       recording and reviewing the outcome of those assessments so there can be a plan for the care, support or treatment for them Ensure there is an organisational policy with clear procedures as to what to do for clients whose needs cannot be met by the centre or, when there are risks which have been identified as potentially threatening, the safety and wellbeing/health of the client/family or others Ensure that the person assessing the torture survivor and/or their family has a follow-up plan to ensure that the health needs or concerns can be addressed. This may mean that there will need to be a plan to attend to protection issues (e.g. in terms of risk of deteriorating health, risk of self-harm, risk of forced return/refoulement) that have emerged during the course of the assessment. Ensure that the follow-up plans have a clear indication which staff member will carry out the next action and the urgency of that action. Ensure that clients (individuals and families) are consulted, as far as possible, and informed of the follow-up plan. It is important to gain consent, wherever possible, from clients before follow-on referrals to other services, professionals, organisations or agencies are made disclosing personal and sensitive information about the client/family Ensure that a referral is made to another colleague, specialist professional or specialist or other agency or institution, where needs cannot be met by the centre staff themselves Ensure there is a clear organisational system for recording referrals made to other agencies, specialists or services for clients seen by the organisation, and for keeping those records secure Ensure there is an organisational system and procedures for monitoring clients who are waiting to be seen by whomever they have been referred onto (particularly where there is a risk of deterioration in health, risk of harm, child protection risks etc.) Please see ‘Working with Partnerships and Exchanges’ (Power point presentation, 2.5mb) from ACTV Uganda for an overview. http://tinyurl.com/qgahk8j 3.4.3 Assessment and documentation The assessment and documentation of torture is central to deciding how best to meet the needs of the torture survivor. Assessment is also a prerequisite to the formal documentation of torture. Assessment can include writing detailed clinical notes, formal medical, psychiatric or psychological reports, as well as writing country-based or themebased reports using findings from medical and psychological reports (where consent is given). The documentation of torture is an essential aspect of the prevention of torture and can contribute to the protection of torture survivors from refoulement (the forced return of refugees who have a right to be protected as a UN Convention refugee). Documentation also contributes to litigation where the torture survivor is seeking justice and reparations, and awareness-raising and advocacy activities aimed at combating torture and promoting justice and reparations for torture survivors and their families. The formal standards for the documentation of torture can be found in the Manual on the Effective Investigation and Documentation of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (also known as the Istanbul Protocol). 19