This article originally appeared in Star Chronicle, a newsletter
published for the Children's Medical Center.
The name says it all - child protection. This UMass Memorial Children's
Medical Center program evaluates children for concerns of physical abuse, sexual
abuse and neglect. "Our team makes sure children are safe," said Rebecca Moles,
MD, chief of child protection. "And we advocate for those who can't do it for
themselves."
This was the situation for 2-year-old "Robby,"* who was brought to the
Emergency Department with burns over 15 percent of his body. During a bath, his
mother turned around to grab a toy. In the few seconds she was not looking, the
toddler turned on the hot water and was scalded. The next day, his mother
noticed blisters and redness and took him to UMass Memorial.
"In this case, the emergency physician contacted us with concerns about the
boy's injuries and the story mom told," explained Dr. Moles. "We evaluated the
child, which included a detailed history, a complete physical and developmental
exam, and photos of the injuries for diagnostic purposes." In "Robby's" case,
the injuries were consistent with the history provided, but the accident was
used as an opportunity to teach his mother about water safety and how to prevent
burns.
The job does not stop there. "We work collaboratively with many other
organizations, including the district attorney's (DA) office, police and the
Department of Children and Families (DCF), on a determination of the likelihood
of abuse," Dr. Moles said.
Recently about 120 professionals, including representatives from DCF,
Worcester County DA's office and Worcester County law enforcement jurisdictions,
attended a Central Massachusetts Child Abuse Investigation Summit, coordinated
by the Child Protection Program. Participants discussed how to interact with
each other better, ways to identify what was working/not working and ways to
improve processes.
*a fictitious patient