When a situation of sexual violence involving young victims and their families comes to light, professionals in the sociojudicial system are faced with complex challenges requiring appropriate intervention. They aspire to be better prepared to deal with these sensitive situations. To meet their crucial needs, Marie-Vincent, with the financial support of the Ministère de la Justice du Québec (MJQ), has developed and offered for several years a complete range of services designed to train and equip these professionals.

Professionals in the sociojudicial system targeted by our training courses

Staff at crime victims assistance centres (CAVAC), legal aid, the Crown, directors of youth protection (DPJs), investigators, lawyers from community organizations in the sector, medical and social intervention staff, psychotherapeutic services, and community organizations.

In 2021, Marie-Vincent successfully launched the first e-learning course for the sociojudicial system, entitled “Basic Understanding of Sexual Violence Against Youth and its Consequences“. This innovative e-learning course met needs in the areas of secondary victimization, support and consulting.

In a proactive effort to better understand the real needs of these professionals and to design appropriate training programs, Marie-Vincent carried out a Diversified Needs Analysis of the Socioljudicial System. The analysis was based on extensive research that included nearly twenty specialized scientific works in the field. We also held a series of meetings with over 15 people from various backgrounds, including prosecutors, a psychotherapist, DPJ and CAVAC caseworkers, a researcher, a lawyer, a policewoman, a pediatrician and a parent.

The main objective of the initiative is to enhance the support offered by sociojudicial professionals to young victims while reducing the risk of secondary victimization. This aligns with Marie-Vincent’s commitment to building a protective community for our children.

What is secondary victimization?  

Secondary victimization occurs when child victims are faced with negative reactions (real or perceived) by those around them and/or sociojudicial professionals, thus exacerbating the victim’s suffering and trauma. Secondary victimization is therefore the infliction of a new psychological and emotional injury on the child victim.

To help achieve these ambitious goals, the needs analysis aimed to identify best practices in support for child victims of sexual violence and to understand the current issues facing professionals in the sociojudicial system.

The analysis, coupled with new funding from the Ministère de la Justice du Québec, will make it possible to develop resources and tools adapted to the needs of children and professionals, thereby strengthening our collective capacity to offer optimal support to young victims and those who work for their well-being.

More specifically, three resources will be developed and introduced in the coming year:

  1. A consolidation workshop for participants who have completed the e-learning course “Supporting Child Victims of Sexual Violence and Their Families Through the Sociojudicial Process“: Scheduled for June 2024, this course will be offered to people who have completed the e-learning course entitled “Accompanying a Child Victim of Sexual Violence and their Families through the SocioJudicial Process.” It will enable participants to revisit the concepts they have learned, and to discuss and apply them in real-life situations, and will be facilitated by a professional from Marie-Vincent.
  2. Creation of an illustrated children’s book: Scheduled for release in September 2024, this book will be an invaluable tool to help professionals and persons close to the child explain the complex process of sexual violence in a simple and accessible way, covering essential stages such as disclosure, reporting, the judicial process and medical and social intervention. It will serve as a crucial discussion tool for accompanying the child through the process while clarifying the legal process. The book will be distributed free of charge to participants in the “Accompanying a Child Victim of Sexual Violence and their Families through the SocioJudicial Process” training course.
  3. The launch of a 6-hour synchronous training course entitled “Supporting Child Victims of Sexual Violence and their Families through the SocioJudicial Process“: This training course, adapted from an existing e-learning course, will focus on supporting child victims of sexual violence and their families throughout the sociojudicial process. It will cover topics such as secondary victimization, child sexual abuse contexts, types of child disclosure, multi-sectoral collaboration, and empowerment of the child victim. The training will be available both in person and online, with a scheduled launch in the fall of 2024.

 

Discover the impact of our training offer on the sociojudicial system in 2022-2023