Safety Check Before Genogram Work in Cases of Domestic Violence

What Is This Form For?

A genogram records who stands in what relationship to whom. With domestic violence, that is exactly what turns into a risk: a sheet with a zigzag line between two symbols is a statement about a person — and it is a document that can leave the room. Through file access, through family-court proceedings, through a bag searched at home.

From this follows the principle that stands above every other rule: safety before completeness. Wherever the two come into conflict, safety always wins. An incomplete genogram is a professional nuisance. A complete one that ends up in the wrong hands is a danger.

What’s Inside

• Three questions before the first line — a silent self-check that takes a few seconds. The third is the one most often overlooked: can the person interrupt the conversation at any time without having to explain why?
• Three exclusion criteria. If one applies, genogram work does not take place today. “Not now” is then a complete, professional answer.
• Three ways to document, with their advantages and drawbacks: neutral codes, separate documentation, deliberate omission with a private memory note. Where possible, the affected person has a say in the choice.
• A field for where the sheet ends up — especially if the person wants to take it home.
• The helpline numbers 116 016 (Germany’s nationwide helpline “Violence Against Women,” free of charge, around the clock) and 110 (police, Germany).

What the Genogram Must Not Claim

A genogram shows repetitions across generations, and that is exactly why, with violence, a simplification suggests itself that is nevertheless wrong: the assumption that whoever experienced violence as a child will later become violent themselves. That violence occurred across several generations of a family is an observable fact and can be helpful in conversation — as an occasion to ask what could change in this generation. But “this has occurred across generations” is a different statement from “this will continue,” and only the first is professionally sound.

What the Form Doesn’t Do

It is a quick first filter and does not replace your organization’s thorough risk assessment. Your professional code and your organization’s rules govern documentation, retention, and disclosure. The form is not legal advice; a warning notice to this effect appears on page 1 of the PDF.

Where the Content Comes From

From the GenoEasy Academy, Module 4 “Specializing,” Lesson 30. The lesson carries no separate list of references; it cites the McGoldrick standard for notating violence in relationship lines and the helpline “Violence Against Women.”