 20 hours of required training by the Michigan Sheriffs’ Association. However, like first responding agencies, VSU advocates must undergo ongoing training. Additional training that the Delta County Sheriff Office’s VSU advocates have underwent include: Critical Incident Stress Management; crime scene investigations by MSP Forensic Science Division; fire scene investigations; children and trauma; Survivors of Suicide; Mothers Against Drunk Driving; among many other topics. The Delta County Sheriff Office strongly supports ongoing training for its volunteers.

By contacting the Delta County Sheriff Office’s VSU, officers will be able to return to the scene, perform follow-up, return to patrol, or complete the report. The program is designed to alleviate some of the emotional stress from officers and other first responders in dealing with a family in crisis and provide emotional support for the families.

Advocates also request donations of food and beverages for families and for first responders on cases that may take longer for resolution such as missing person, drowning, and so forth.

Advocates are on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week. VSU advocates are paged out by Delta County Central Dispatch or any law enforcement agency, fire department, emergency medical service provider — including St. Francis Hospital, or the prosecutor’s office. Advocates may be called on scene, to the hospital or other locations convenient to victims or survivors. Typically, two advocates respond to any request for assistance.

The VSU advocates are available to respond to calls of homicide, suicide, fatal or natural disasters, natural deaths, death notification, drowning, fires, SIDS, vehicle fatalities, CSC, rape, domestic violence, and other cases deemed necessary by first responders.

The Delta County Sheriff Office’s VSU advocates can also accompany officers to a residence when they do a death notification. Officers are the ones that deliver the news to the family. Advocates talk to victims and families to ascertain their immediate needs. For cases in which death is involved, they may have a family member in the military that needs to be notified. Advocates can contact family members, friends and clergy, to get a support system in place. Families or victims may have immediate financial concerns or other have needs, in which advocates can refer them to local resources for help.

If you would like to hear more about VSU through a presentation, please call the Delta County Sheriff’s Department at 786-3633 and leave a message for the VSU coordinator.

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