Safe Passage: Lessons in Global Care
Understanding and Implementing Duty of Care for Mission Travel
Q: What does “Duty of Care” mean for organizations sending teams abroad?
A: Duty of Care is the shared responsibility to take reasonable and proactive steps to protect travelers—before, during, and after their journey—while upholding the values of compassion, stewardship, and preparedness.
Subject Brief
For sending organizations, Duty of Care is more than a legal requirement—it’s a proactive framework for protecting travelers through risk assessment, preparation, and continuous support. By establishing clear safety policies, maintaining international medical and evacuation coverage, and providing pre-trip training and real-time communication, sending organizations demonstrate responsible stewardship and accountability. Integrating these practices ensures safer group travel, reduces liability, and strengthens the organization’s ability to serve with both compassion and competence.
Concept Overview
The Foundation of Safe Mission & Group Travel
Faith-based organizations carry a calling to serve, but that calling includes a parallel obligation: to safeguard those who serve. Duty of Care describes the legal and moral expectation that an organization will act with reasonable care to prevent foreseeable harm to the people it directs or supervises.
In practice, this means anticipating risks and having documented systems for prevention, response, and support. The principle applies not only to large corporations—it extends naturally to churches, ministries, schools, and nonprofits that send participants abroad under their care.
The modern view of Duty of Care recognizes that no organization can remove all risk, but it can demonstrate that it acted reasonably to anticipate, plan for, and manage foreseeable threats. This is sometimes described as an “obligation of means”—not a guarantee of outcomes, but a standard of responsible preparation and stewardship.
When applied to missions, Duty of Care becomes both a reflection of faith and a practical safeguard. It is the structured expression of compassion through policy, training, and readiness.
Duty of Care starts with Knowledge
Access the Entire Case Study, including:
- The Legal and Moral Framework of Care
- Operationalizing Duty of Care in Faith-Based and Sending Organizations
- Integrating Insurance and Assistance Resources
- Action Steps for Administrators
- Model Duty of Care Policy
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The Safe Passage series is published every 3-4 weeks and is ideal for all leadership positions. Notifications for new editions will be delivered via email by signing up:
- Executive Director / Board of Directors / Legal Compliance Officers
- Director of Missions / Global Outreach Pastor
- Field and Volunteer Coordinators
- Duty of Care Officers (DOCO)
- Permanent Trip Leaders