U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 

 Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation 

______________________________________________________________________ 

_______________________________________________________________________ 

ADDRESSING THE NEEDS OF VICTIMS OF HUMAN 

TRAFFICKING: CHALLENGES, BARRIERS, AND PROMISING 

PRACTICES 

Heather J. Clawson, Ph.D. and Nicole Dutch, B.A

I. STUDY OVERVIEW 

This is the fifth in a series of Issue Briefs 

produced under a contract with the U.S. 

Department of Health and Human Services 

(HHS), Office of the Assistant Secretary for 

Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), to conduct 

a study of HHS programs serving human 

trafficking victims. Funded in the fall of 

2006, the purpose of this exploratory project 

is to develop information on how HHS 

programs are currently addressing the needs 

of victims of human trafficking, including 

domestic victims, with a priority focus on 

domestic youth. This project also reviewed 

relevant literature, and identified barriers 

and promising practices for addressing the 

needs of victims of human trafficking, with 

a goal of informing current and future 

program design and improving services to 

this extremely vulnerable population. 

This issue brief focuses on the needs of 

victims of human trafficking and the 

services available to meet those needs. 

Additionally, it discusses challenges and 

barriers to providing services to victims, 

international and domestic, adults and 

minors, and highlights innovative solutions 

to these challenges and promising practices 

to overcome barriers . Throughout the brief 

we make distinctions, where appropriate, 

between international adult victims, 

international minor victims, and domestic 

minor victims. No information was 

available regarding domestic adult victims 

as agencies did not report providing services 

to this population. There also is no current 

research or literature providing information 

on serving this population. 

II. UNDERSTANDING THE NEEDS 

OF VICTIMS OF HUMAN 

TRAFFICKING 

Common Needs 

When service providers and law 

enforcement personnel were asked to 

describe the needs of victims of human 

trafficking, a common response was, “what 

don’t they need.” The table on the next page 

shows the responses given by those service 

providers participating in the study.1

 The 

safety needs of victims were identified as 

the first priority by all of those working with 

victims. According to law enforcement and 

providers, screening for safety needs (for 

both the victims and providers) is part of 

every assessment they conduct. Safety 

needs are often met when the next priority 

need for (safe) emergency housing is 

addressed. Other emergency needs include 

food and clothing and, for international 

victims, translation services to avoid 

feelings of isolation and to facilitate 

communication regarding other needs. 

Once emergency needs are met, other needs 

that present themselves in the short- and 

long-term need to be met. These include 

housing (transitional and permanent for 

adults, and foster care or permanent 

placement for minors), legal assistance (e.g., 

help in understanding legal rights, legal 

representation and, for 

 

1

 A complete listing of the programs 

participating in the study, along with a detailed 

description of the methods use to collect 

information will be available in the final report 

released Summer 2008. 

1
______________________________________________________________________ 

Needs of Victims of Human Trafficking 

International

Adults Minors Domestic Minors

Emergency

Safety X X X

Housing X X X

Food/clothing X X X

Translation X X

Legal guardianship X X

Short-/Long-term

Transitional housing X X

Long-term housing X X

Permanency placement X

Legal assistance X X X

Advocacy

Translation X X X

Medical care X X X

Mental health/ 

counseling

X X X

Substance abuse 

treatment

X*

Transportation X X

Life skills X X X

Education X X X

Financial 

assistance/management X X

Job training/employment X X X

Child care X X X

Reunification/repatriation X X X

*While substance abuse treatment may be a need for international victims, it was only identified as a need for domestic 

minor victims. 

international victims, assistance with filing 

T-visa applications, and immigration 

petitions), and advocacy (e.g., assistance 

retrieving identification documents, 

completing applications, attending 

appointments, and navigating the different 

U.S. systems, including criminal 

justice, child welfare, immigration, human 

services, transportation, etc.). 

