Welcome to MADD Canada's on-line course for prospective Victim Services Volunteers (VSV).

Part of MADD Canada's mission is to support victims of impaired driving. VSVs are on the front line of this work. As a VSV (Level 1), you will be engaged in a role of tremendous importance and responsibility on behalf of MADD Canada. You will work closely with people who are in the midst of great emotional turmoil and at various levels of distress. It is critical, therefore, that your interventions are consistently caring, effective and appropriate. We have designed this course as a first step to ensure that you are exceptionally well prepared to meet these challenges.

On behalf of MADD Canada and all of its Chapters, thank you in advance for caring and sharing your valuable services, your interest and your time to learn how best to serve the community. Margaret Miller National President MADD Canada

Instructions

This program has six parts and all sections must be completed in full:

(1) Policies and Procedures
(2) Interviewing Skills
(3) Injury
(4) Insurance & Financial Concerns
(5) Grief & Bereavement
(6) Criminal Justice System

This course is designed to work with your schedule. Start with the section of your choice and complete the exercises at your own pace. Wherever you stop, the system will place you when you restart. You may revisit any section or any module in any section at any time and as many times as you wish.

The entire program should take a maximum of 10 hours to finish. This does not mean it will take you 10 hours to read through all of the learning materials. Because the goal is for you to integrate the information presented in this course, you will be expected to read and re-read the course materials.

Evaluation

When you complete this course you should be able to:

(1) Apply MADD Canada's Policies and Procedures.
(2) Outline skills required in gathering information from victims (injured and/or bereaved).
(3) Identify key features of the impact of an impaired driving crash on the victim and his/her family.
(4) Define the limits of your function as a MADD Canada volunteer (or employee) in assisting clients with insurance claims and financial concerns.
(5) Recognize the expected emotions of grief and the impact of sudden and violent death on the surviving family members and their communities.
(6) Demonstrate a basic understanding of key legal issues, both federal and provincial, in impaired driving cases.

When you complete a section and feel ready to test your knowledge, proceed to the "evaluation area." You will take each test only once.

You will not be provided with a numerical score. However, you will be shown gold, silver or bronze medals as you are evaluated upon completing each section. If you receive a gold medal you may be confident that you understand the material in question. If you receive a silver medal, you would benefit from further study of the material. If you receive a bronze, you must take substantially more time studying the material before moving on to the next section of the course.

Additional Requirements

In addition to this course, you are required to complete the following forms and forward them to MADD Canada to be eligible for further VSV (Level 2) training:

(1) EQ test
(2) Police Clearance letter
(3) Application package including:

a. application letter
b. application form
c. one letter of support from the Chapter's Board of Directors
d. Confidentiality Agreement (signed)
e. MADD Canada's Code of Ethics form (signed)

Disclaimer

This program has been designed for MADD Canada by TAPE Educational Services, a Continuing Education and Professional Development provider, affiliated with St. Michael's College in the University of Toronto. All course content has been vetted and approved by MADD Canada who owns the copyright to this e-learning program. This program has been designed with the aim to meet the basic learning needs of MADD Canada volunteers involved in supporting victims of impaired driving crashes and their families. TAPE Educational Services does not certify an individual's competency and/or ability to support victims nor does TAPE assume any responsibility for errors, omissions, or conduct considered unethical or reprehensible by MADD Canada.