Guest TerryF Posted August 11, 2011 Share Posted August 11, 2011 What is your experience with child abuse: reporting it, missing it, and/or followup? TerryF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pahopeful Posted August 11, 2011 Share Posted August 11, 2011 In the ED, we unfortunately see child abuse more than we would like. Do we miss some? Probably. I personally have reported several cases. Usually, the child is still sent home with the parent, and a case worker makes a home visit. Of course, if there is serious injury, that is not the case, but with the cases of mild injury or neglect, this is how it is done here in Texas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cooltrainer Posted August 16, 2011 Share Posted August 16, 2011 Thought you might find this article of interest: http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/child-abuse-fears-must-be-reported-by-doctors-but-some-cases-pose-dilemmas/2011/07/06/gIQAUldSHJ_story.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterallsummer Posted August 16, 2011 Share Posted August 16, 2011 At my hospital the protocol is if anyone suspects it - PA, MD, PCT, whatever - we report it to the case worker and it's their responsibility from there. This is a lot easier than small practices where I assume there's only the PA and possibly MD who have to take it into their own hands. I have been involved in cases where it was an issue but someone else always reported it to the case manager. I also have worked with kids who came to the psych unit being taken from a situation involving abuse and it is a sad thing to see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unewillow Posted August 17, 2011 Share Posted August 17, 2011 We try and work closely with our social workers when we suspect that sending a baby home with the parent(s) could be harmful. I've had to make a couple of DCF reports myself though, when I felt that the SW was not addressing the situation adequately. If DCF chooses not to investigate, that's on their conscience. There are still a couple kids out there that I fully expect to see in the paper someday because something happened to them. It's sad, because we can only do so much sometimes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mytopeka Posted August 20, 2011 Share Posted August 20, 2011 We call Child Protective Services from our ER if the social workers can't make it. We're a small town and things like child abuse will get the system started pretty quickly. For me, the important thing is to not get emotional so as not to do or say something stupid. I don't tell the parents we are calling so they don't cause a scene and try to leave. I document document document everything I can, giving the authorities plenty of information to go on when the parents/family/others are investigated. And we call security and have them hang out right outside the room so no one tries to leave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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