Additionally, service providers and law 

enforcement note that most victims also 

need health screening (tuberculosis, sexually 

transmitted diseases, pregnancy), 

vaccinations/immunizations, medical 

treatment for physical injuries, and dental 

care. Other service needs include child care 

(for both adults and minors with children), 

education (GED assistance, enrollment in 

school, technical training/certification), life 

skills training (including assisting some 

international victims with operation of basic 

household appliances, using public 

transportation, using a telephone, mailing a 

letter, etc.), job training, finding 

employment, financial management, and 

where appropriate, family reunification or 

repatriation. 

_______________________________________________________________________ 

2
______________________________________________________________________ 

In addition to the above service needs, 

service providers report that all victims of 

trafficking have some type of mental health 

need.2

 Specifically, service providers 

indicated that as a result of the trauma 

experienced, victims need trauma 

counseling and for domestic minor victims 

in particular, they often need anger 

management, conflict resolution, and family 

counseling. 

Differences in Needs 

While the needs are relatively similar 

regardless of whether someone is an 

international or domestic victim, adult or 

minor, one point is clear—the magnitude of 

these needs varies for each victim depending 

on his or her circumstances. 

For example, international victims often 

express a greater and more urgent need to 

obtain employment than domestic victims 

do. This is reportedly the result of their 

desire to send money back home to support 

their families. 

Additionally, while obtaining identification 

documents (e.g., passports, birth certificates, 

driver’s licenses) is reported to be an 

important need for all victims in order to 

access services, it is especially important for 

international victims to have some form of 

identification or legal documentation on 

hand. One service provider told of an 

incident where a client was removed from 

public transportation and placed in detention 

because the client did not have any 

identification on his/her person and had not 

yet received his/her certification letter 

_______________________________________________________________________ 

 

2

 For more information on the mental health 

needs and services available for victims of 

human trafficking, see “Treating the hidden 

wounds: Trauma treatment and mental health 

recovery for victims of human trafficking” at 

http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/07/HumanTrafficking/ or 

http://www.icfi.com/markets/social-programs/

indicating he/she was a victim of human 

trafficking. This experience exacerbated the 

client’s situation and need for ongoing legal 

assistance. 

Legal assistance is one other area where 

there are differences in degree or type of 

need between international and domestic 

victims. While both have legal needs, 

international victims, often in the U.S. 

illegally, have more complex legal needs 

usually related to their immigration status. 

This includes needing representation at 

deportation hearings, assistance with 

applications for T visas and derivative visas, 

and renewal applications. 

While it is not necessarily unique to 

domestic victims, service providers report 

that domestic victims often present with 

serious substance abuse issues. Some 

providers report that while international 

victims also need assistance with similar 

problems, they are less likely to admit they 

have a problem out of shame, fear of stigma, 

or denial that their substance abuse 

constitutes a problem. In some cases, the 

service providers do not want to indicate this 

as a need of international victims for fear 

access to treatment records will be 

subpoenaed and used against the victim in a 

legal case (criminal, civil, or immigration). 

Regardless of the victim, law enforcement 

and service providers stress that it is not so 

much the type of needs that vary by victim, 

but the duration of services required to 

address those needs and the level of 

difficulty obtaining such services. 

III. SERVICES AVAILABLE FOR 

VICTIMS OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING 

Prior to the passage of the Trafficking 

Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA), 

law enforcement and service providers 

report struggling to piece together the 

comprehensive services needed by 

international victims of human trafficking 

with scarce resources. Under the TVPA, 

3
______________________________________________________________________ 

HHS was designated as the agency 

responsible for helping these victims of 

human trafficking become eligible for 

benefits and services and funds were 

allocated for the delivery of such benefits 

and services. One responsibility of HHS is 

to certify adult international victims of 

trafficking who are not U.S. citizens or legal 

permanent residents (LPRs) once they are 

identified. This certification allows adult 

international victims to receive the same 

benefits and services available to refugees. 

U. S. citizens or LPRs who find themselves 

victims of trafficking (i.e., domestic victims) 

do not need to be certified in order to 

receive benefits. In the case of citizens, they 

are already eligible for many benefits and 

services they might need. And although 

LPRs face greater benefit restrictions than 

U.S. citizens, they do not face the same 

eligibility restrictions as undocumented 

immigrants, which is usually the status of 

international adult victims when they are 

first identified. International minor victims 

of trafficking (under the age of 18) do not 

need to be certified but instead receive a 

letter of eligibility from HHS and are then 

eligible to apply for a similar range of 

services as refuges, including the 

Unaccompanied Refugee Minor (URM) 

Program. 

