Overruling a customers wishes

Purpose

This procedure describes the actions to be taken in the event that it is necessary to overrule the expressed wishes of a customer.

Responsibility

All staff

Process

The procedure should only apply in those infrequent circumstances where the course of action sought by the customer differs significantly from that proposed by the Response Officer and where they have firm grounds for believing that to follow the customer’s proposed course of action would pose an unreasonable or unwarranted risk to the customer or another person.

Customer taking a risk with someone else’s health or safety

• Where the other party is a child who is a minor, the customer has a right to determine the care of that child, so long as the proposed course of action does not unreasonably jeopardise the health or safety of that child. If the proposed course of action appears to pose unreasonable risks, the matter should be managed using the process that would apply to the customer taking a risk with their own health or safety (see below).
• Where the other party is a competent adult, other than a Careline Officer, the decision on whether to accept the customer’s wishes should be determined on the expressed wishes of the other party.

In doing this, staff should speak to the other party and:

• Ensure that the other party understands the customer’s proposal.
• Explain their reservations about the proposed course of action.
• Determine whether the other party supports the customer’s proposal.
• Be satisfied that the other party is not unduly influenced by the customer in their consideration of the situation.
• Seek to modify the proposed actions using the process that would apply to the customer taking a risk with their own health or safety (see below).

Where the other party is a Careline Officer:

• They should ensure all issues have been carefully considered and should politely refuse to undertake the course of action being suggested where to do so would put their health or safety at undue risk.

Customer taking a risk with their own health and safety

Where staff considers that the risks to the customer’s health or safety arising from their expressed wishes are so great as to be unreasonable or unwarranted, the Response Officer should:

• Explain their concerns about what is being proposed.
• Seek to identify the issues that are driving the customer’s expressed course of action.
• Seek to negotiate and modify the customer’s proposed course of action to one that the Response Officer feels will provide sufficient safeguards.
• If the staff member is unable to negotiate a position that provides sufficient safeguards, then they should over-rule the customer’s expressed course of action / wishes.

Customer temporarily unable to form a rational judgement

• Arriving at a judgement that an adult is not competent to assess the environment around them and form a rationale judgement is a serious step and one not to be taken lightly.
• Staff should ensure that they have firm grounds for arriving at this position before articulating such a reason for over–ruling a customer’s expressed wishes. Such an opinion may be formed following attempts to explore, negotiate and modify the customer’s proposed course of action.
• Where staff members believe that they have clear and defensible grounds for considering that the customer is unable to form a rational and considered judgement, they may over-rule the customer’s expressed wishes on this basis.

Over-ruling the customer’s wishes

• This action should only be taken when the appropriate attempts to negotiate an acceptable course of action (described above) have failed.
• When over-ruling a customer’s expressed wishes, the Response Officers should clearly explain:
• Why they are not prepared to follow the customer’s wishes.
• The course of action that they propose.
• How that course of action is better suited to the circumstances.
• It may be necessary for staff to be authoritative and assertive when over-ruling the customer in these circumstances. At all times they must be polite, but firm.

In any event where the customer’s wishes are over-ruled must be recorded on the job sheet. This should then be emailed to the customer’s social worker and updated on MOSAIC.