PCAR Strengthens Survivor Access with Helpline Software
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PCAR at a Glance
| Organization | Pennsylvania Coalition to Advance Respect |
| Type of Helpline | Statewide hotline connecting 47 local crisis centers |
| Helpline Size | Statewide |
| Counties Served | 67 |
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Founded in 1975, the Pennsylvania Coalition to Advance Respect (PCAR) is the nation's oldest anti-rape coalition. They ran a multi-year RFP and chose Helpline Software to ensure survivors can access care faster.
PCAR, the state sexual assault coalition, through the network of 47 rape crisis centers serves survivors of sexual abuse, assault and harassment in 67 counties. PCAR provides access to quality victim services by funding and training rape crisis centers across the state.
PCAR is a division of Respect Together, whose mission is to create lasting change by mobilizing advocates, service providers, leaders and communities to support survivors, advance victims' rights, and prevent sexual abuse, assault and harassment. Since its founding in 1975, PCAR has worked to secure legislative protection for survivors by lobbying the Pennsylvania General Assembly. It works to end sexual violence through multiple initiatives, including developing resources on preventing sexual violence.
Connecting Callers to the Right Center Quickly
PCAR's hotline supports survivors across Pennsylvania through its network of 47 rape crisis centers. When someone calls its number, they need to be connected to their local center. With such a large network, this can get complex.
Their original phone system involved working with an answering service to transfer calls. The service's operator would send calls to a local center based on what the caller said about their location. With 47 different options, operators couldn't always identify the right center for the caller.
This meant callers in crisis would have to wait while the center transferred them to the correct local center. PCAR decided to switch to a system that could route calls accurately and quickly.
Transitioning to HelplineSoftware.com has helped survivors to be connected to local support more quickly and more smoothly, no matter where they are in the 67 counties across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
"Our work has always been about helping survivors reach the right support in their own communities," Joyce Lukima, Coalition Director of PCAR, said. "With a statewide network of local centers, strengthening the hotline was an important step toward making that connection faster, smoother, and easier to navigate."
Eliminating Answering Services and Human Error
To transfer calls, answering service operators relied on their human judgement. They asked the caller their location and then consulted PCAR's list of 47 crisis centers. It was a complicated process, and the carefully selected answering service didn't always get it right.
Working with third-party operators carried other risks, too. Operators couldn't always uphold PCAR's standards for care. Unlike the crisis center advocates, they weren't as trained in trauma-informed care as PCAR preferred. PCAR also found that operators sometimes deviated from their script.
PCAR wanted to improve call routing to remove human error, and make the caller experience more trauma-informed by connecting survivors directly to trained advocates. After a multi-year RFP process, they selected Helpline Software, and worked with them to achieve both.
Custom Routing that Handles Edge Cases
PCAR set up a series of custom routing rules in their Helpline Software to help survivors across 2,100 zip codes reach the right local center quickly.
The system asks the person where they're calling from: their city, county, a local place, or zip code if they know it. It then identifies the correct center and transfers them in seconds.
PCAR wanted to make sure survivors less familiar with Pennsylvania's geography, like tourists and out-of-state visitors, could access care, too. For instance, someone visiting Gettysburg may not know which county or zip code they're in. So PCAR pre-configured fast routing for the top 30 tourist destinations in PA.
If the caller didn't have any information about their location, the line routed them to a designated fallback center instead of reaching a dead end.
These rules routed the vast majority of callers correctly. But a hotline as critical as PCAR's needs a system that works for every caller. They added another layer of reliability by creating special rules for edge cases.
Once routing to the correct local center was set up, they configured the line to support Spanish-language callers to increase accessibility. So callers stated their location and language preference, and the system passed the call to the local center with the context that they needed support in Spanish.
For decades, rape crisis hotlines have been a first point of contact for survivors looking for support, information, and a path forward. I've been answering rape crisis hotlines since 1983, and one thing has never changed: when someone reaches out in crisis, every barrier matters. This update is about making that first step easier and helping survivors reach the right local support as quickly as possible.
Using Data to Support Callers Even Faster
As part of PCAR's commitment to providing quality support, they track how centers are serving callers and work to make continuous improvements. However, the call data their answering service provided was extremely limited. It was a single spreadsheet showing how many calls were received each month.
PCAR needed more visibility. How many calls were forwarded? What was the average call duration and abandonment rate? Moving to Helpline Software allowed them to see each call's path, duration, date, time and reason for disconnection, broken down by center.
The significant increase in tracked call metrics gave them the data needed to make informed decisions. For a hotline focused on maintaining a high standard of care like PCAR, call-level data is critical. Since the system shows call logs in real time, they can implement changes right away.
Sexual assault incidents in the news can lead to a spike in hotline calls. Seeing calls by day instead of aggregate monthly data can provide insight into how external events may be influencing call volume. This can help hotlines adjust capacity if needed.
Before, we did not have an easy way to see what was happening once someone called the statewide hotline. Now we can look at the call history, see what the system heard, where the call routed, and quickly tell whether something needs follow-up.
Privacy for Trauma-informed Care
For many survivors, the decision to reach out for support is a difficult and deeply personal one. Maintaining the confidentiality and safety of callers was a priority for PCAR. They wanted to mask callers' numbers when transferring them to local centers. At the same time, they needed a way to identify and block repeated inappropriate calls.
Helpline Software allowed them to balance these needs. The caller ID would show 'PCAR' when transferring calls, and they could set daily limits on repeat callers to protect their advocates. Callers who were temporarily blocked heard a custom message that gave them another number if they needed immediate assistance. This discouraged calls that are not appropriate for the hotline but made sure people who needed help weren't shut out.
A Reliable System with Ongoing Support
PCAR's hotline serves approximately 30,000 people annually. Finding the right system to connect every survivor to an advocate was crucial. To make sure the system they chose would reliably support their call volume, they ran a multi-year RFP process. After evaluating different options, they selected Helpline Software to route their calls.
Before launching the new system, PCAR needed rigorous testing to ensure it could handle every edge case. Any break in operations risked leaving hundreds of survivors without care.
PCAR worked with Helpline Software to test routing with real zip codes. They checked the software's speech recognition by stating different locations and fixed any issues that surfaced. For example, the system sometimes misheard Milton as Abington, so they adjusted routing to account for alternate pronunciations.
A complex organization like PCAR has changing needs. Working with a white-glove team like Helpline Software allowed them to customize their phone system to their exact requirements. Helpline Software's ongoing support means PCAR can update the system at any time.
PCAR continues to provide trauma-informed care to survivors across Pennsylvania by ensuring they reach a local advocate quickly.
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They're just amazing. We're running a statewide hotline across 67 counties, which means we needed a system that could handle complex call routing, audit, and customization requirements. We knew it was going to be a big undertaking, but Helpline Software's support and onboarding was so excellent, knowledgeable and hands-on that they made it painless. They really delivered exactly what we were looking for!