Hold Team Meetings . Monitor and Evaluate Your Efforts . Sustain Your SART . Know Your Team . Critical Issues
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Gather Interagency Data
Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Data Resource Center Summarizes how states are collecting data, the kinds of information they collect, and national and state projects related to domestic violence and sexual assault.
Information is power. SARTs have multiple opportunities to augment their individual and collective power by accessing, collecting, and sharing information electronically.1
Ideally, you should pull data from multiple sources so that you can compare and contrast the information. In addition to collecting and analyzing response data, you can also use data to determine staffing needs in order to expand outreach. Staffing needs are an ever-present issue in many states. The problem is particularly acute in rural areas, but many large cities also face chronic staffing shortages and service gaps. Once you collect, synthesize, and analyze data, you can evaluate external factors (e.g., shifting client needs, increased competition for funding dollars) that influence the resources your SART needs and develop strategies to overcome challenges and meet emerging needs.
Domestic and Sexual Violence Data Collection: A Report to Congress under the Violence Against Women Act Provides recommendations for improving and expanding both organizational and technical data collection systems at the state and national levels.
States often find themselves caught between federal data standards and state and local practices. Improved data reporting efforts should address crime complexities and piggyback other reporting systems to avoid repetitive data entry or incompatible information sharing.
Source: James Zepp, Domestic and Sexual Violence Data Collection: A Report To Congress Under The Violence Against Women Act, 1996.
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