Reporting of Child Protection and Child Abuse Handbook and Protocols for Manitoba Service Providers A resource for those involved in identifying, reporting and dealing with a child in need of protection, including child abuse PACCA Provincial Advisory Committee on Child Abuse Reporting of Child Protection and Child Abuse Handbook and Protocols for Manitoba Service Providers A resource for those involved in identifying, reporting and dealing with a child in need of protection, including child abuse August 2013 Available in alternate formats upon request. Table of Contents Introduction ....................................................................................................................5 Section 1: Laws, Principles and Values Guiding Intervention in Child Abuse .........7 Guiding Legislation .........................................................................................................7 Key Principles of Child Protection and Child Abuse ....................................................7 Values ................................................................................................................................8 Section 2: R evised Provincial Guidelines on the Legislated Requirements Regarding Reporting a Child in Need of Protection, including Child Abuse ..................................................................................................11 Section 3: S pecific Professional Protocols on Reporting a Child in Need of Protection, including Child Abuse ............................13 Section 4: Child Abuse – Legal Definitions ................................................................15 Section 5: The Three Recognized Forms of Child Abuse ..........................................17 Physical Abuse ................................................................................................................17 Sexual Abuse Including Sexual Exploitation ................................................................18 Age of Consent in Canada .....................................................................................20 The Compliant Victim ...........................................................................................21 Examples of Concerning Adult Behaviour ...........................................................22 Emotional Abuse and Child Neglect ............................................................................22 Section 6: Possible Indicators of Child Abuse ...........................................................25 Possible Indicators of Physical Abuse ...........................................................................26 Possible Indicators of Sexual Abuse, Including Sexual Exploitation ..........................28 Possible Indicators of Emotional Abuse .......................................................................30 Possible Indicators of Child Neglect .............................................................................31 Abuse Among Children with Disabilities .....................................................................32 Section 7: H andling a Disclosure and Responding to Observed Indicators of Child Abuse .............................................................................................35 When a Child Discloses Incidents of Abuse .................................................................35 Disclosures of Past Abuse ..............................................................................................37 When There are Indicators of Child Abuse..................................................................37 Documenting the Situation ..........................................................................................37 Talking with the Parents or Guardians of the Child ....................................................39 The Need for Cross-Cultural Understanding ..............................................................39 Reports Regarding Professionals who are Alleged to have Abused a Child ...............39 2 Section 8: Reporting Child Abuse ...............................................................................41 Legal Duty to Report .....................................................................................................41 Consequences of Failure to Report ...............................................................................42 Making the Report .........................................................................................................42 Information Sharing ......................................................................................................43 Confidentiality and Protection of the Informant ........................................................43 Making a False Allegation .............................................................................................44 Section 9: A Multidisciplinary and Collaborative Approach ...................................45 Multidisciplinary Approach to Abuse Investigations: Importance of Collaboration and Co-ordination .......................................................45 Role of the Child and Family Services (CFS) Agency ..................................................46 The Role of Police ..........................................................................................................46 The Role of Physicians and other Health Care Practitioners ......................................47 The Role of Manitoba Victims Services Branch ..........................................................47 The Role of Agency Child Abuse Committees .............................................................48 The Role of the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner ...............................................49 The Role of the Office of the Children’s Advocate.......................................................49 Section 10: Taking Care of Yourself as a Service Provider ........................................51 Section 11: P rofessional Protocols Regarding Mandatory Reporting of a Child in Need of Protection ..............................................................53 Protocol for Child and Youth Care Practitioners. ........................................................53 Protocol for Corrections Staff .......................................................................................61 Protocol for Early Childhood Educators ......................................................................71 Protocol for Nurses ........................................................................................................80 Protocol for Physicians and Other Health Care Practitioners ....................................87 Protocol for School Staff ...............................................................................................99 Protocol for Social Workers ........................................................................................108 Section 12: I ncreased Risk of Abuse and Important Considerations for Children with Disabilities ................................................................115 Appendix A: R evised Provincial Guidelines on the Legislated Requirements Regarding Reporting a Child in Need of Protection, Including Child Abuse .........................................................................129 Appendix B: O verall Structure of Child and Family Services Authorities and Agencies .....................................................................149 The Four CFS Authorities ...........................................................................................149 The All Nations Co-ordinated Response Network (ANCR) .....................................150 Designated Intake and Emergency After Hours Agencies (DIAs) ............................150 3 The overall goal of this handbook is to create a more competent and efficient process of identifying and reporting child abuse. This handbook was developed by members of the Provincial Advisory Committee on Child Abuse (PACCA), the Mandatory Reporting Subcommittee, with extensive input by experts from a number of disciplines. The range of knowledge and experience of the numerous partners who worked on this handbook give it credibility and strength. PACCA has always valued collaborative working partnerships. It is this guiding principle that results in sharing of information and expertise to enhance child safety in our province. While the contributors are too numerous to list, the Manitoba government appreciates all the people who provided valuable input and helped develop this resource. 