Process for Child Abuse

It is common for social workers in health setting to encounter clients with a history of abuse or neglect, or a suspicion of or actual evidence of current abuse. For this reason, all social workers should be familiar with and able to identify suspected child abuse and neglect, comply with hospital policy and state law, make appropriate interventions and or referrals for interventions and document these steps.

UMHHC Policy 02-05-013 Suspected Child Abuse and Neglect. All Social Workers should be familiar with this policy.

Social workers assigned to the Child Protection Team include:

Susan Smith, MSW
Child Protection Team Coordinator

Linda DeVries, MSW
Clinical Social Worker

If you identify a child with suspected abuse and neglect you should contact the Child Protection Team and provide them with information on the case. Clarify with the team social worker what tasks they will assume and which tasks you will maintain responsibility for.

Additional Interventions that should be considered include:

• Education about Crime Victims Fund;

Social work documentation should reflect your awareness of presence of absence of Child Abuse.

Evidence Based Practive Information

There is a series of publication entitled the Child Abuse and Neglect User Manual Series available online.

The Role of Mental Health Professionals in the Prevention and Treatment of Child Abuse and Neglect
User Manual Series, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Peterson, Urquiza 1993.

Crisis Intervention in Child Abuse and Neglect, User Manual Series, U. S. Department of Health and Human Services. Sections present a brief overview of crisis; define crisis, identify the elements and phases of crises, highlight client feelings during a crisis, and discuss the psychological effects of crises; and outline the goals of crisis intervention and describe a nine-step crisis intervention model. The manual offers suggestions for involving the entire family in the crisis intervention assessment process; examines specific treatment approaches and techniques, including community systems, multimodal, cognitive behavioral, task-centered, family, and eclectic.

"Disseminating Best Practices in Child Abuse Treatment" This Children's Bureau Express article focuses on a report from the National Call to Action that identifies best practices to serve victims of abuse and their families, as well as methods to spread the knowledge and use of these best practices in the field.