In order for an international adult victim of 

trafficking to receive certification he or she 

must first be determined to be a victim of a 

severe form of trafficking as defined by the 

TVPA and he or she must be willing to 

comply with all reasonable requests to assist 

law enforcement in the investigation of the 

trafficking case (minor victims are exempt 

from this requirement). Following this 

determination, the victim must complete a 

bona fide application for a T visa, receive a 

T visa, or be granted “continued presence” 

by federal law enforcement. T visas were 

established under the TVPA and allow 

victims of trafficking to become legal 

temporary residents of the United States. 

Once a T visa is obtained, a victim may 

remain in the U.S. for up to three years. At 

the end of this time period the victim may be 

eligible for legal permanent residence status. 

Certified adult victims are eligible to receive 

federally funded services and benefits 

similar to refugees. Some of the services that 

victims of trafficking are eligible for through 

federally funded programs, such as the PerCapita Victim Services Contract include 

housing or shelter assistance, food 

assistance, income assistance, employment 

assistance, English language training, health 

care assistance, and mental health services. 

_______________________________________________________________________ 

Per-Capita Victim Services Contract 

 

The Per-Capita Victim Services contract is 

designed to centralize services while 

maintaining a high level of care for victims of

human trafficking through “anytime, 

anywhere” case management. Working in

concert with HHS’ ongoing Rescue & Restore 

public awareness campaign, subcontractors are 

reimbursed for the services actually provided to

each human trafficking victim. The contract 

also streamlines support services in order to help

victims gain timely access to shelter, job 

training, and health care. 

For more information, please contact

mrs@usccb.org

Prior to becoming certified, a period referred 

to as pre-certification, victims pursuing 

4

The Unaccompanied Refugee Minor (URM)

Program for 

International Minor Victims

International minors who are determined to be

victims of human trafficking by law enforcement

officials are eligible for the T visa, which allows 

victims of trafficking to remain in the U.S. and 

become eligible for work authorization.

Additionally, international minor victims without 

a parent or legal guardian in the U.S. are eligible 

for services under the Unaccompanied Refugee 

Minors (URM) program. The URM serves as a 

legal authority designated to act in place of the 

child’s unavailable parents. Children are placed 

in foster homes, group homes, or independent

living arrangements. Through the URM, children 

can receive intensive case management, 

education, health care, mental health counseling,

independent living skills training, assistance with

family reunification and repatriation, and other 

services until they turn 18 or such higher age, 

depending on the foster care rules of each state. 
______________________________________________________________________ 

certification and cooperating with law 

enforcement can receive limited, often 

emergency services, which parallel most 

certification services as a result of funding 

available from HHS and other federal 

agencies. Pre-certification services include 

housing, food/clothing, advocacy, legal 

assistance, medical/dental care, language 

services (e.g., interpreters/translators), 

mental health counseling, education, and job 

training. 

In addition, service providers report seeking 

other assistance for victims who may decide 

not to cooperate with law enforcement out 

of fear of retaliation from the traffickers, or 

for other reasons. The strategies to assist 

these victims may include seeking asylum 

for the victim or filing for a U-Visa3

 and 

accessing services under the Violence 

Against Women Act, or for some agencies, 

tapping into non-federal or unrestricted 

funding streams to provide ad hoc services 

(for example, from state or local government 

programs, foundation-funded programs, 

etc.). 

_______________________________________________________________________ 

 

IV. CHALLENGES AND BARRIERS 

TO MEETING THE NEEDS OF 

VICTIMS 

While there seems to be consistency 

between the needs of trafficking victims and 

the services for which they are eligible and 

the programs in place to provide these 

services, there are many challenges and 

barriers to getting victims into service. 