4 Introduction This handbook was developed to help service providers and all people working with children to recognize and report suspected child abuse. Child abuse is a serious issue. The physical, sexual or emotional damage inflicted upon children can remain with them their whole lives. Children are considered our greatest natural resource. As such, they deserve the quality of care and protection that keeps them safe from harm. We The overall goal of this all have a legal and moral obligation handbook is to create a more to promote the safety, and well-being competent and efficient of children; this includes responding process of identifying and efficiently and effectively to child abuse. reporting child abuse. Although parents and guardians are primarily responsible for ensuring that children’s rights are upheld, governments, service providers and community members also have an important role in protecting children. Throughout Manitoba, service providers fulfill critical roles and responsibilities in working with children. Service providers are key players in the prevention, identification and reporting of child abuse. Child and Family Services (CFS) agencies, along with law enforcement, including the Winnipeg Police Service (WPS), the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), and other police organizations are mandated to receive, investigate and manage reports of suspected child abuse. Although the lives of many children have been Remember: saved from serious harm and even death through A child is anyone under early identification and reporting of child abuse, 18 years of age. children continue to be harmed. One of the problems in dealing with child abuse is that one cannot tell by looking at a child that she/he is being abused. Children do not always show bruises or visible signs of abuse. The overall goal of this handbook is to facilitate a more competent and efficient process of identifying and reporting child abuse. This handbook provides information about child protection and child abuse, and the basic steps concerned with the processes of identifying, reporting, and responding to concerns of child abuse. In Manitoba, it is everyone’s legal obligation to protect children by reporting suspected child abuse. You do not have to know for sure if a child is in need of protection. If, in your honest judgment, you believe that a child may not be safe, you are legally required to report it. We all share responsibility for children’s safety and well-being, and the most effective way to fulfill that responsibility is by working together. Collaboration is key at every level: in recognizing, reporting and responding to suspected child abuse, and in 5 offering the supports and services that enable families to provide safe, nurturing homes for their children. The better informed and educated everyone is about what to report and who to report it to, the more effective the whole process becomes. Although this handbook is comprehensive in scope and touches on major issues, it does not detail all the information related to the complex topic of child abuse. Contact information and web links to additional resources are listed throughout the document. 6 Section one Laws, Principles and Values Guiding Intervention in Child Abuse Guiding Legislation The Child and Family Services Act (the CFS act) is the legislative authority for child welfare in Manitoba. Its fundamental guiding principle is that the safety and well- being of children are paramount. The intent of the act is to ensure that appropriate steps are taken to protect children who may be in need of protection. For more information, go to gov.mb.ca/laws/statutes/ccsm/c080e.php The Criminal Code of Canada (the code) is also critical in ensuring the safety and well-being of children. The code provides police and law enforcement officers, as well as the criminal justice system, with the legal authority to enforce criminal law as it applies to the protection of all children, especially victims of child abuse. The code provides the basis for criminal offences, investigative procedures, the collection of evidence and prosecution and sanctions for offenders. For more information, go to laws.justice.gc.ca//en/C-46/ Key Principles of Child Protection and Child Abuse The key principles underlying and guiding all services to children and families in Manitoba are detailed in the Declaration of Principles under the CFS act. Declaration of Principles (The Child and Family Services Act) 1. T he safety, security and well-being of children and their best interests are fundamental responsibilities of society. 2. T he family is the basic unit of society and its well-being should be supported and preserved. 3. T he family is the basic source of care, nurture and acculturation of children and parents have the primary responsibility to ensure the well- being of their children. 4. F amilies and children have the right to the least interference with their affairs to the extent compatible with the best interests of children and the responsibilities of society. 5. C hildren have a right to a continuous family environment in which they can flourish. 6. F amilies and children are entitled to be informed of their rights and to participate in the decisions affecting those rights. 7. F amilies are entitled to receive preventive and supportive services directed to preserving the family unit. 7 8. F amilies are entitled to services which respect their cultural and linguistic heritage. 9. D ecisions to place children should be based on the best interests of the child and not on the basis of the family’s financial status. 10. Communities have a responsibility to promote the best interests of their children and families and have the right to participate in services to their families and children. 11. Indian bands are entitled to the provision of child and family services in a manner that respects their unique status as Aboriginal people. Parents and guardians have a fundamental right and responsibility to raise their children as they see appropriate and society presumes that parents will act in their children’s best interests. When caregivers are unable and/or unwilling to protect their children from harm and meet their basic needs in terms of safety, security and well-being, society has a responsibility to intervene to protect the health and welfare of each child. Implicit in these principles is the importance of accountability for the provision of services to prevent child abuse and protect children. Service providers, especially those who are mandated to protect children, are accountable for what they do and/ or fail to do. Values The key principles relating to child protection shape the basic values underlying the community and professional responses to child abuse and neglect: ■■The need for prevention programs to strengthen families and reduce the likelihood of child abuse. While there is no single known cause of child abuse, researchers have noted that some potential factors contributing to child abuse may be: – teen parenting – lack of knowledge of childhood development – unrealistic expectations – unemployment – parents who were abused as children – poor housing conditions – sudden changes in family circumstances – domestic and community violence – substance abuse – mental illness – poor family and neighbourhood supports 8