Mandatory Psych Evaluation For Abuse Survivors

[deecee 2]

Recently it has come to light that Kansas wants to require all domestic abuse survivors to undergo a psychological evaluation in order to receive services from partner agencies. As a result of this and other contractual requirements, some of the established, successful helping agencies aren't going to provide services any more.

This sure seems to suggest that it is the victim's fault that they are abused.

[Rose @ Walnut Acre 1]

Wow! I hope that requirement doesn't get passed. It's hard enough to deal with all the other fallout of domestic abuse without having to go through an evaluation like that.

[Quirky Jessi 2]

Wait, what?

Why are they doing this?

And what kind of services is it that they're requiring it for? Are they requiring people to "pass" these evaluations? Or fail them in order to qualify? Or.... I'm really curious what the basis for this is.

[kjscrafts 1]

And what kind of services is it that they're requiring it for? Are they requiring people to "pass" these evaluations? Or fail them in order to qualify? Or.... I'm really curious what the basis for this is.

I am wondering the same thing. Do they just need to go through them as part of the process or is it something to pass or fail? I would think it would be a good thing to require them to have a psych evaluation (although not necessarily the first requirement to get any help) not because it could be the victim's psychological problem attracting them to the abuse, but rather that the abuse could cause psychological problems.

[sphinx 0]

I think this can be seen both ways - If the evaluation is just an information gathering tool that allows the person to be aimed towards those most able to provide what they most need then it has to be supported - if its a pass or fail punishment orientated exercise it cannot be condemned enough.

I mean lets say someone is in a car accident - when they get to hospital they are going to be checked from stem to stern even if they say they feel fine to make sure there is nothing needing treatment, and to assess what treatment is needed from what department - nobody would dream of questioning this or saying it was a bad thing even if it can be invasive. So if someone coming from an abuse situation is assessed to check they are not at risk of abuse from another quarter (how many young women run away from abusive parents only to end up with an abusive man - and if they manage to escape that they feel they have nowhere to go except back to abusive parents), to make sure they are not suffering PTSD, to make sure they have food shelter money etc, to make sure they are not at risk of depression etc then I say that is a good thing so long as any points that are highlighted are properly treated. However no-one would dream of getting the car accident victim to take a series of tests with them having to get a set score for insurance to pay for everything and if the assessment is going to be of the type that says you werent a proper victim or you were partially responsible then it should be thrown out immediately.

[kinser 3]

I think it's a good idea for the services to be offered and widely available, but requiring them seems to be a classic case of the government overstepping. I'm sure it all has to do with funding and money - that always seems to be the underlying reason. I am also curious as to what it means - what kind of psych evaluation are they referring to? If someone seeks help, isn't he or she already agreeing to be evaluated by the professional the help is being sought from?

[deecee 2]

As a understand it, the service providers are being required to obtain the evals for clients as a condition of the providers getting the state contract.

Kansas is on a big push to privatize and funnel state funds to religion-based organizations. I suspect they are requiring the evals knowing the successful non-profits will decline. This leaves the door open to channelling the funding to the other groups.

One fear that has been expressed is that the evals might potentially be used against victims in court proceedings.