JLF-R-2 Child Abuse Information Sheet

CHILD ABUSE INFORMATION SHEET

I. DEFINITIONS

The Department of Social Services regulations define child abuse and neglect as:

A. Abuse

“Abuse means the non-accidental commission of any act by a caretaker upon a child under age eighteen (18) which causes, or creates a substantial risk of, serious physical or serious emotional injury, or constitutes a sexual offense under the laws of the Commonwealth. This definition is not dependent upon location (i.e., abuse can occur while the child is in an out-of-home or in-home setting.)

“Serious Physical Injury means:

(a) death; or

(b) fracture of a bone, a subdural hematoma, burns, impairment of any organ, and any other such nontrivial injury; or

(c) soft tissue swelling or skin bruising depending upon such factors as the child’s age, circumstances under which the injury occurred, and

the number and location of bruises; or

(d) addiction to drug at birth; or

(e) failure to thrive.

“Caretaker” means a child’s:

(a) parent

(b) step-parent

(c) guardian

(d) any household member entrusted with the responsibility for a child’s health or welfare

(e) any other person entrusted with the responsibility for a child’s health or welfare, whether in the child’s home, a relative’s home, a school setting, a day care setting.

B. Neglect

“Neglect” means failure by a caretaker, either deliberately or through negligence or inability, to take those actions necessary to provide a child with minimally adequate food, clothing, shelter, medical care, supervision, emotional stability and growth, or other essential care; provided, however, that such inability is not due solely to inadequate economic resource or solely to the existence of a handicapping condition. This definition is not dependent upon location (i.e., neglect can occur while the child is in an out-of-home or in-home setting.)

“Serious Emotional Injury” means an impairment to or disorder of the intellectual or psychological capacity of a child as evidenced by observable and substantial reduction in the child’s ability to function within a normal range of performance and behavior.

C. Mandated Reporter

Chapter 110, §51A of the Massachusetts General Laws requires:

“Any physician, medical intern, medical examiner, dentist, nurse, public or private school teacher, educational administrator, guidance or family counselor, probation officer, social worker or policeman, who, in his/her professional capacity shall have reasonable cause to believe that a child under the age of eighteen years is suffering serious physical or emotional injury resulting from abuse inflicted upon him or her including sexual abuse or from neglect shall immediately report such condition to the Department of Social Services by oral communication and by making a written report within 48 hours after such oral communication.”

II. PROCEDURE FOR REPORTING

An oral report to the Department of Social Services, (508) 872-8 1 22, is to be followed within 48 hours by a written report.

III. CONFIDENTIALITY OF REPORT SOURCE

The Department of Social Services Regulations prohibit the release of the reporter’s name by its staff to the family. However, the Department will provide the reporter’s name to the District Attorney if the report is subsequently referred to the District Attorney’s Office. DSS may also be required to release the name of a reporter in response to a court order from a judge. It is recommended that the reporter notify the parents of the report.

IV. CONFIDENTIALITY OF STUDENT INFORMATION

School personnel may choose to keep their own log of suspected cases with date, notations of injuries or other signs for the purposes of documentation. However, copies of 51A reports already sent to the Department of Social Services are not required by law to remain in school files. According to Massachusetts student record Regulation 603 CMR 23, records that need to remain in a school file are those records that “reflect the student’s educational progress”. Therefore, a principal may decide that the Section 51A report does not meet the “educational progress” criterion and need not keep a copy of same on file. If 51A reports are not to remain in the school file, it is recommended that they be destroyed at the school. (Source: Worcester Area Child Sexual Abuse Task Force Manual, September, 1986, p. 22)

V. PENALTIES FOR NOT REPORTING

Mandated reporters who fail to make the oral or written reports described above are subject to a fine of not more than one thousand dollars. The reporting of a child is notification of suspicion only. The Department of Social Services determines if abuse or neglect actually exists.

VI. IMMUNITY FROM LIABILITY

Mandated reporters are not liable in any civil or criminal action by reason of reporting, as long as the report was made in good faith and the reporter did not inflict the abuse or cause the neglect. Employers are prohibited from retaliating against a mandated reporter who has made such a report in good faith.