Reporting medical neglect effectively: A guide for nurse practitioners working with Child Protective Services

Health care providers who suspect or observe medical neglect of chronic hea lth problems in children are obligated to report the findings to Child Prot ective Services (CPS). Such reporting results in uneasiness for clinicians, who may jeopardize their therapeutic relationships with the patient and fa mily, or worse, provoke them to withdraw from treatment. To the contrary, r eporting medical neglect and discussing it openly and empathetically with t he family can foster more cohesive teamwork and prompt families to address their problems. Knowing your state's child abuse laws, how to effectively r eport medical neglect, and how to communicate and collaborate with CPS case workers may result in the provision of therapeutic services to families. En hancing family functioning can result in increased efforts toward caring fo r their child's medical problem. Copyright (C) 2000 by W.B. Saunders Compan y.