 3

 A U visa is set aside for victims of crimes, 

such as domestic violence, rape, assault, 

abduction, and other violent crimes who 

have suffered mental or physical abuse 

because of the crime and who not only have 

information regarding the activity, but also 

are willing to assist government officials in 

the investigation of the criminal activity. 

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration services 

can grant up to 10,000 U visas each year 

authorizing the holder to remain and work 

legally in the U.S. for up to three years, at 

which time the victim can apply for a green 

card.

Lack of Knowledge and Understanding. 

One of the most common and frustrating 

challenges reported by law enforcement and

service providers is the lack of knowledge 

and understanding regarding human 

trafficking among service providers, law 

enforcement, and even victims themselves 

who often do not believe or understand that 

they are a victim of crime. As a result, 

victims often go unidentified and unserved.4

Lack of knowledge and understanding of 

what services are available is a barrier for 

service providers as well. Many service 

providers report their own confusion 

regarding what services their clients are 

eligible for and can access, which highlights 

the need for effective case management as 

identified in a previous Issue Brief.5

 

“There is a general lack of knowledge and

understanding of human trafficking and not

enough service providers in the healthcare 

profession, local Social Security

Administration offices, department of motor 

vehicles, and other key agencies are trained 

on this issue and know they can serve these 

clients. We are constantly having to take our 

clients to appointments because they are 

turned away when they try on their own.” 

 Service Provider 

Availability of Services. Even though 

victims, international or domestic, may be 

eligible for services, the availability of those 

4

 For more information on the challenges 

identifying victims of human trafficking, see 

“Identifying victims of human trafficking: 

Inherent challenges and promising strategies

from the field” at 

http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/07/HumanTrafficking/ or

http://www.icfi.com/markets/social-programs/ 5

 For more information on the case management

needs of victims of human trafficking, see “Case 

management and the victim of human 

trafficking: A critical service for client success” 

at http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/07/HumanTrafficking/

or http://www.icfi.com/markets/social-programs/

5
______________________________________________________________________ 

needed services is often limited due to long 

wait lists and associated fees (even if offered 

on a sliding scale). As one provider 

indicates, “Free clinics are not always free. 

You spend a lot of time waiting to be seen 

and there are often some unexpected charges 

associated with most services.” According 

to service providers, this is particularly true 

for mental health services and substance 

abuse treatment. 

_______________________________________________________________________ 

 

While accessing basic medical services 

(physicals, gynecological exams, screenings, 

etc.) is not reported as a problem for most 

service providers (with the exception of 

some providers in rural communities), 

accessing specialized medical treatment was 

problematic. Specifically, specialized care 

for acute, long-term needs, such as diabetes, 

cancer, and other illnesses, including 

prescriptions that are part of the treatment, 

were often cost prohibitive and in some 

cases, exhaust program resources. 

 

Similarly, while most service providers are 

able to find basic dental care for their clients 

(although sometimes there are long waiting 

periods), more serious and costly dental 

procedures, such as root canals and 

extractions, are difficult to obtain. 

Housing is another service that law 

enforcement and service providers report is 

limited. While finding emergency shelter 

for women and girls is not usually a 

problem, finding the same placements for 

men and boys is difficult. Transitional and 

permanent housing is scarce for everyone 

but in particular for domestic minors with 

felony convictions and victims with mental 

health or substance abuse issues.6

 

‘There just isn’t affordable housing in our

community for anyone. We often end up

placing groups of victims together in

apartments or houses. Sometimes this works 

but sometimes the only areas where they can 

afford housing are high crime areas. We’ve

actually had clients become the victims of

other crimes (burglary) because they could 

only afford to live in unsafe neighborhoods.” 

 

 Service Provider 

Finally, the availability of services in 

general for domestic victims is viewed as 

problematic by some service providers. As 

one provider states, “If you just look at what 

domestic victims are eligible for on paper, it 

looks promising. However, trying to access 

those services is another story.” Several 

examples include referrals to child welfare 

agencies by service providers and law 

enforcement only to find out that the 

agencies would not see the domestic victims 

because the abuse did not occur at the 

“hands of a parent or legal guardian.” In

these cases, providers and law enforcement 

report minors falling through the cracks of 

the mainstream system and not receiving 

services. In some cases, minors were 

handed back to their abusers and “turned 

back out on the streets.” 

