Adelante Project: Enhancing Services for Human Trafficking Victims

This project will support the continuation and further expansion of Adelante, an innovative, integrated, and collaborative project between the two largest healthcare systems in the state of Massachusetts, Beth Israel Lahey Health and Mass General Brigham. The Adelante Project seeks to address the uniquely positioned, yet underutilized, access point of healthcare as a means of assisting current and former adult victims of labor and sex trafficking throughout Greater Boston and Eastern Massachusetts. This cross-functioning project bridges the violence prevention programs of flagship hospitals from each healthcare system, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH), to more robustly address the needs of survivors by leveraging both organizations' resources, providing a more comprehensive scope of services. The project will offer clinically informed case management and advocacy services, as well as new group modalities, expand housing/shelter options, and will provide legal, housing, and educational support via partner organizations. To enhance healthcare responsiveness, Adelante will build out a system-wide training plan, create best practice guidance and facilitate the integration of these through a cross-system working group. Adelante will utilize this training model to provide ongoing outreach and training opportunities to outside agencies with a focus on developing relationships with culturally responsive domestic violence agencies and area worker centers that are well-positioned to encounter potential survivors of labor trafficking. This project seeks to expand the current services available through valued partnerships with agencies such as Jewish Vocational Services, Legal Services Center, Boston University Immigrants’ Rights and Human Trafficking Clinic, and Health Imperatives. Data collection and participation in evaluation activities will occur throughout the project to ensure it is meeting its objectives. Through these activities, Adelante will 1) provide direct comprehensive services to accommodate the individualized needs of victims; 2) enhance healthcare responsiveness to labor and sex trafficking through the development, and providing of, trauma- and survivor-informed training; 3) build out collaboration with, and training for local partners; and 4) strengthen the network of services available to victims to increase support and connections to essential services.