ACC or How To Eat An Elephant

ACC is changing their rules! A lot of counsellors/psychotherapists are not aware of what is in the pine-line and there are - to put it mildly - shock-waves running through the profession. Something needs to be done, and maybe now is the time to do it! 

Its great to see that Rape Crisis is planning another meeting with ACC. Auckland Sexual Abuse Help is also about to approach ACC management. However, it's a huge task and everybody's help is needed to 'eat this elephant'.

20 years of dealing with ACC and observing the many professional groups sitting in meetings with ACC with really poor outcomes considering the time invested,  makes me very skeptical about the usefulness of yet another meeting.

"...being involved in phoney participation, with people who don’t listen, when things don’t change” is the ultimate disrespect (Ruth Lister, 2005,Recognition and voice: the challenge for social justice, ESRC seminar 1: Social justice and public policy (pp. 7): Scottish Centre for Research on Social Justice).

All I hear from colleagues who have been involved in 'talking to ACC' is that they are exhausted and disheartened from trying to open a gate that just won't budge. I always tell my clients that if something is not working, doing more of the same thing and expecting a different outcome is crazy.

All the meetings and good will in the past have resulted in ACC going ahead what they had planed all along without giving heat to any of the therapeutic arguments. Rather than coming together as professionals, ACC introducing peer reviews, assessments done only by psychologists, asking psychologist and psychiatrists for advice of how to best work with survivors and not the people who are doing about 90% of the work, this Foucaultian 'divide and rule' has been very effective in deepening the trenches between professions.

The dynamics of sexual abuse: dis-empowerment, control, exploitation, being silenced, and suffering in isolation - so well known by survivors, are reproduced in the relationship between ACC and counsellors. How can we convincingly assure clients that fighting against the legacies of sexual abuse is worth while if therapists remain silenced by the same dynamic?

It is my strong impression that the time for talking has passed and more assertive action is needed. In the past counsellors have always been 'invisible' and quiet to assure that things don't get worse for clients. It can't get any worse than this new pathway. It is the end of recovery from sexual abuse.

I hope we can bring our concerns to the public by

• approaching the media,
• approaching contacts people have with members of the parliament
• or other health care organisations.
• Do clients know what's waiting in the wings for them? They would need to know so that they can speak up.
• What about public mental health services? They would have to cope with a flood of clients they are not prepared for.
• What about GPs and other professionals who rely on counsellors keeping their patients safe

I am very happy to be part of initiating a more assertive response. Anybody who is interested in joining a discussion how that can be done is welcome to contact me. If there are groups within the counselling and psychotherapy community who are already formulating such protest, is it possible to be inclusive and open your group to others? 

I am looking forward to hearing your thoughts and opinions

Comments

[SnS]

What about us the clients, I have been a client of ACC for many years and know if I had'nt had thier help, I would have never had made it. I would prob be sitting in a mental hospital still or more favouably stoned off my trolley or prob more than likely dead.I am really pissed off that theres so many people out there that deserve the oppertunity to recover from the infliction of sexual abuse. It totaly pisses me off that you can choose to go out on to a rugby field where you no that there is the potentual to get the crap kicked out of you and the know if you do ACC will come to the party. If you are someone that happens to be born to a pack of abuses or be walking down the wrong road where there happens to be a rapist or your partner, brother ,sister etc is an abuser then stuff you, it prob just the hand you were delt. I cant see why the chiefs out there are so hell bent on keeping people sick. WE need to stand up and do something,so if you think "hey im lucky I got through when I did" weell think again your the one that can now help others and you can prove that people get better and live good lives and work etc. Im going to try written to my MP as soon as I no who it is lol and talk to ever I can. you have a go to