“As a service provider, I find it confusing trying

to figure out what services are available for 

which clients [international or domestic]. Most 

of my time is spent making calls or running

around to agencies. We [service providers]

need a road map that helps explain not only

what services our clients are eligible for but 

how we go about accessing these services. 

What documentation does my client need?

What paperwork do they need to fill out? What

would make my client ineligible for services? I 

can barely navigate through all of these systems 

myself, so how can we expect our clients to take 

this on?” 

 Service Provider 

Appropriateness of Services. Service 

providers talk not only of the need for more 

culturally appropriate services, but also for 

6

 For more information on the housing needs of

domestic minor victims, see “Finding a path to

recovery: Residential facilities for minor victims 

of domestic sex trafficking” at 

http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/07/HumanTrafficking/ or

http://www.icfi.com/markets/social-programs/

6
______________________________________________________________________ 

gender appropriate services. Finding such 

services can be challenging, particularly in 

rural communities. Additionally, service 

providers stress the importance of 

understanding what is meant by culturally 

appropriate services. For instance, just 

having someone from the same culture who 

speaks the same language does not translate 

into culturally appropriate services 

according to service providers. Speaking 

the same language as clients can help 

facilitate service provision but that is just 

one piece of one’s culture. Service 

providers gave examples of victims of sex 

trafficking who were not comfortable 

talking about their experiences with 

someone from their same culture out of the 

associated shame and stigma. Other 

examples given by service providers were 

related to the gender and culture of the 

victim. For example, in some cultures, it is 

not appropriate for a female to visit a male 

doctor. Recognizing these challenges and 

the implications for providing appropriate 

services to clients is seen as critical by 

providers themselves. 

_______________________________________________________________________ 

The appropriateness of services also extends 

to examining the culture of the environment 

in which the service is offered. For 

example, service providers note that 

providing services to victims who are living 

in shelters can be difficult and some 

environments can result in 

“revictimization.” In particular, providers 

share examples of sex trafficking clients 

being placed in domestic violence shelters 

and then facing humiliation and isolation. 

For international sex trafficking victims, the 

isolation is usually attributed by service 

providers to language barriers and cultural 

differences. But for domestic victims of sex 

trafficking, the humiliation and isolation, 

according to service providers and some 

victims, is attributed to perceptions that 

domestic victims are “prostitutes,” or willing 

participants, rather than victims of abuse and 

crimes. These misperceptions reflect again, 

a general lack of understanding and 

knowledge of the issue, not only among 

service providers but in the general public. 

Access to Services. The two greatest 

barriers to accessing services for 

international victims include language 

barriers and transportation. Service 

providers indicate that the availability of 

information and access to providers that 

speak English, Spanish, and in some 

communities Korean, is not difficult. It is 

their clients that speak other languages that 

have difficulty accessing services. 

Additionally, transportation is a problem. In 

large cities, teaching clients how to use the 

transportation system can be overwhelming 

and very time consuming. Service providers 

report clients missing appointments because 

they were afraid to use public transportation. 

In smaller communities, there is often 

limited or no public transportation, also 

making it difficult for clients to get to 

appointments. 

“There is no cookie-cutter approach to working 

with this population. Males, females, adults, 

children, sex trafficking, or labor trafficking. 

You just don’t know how long you will be

working with them. Just when you think they 

are moving forward, something happens with

their case or with their family or they see 

something in the news that triggers the trauma 

experience and sets them back sometimes 

months in their progress. A lot of times it is one 

step forward and two or three steps back. You 

just have to be prepared for setbacks.”

 

 Service Provider 

Length of Services. Another challenge 

identified by service providers and victims 

themselves is the length or duration of the 

services available to victims. Service 

providers note that the timeline to selfsufficiency varies by client. Some clients 

may come in, get certified right away and be 

ready to work, especially among many labor 

trafficking victims. Other victims, however, 

may remain pre-certified for a longer period 

of time and even after becoming certified, 

7
______________________________________________________________________ 

they may not be ready to work or move 

forward with their lives. According to 

service providers, individual timelines are 

difficult to predict. However, with close 

monitoring and anticipation of set-backs 

(e.g., depositions, appearances at trial, 

intense counseling sessions, reunification, 

etc.), providers are able to adjust services to 

meet the changing needs of clients. 

