xv. Recording sensitive clients
Purpose
This procedure outlines the process for recording sensitive clients.
Authority
- Adoption of Children Act 1964, section 59
Introduction
There may be times when it is important to protect the identity of a subject child and members of his or her family due to security or privacy issues.
When a person record is created in ICMS, the person's electronic records will be fully accessible to all staff. However, there are some cases that will require the electronic and paper files to be classified as 'sensitive'.
Determining sensitive clients
A classification of 'sensitive' must be applied to the following clients:
- any staff member who has a child or unborn child subject to an investigation and assessment, or to ongoing intervention
- a child requiring an adoptive placement (a pre-adoptive case).
A classification of 'sensitive' may be applied to the following persons or clients:
- any staff member who is a relative of, or has a close association (such as a family friend or godparent) to, a child or unborn child subject to departmental intervention
- a child or family where there is critical security risk, including high level child protection risk such as risk of abduction and clients in the Witness Protection Program
- a prominent person, including child protection professionals, political figures, high profile figures and clients where there is major media attention.
Process of classifying sensitive clients
It is likely that a decision to classify a client as sensitive will be made at the point of intake, when the initial information is received, however, a client may be classified as sensitive at any stage during departmental intervention.
Where an issue of sensitivity is raised, the CSO receiving information during the intake stage, or the CSO assessing information during an investigation and assessment or ongoing intervention, will have a discussion with their team leader and senior practitioner about whether to classify and record the client, or clients, as sensitive. The sensitivity manager will determine who requires access to the client files and will authorise access to individual departmental officers.
Departmental officers without access will not be able to view the electronic files of a sensitive client. Electronic searches for clients classified as sensitive will be logged by IT and sensitivity log reports will be generated which will identify staff members who have attempted to access sensitive client records.
Departmental officers without access are not to access the paper files of sensitive clients, which are to be kept in a locked filing cabinet.
Pre-adoptive cases
The Adoption of Children Act 1964, section 59, contains confidentiality requirements that the department does not disclose to any person information that is likely to allow the birth and/or adoptive parent/s identities to become known. In order to comply with this requirement, all adoptive children's birth names will be classified as sensitive and will remain on the system as such. In some cases, the birth parents have other children who are not adopted, and may be subject to child protection intervention. In these cases, the birth parents' names will be classified as either standard or sensitive, as guided by Adoption Services Queensland.
Management of sensitive clients
If a sensitive client is a staff member of a CSSC, a more senior staff member from a different CSSC will undertake the investigation and assessment or complete any other departmental intervention to protect the staff member's privacy within their own CSSC.
If a sensitive client is a CSSC manager, the zonal director will negotiate for a senior staff member from another zone to conduct the investigation and assessment or undertake any other departmental intervention that is required. It is not appropriate for a team leader or CSO to complete such tasks in relation to a CSSC manager.
- Last updated
- 30 January 2009
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