What is it?

When someone at work dies or experiences serious harm under the suspicion of Abuse or Neglect, the process of Safeguarding Adult Reviews (SARs) is implemented. SARs is a process that decides if serious harm inflicted on a vulnerable adult or multiple vulnerable adults, could have been prevented ahead of time.

SARs is a multi-agency process where the local Safeguarding Adults Board looks closely at how the person could have been protected from abuse and/or neglect. This process is carried out to help organisations improve their services and optimise their ability to keep people safe.

Managing SARs – A 3-step Process (as found by The Safeguarding Adults Board)

1. Having professional curiosity

The curiosity to dig deeper and look beyond a situation’s face value. Taking the time to challenge and question instances that call for SARs, even if it’s difficult. This is especially true when working with people who might appear unengaged and could be being coerced. It’s important to remember that the smallest discoveries made as a result of professional curiosity could potentially save lives later down the line.

2. Deciding executive capacity

It’s also worth noting that individuals might be able to decide for themselves but are unable to carry out the SARs process as they don’t have what’s referred to as, “executive capacity”. Everyone should have an input into their safety and if an individual doesn’t have the capacity to act on their decisions, this could impact their ability to keep themselves safe. Judging if someone has executive capacity can be difficult, especially with people that have brain injuries, addictions, phobias or disorders. This means a careful examination of an individual’s situation is vitally important. Good steps to take would be to:

Build rapport with the person
Talk to people they know (friends, family and colleagues)
Observe their daily lives
Find out more about previous interactions with services

3. Care Act advocacy

Safeguarding enquiries can be very confusing or distressing for certain people. Having an advocate to help them feel more comfortable goes a long way to supporting them through the process of understanding their rights and having their voices heard. A lot of people who are referred for safeguarding support might not have any other support services in place. Having an advocate for people who are at the most risk means that individuals will have access to the right information and be able to access the services they need.

Think of it as an early intervention to help prevent people’s well-being from deteriorating.

Contacting Us

If you’d like to know more about how to manage SARs and how to protect your business we are here to help. Contact us today and a friendly member of our team will discuss ways we can support you. Book a call with us at a time convenient time by clicking the link below.