For domestic minors, shelter stays are often 

limited to 15-, 30- or 90-days and do not 

allow providers enough time to establish 

relationships with victims or provide 

adequate services to meet their longer-term 

needs. Transitional housing for domestic 

minors and domestic victims is often 

limited, and when available victims often 

find it difficult to follow the 

rules/restrictions of the facilities (e.g., no 

drug/alcohol use, required employment). 

_______________________________________________________________________ 

 

Lack of Coordination of Services. For the 

most part, service providers acknowledge 

improved coordination of services for clients 

over the past several years. However, they 

see the need for a single point of contact 

within each agency working with victims 

and a central case manager to ensure 

communication and coordination of 

services. 

This appears to be especially true in the case 

of minor victims. According to service 

providers and law enforcement, when 

working with minor victims, in particular 

international minor victims, there are often 

numerous individuals involved in a case, 

making coordination and communication 

difficult. In some cases, providers and law 

enforcement report not knowing who to 

contact on behalf of the minor or who could 

make decisions on behalf of the minor. 

There were cases of information not getting 

transferred from one agency to the next, 

sometimes resulting in minors not getting 

the services they needed. As one provider 

states, “When the process for [international] 

minor victims works, it works well. But 

when it doesn’t, it fails miserably.” There is 

agreement among providers and law 

enforcement alike that there needs to be 

more information and communication 

regarding how international minor victims 

are served. Most providers report positive 

experiences with the URM programs but 

communications from these programs, as 

well as the availability and location of 

“When working with a domestic victim, I just services are seen as limited. 

need more time. I can’t stabilize a client with

an extensive trauma history within 90 days or

transition them to permanent housing within 

18-months. Many of my clients struggle to get 

clean, get an education (or GED), learn life 

skills, obtain employable skills, and get 

employed. This is especially true if they have 

not begun to work on trauma recovery and this 

can take years.” 

 Service Provider 

V. INNOVATIONS AND PROMISING 

PRACTICES TO SERVING VICTIMS 

To address the many challenges and barriers 

to providing services to victims of human

trafficking, many service providers have 

developed innovative strategies and 

promising practices for their agencies and 

their clients. 

Collaboration. The importance of 

collaboration in meeting the needs of 

victims of human trafficking cannot be 

overstated. Law enforcement and service 

providers stress the importance of working 

together to meet the diverse and complex 

needs of this population. The establishment 

of coalitions and task forces, such as the 

ORR-funded Rescue and Restore coalitions, 

is viewed as one strategy that has resulted in 

the increased availability of services for all 

victims. 

8
______________________________________________________________________ 

_______________________________________________________________________ 

 

Several service providers report establishing 

formal memoranda of understanding 

(MOUs) with domestic violence shelters to 

ensure not only placement of their clients 

but placement in a facility with a staff 

trained on human trafficking and sensitive to 

the needs of victims. These MOUs are also 

important because some domestic violence 

shelters will not (or cannot) accept victims if 

they are not victims of domestic violence, 

defined as involving a boyfriend or spouse. 

But with MOUs, exceptions to this 

definition have been made with some 

agencies. Service providers also report 

success in reaching out to domestic violence 

shelters that traditionally serve battered 

immigrant women. 

In several communities across the country, 

collaboration among local law enforcement, 

juvenile and family court judges, child 

protection services, and youth shelters and 

programs has proven to be a promising and 

necessary practice for identifying and 

meeting the needs of domestic minor victims 

of sex trafficking. 

Consistent Case Managers. Given the 

complexity of victims’ needs and the 

comprehensiveness of the services provided, 

service providers, law enforcement, and 

victims report that having a consistent case 

manager all the way from identification to 

case closure is a promising practice.7

 While 

not possible in all cases due to staff turnover 

7

 For more information on the case management 

needs of victims of human trafficking, see “Case 

management and the victim of human 

trafficking: A critical service for client success” 

at http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/07/HumanTrafficking/

or http://www.icfi.com/markets/social-programs/

and the lack of funding for case managers 

for domestic victims, having this 

consistency benefits the victim, service 

providers, and law enforcement (including 

prosecutors). A central case manager with 

knowledge of all aspects of the victim’s 

situation can ultimately save time and 

resources. 

“We have partnered with Goodwill and other 

similar organizations to obtain vouchers for 

our clients. They are able to use these to 

shop for necessities. It provides them with 

what they need as well as gives them some

level of independence.” 

 Service Provider 

“Victims need to be assigned a case 

manager from point of identification

throughout the criminal justice process. 

This person does not need to be a victim

witness coordinator from law enforcement

(although they could) but the person needs to

be consistent.” 

 Law Enforcement 

Mobile Services. In some communities,

home visits that provide medical and mental 

health care, and basic case management, is 

an innovation helping to meet the needs of 

victims. This approach is especially valued 

by agencies serving clients in large 

geographically dispersed areas, as well as

rural areas. In both of these cases, clients 

can find it difficult to get to their 

appointments. Some service providers 

mention using in-home visits as a way to

introduce clients to services; it is almost a 

trial period before transitioning them to inoffice treatment. 

Additionally, linking clients to existing 

mobile health clinics is a common practice 

for many agencies, including shelters 

working with domestic victims. 

Use of Pro Bono Services. Several 

agencies report using pro bono services, 

particularly for legal services. This often 

involves providing training to attorneys on 

the issue of human trafficking and providing 

access in order to interview clients. While 

this results in a larger pool of affordable and 

appropriate service providers for clients, it 

does require significant training and 

monitoring according to providers. One 

example of where this approach has worked 

9
______________________________________________________________________ 

_______________________________________________________________________ 

10

well is Project Liberty, highlighted in the 

box below.

Volunteer Programs. Some agencies 

establish programs where their clients can 

do volunteer work. Because many victims 

are unable to do regular work until they 

receive their work authorizations, service 

providers need to find ways to use this 

“waiting period” to help engage their clients 

in the community and workplaces, when 

appropriate. Several providers have in place 

volunteer programs where clients gain 

valuable on-the-job training that can then 

result in quick placement in a job with the 

same or similar agencies. 

VI. SUMMARY 

The needs of victims of human trafficking, 

whether international or domestic, can be 

characterized as complex, requiring 

comprehensive services and treatment that 

span a continuum of care from emergency to 

short-term to longer-term assistance. 

Providing these services can take months or 

years; the timeline for serving each victim is 

different and often unpredictable. The 

challenges associated with accessing timely 

and appropriate services for victims are 

ongoing. But through collaboration among 

agencies, including non-governmental 

organizations, shelter providers, health care 

providers, law enforcement and others in 

communities across the country, and through 

innovative strategies and promising 

practices, there are more services available 

today for victims of human trafficking than 

at any time in the past. And while there 

remains room for improvement, particularly 

regarding adult domestic victims, the 

services available to victims of human 

trafficking appear to be better tailored to 

their needs than they have been in the past. 

Project Liberty 

In Atlanta, Tapestri, Inc., a non-profit 

organization dedicated to ending violence and 

oppression in refugee and immigrant

communities, and using culturally competent 

and appropriate methods, has established 

Project Liberty. This is a program where a 

pool of immigration attorneys (public and 

private) receive annual training from Tapestri 

on human trafficking as part of their 

professional development. In exchange, the 

attorneys provide pro-bono services to

Tapestri’s trafficking clients. Tapestri has

recently replicated this model with 

psychologists to provide mental health services 

for its clients. 

For more information on this model, please call 

404.299.2185 or email Tapestri at tapestri.org. 

The issue briefs in this series and the final 

study report can be downloaded from the 

following Web sites: 

http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/07/HumanTrafficki

ng/

http://www.icfi.com/markets/socialprograms/