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Working with the Multidisciplinary Team

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Book cover Forensic Interviews Regarding Child Sexual Abuse

Abstract

At its core, the care of abused children has always been a multidisciplinary field. The universal need for close collaboration between mutiple professional disciplines in caring for suspected victims of abuse makes the field unique. This concept of using a mutlidisciplinary team approach in the complex care of children who may have been abused has become well-accepted over the past 25 years. All 50 states and the federal government mandate various versions of multidisciplinary collaboration in child protection investigation. The major goals of this collaboration include reduction of trauma to the child victim and non-offending caregivers, a single forensic interview, improved child welfare outcomes and increased rates of conviction in law enforcement cases. This chapter will take a look at the development of the multidisciplinary team (MDT), the roles of the various members, the variations in approach to implementation across the nation, the rise of children's advocacy centers and the development of best practice standards for the teams.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Minimal facts interviews- -> are often conducted by LE or CPS when they need information to determine the placement of the child- ->, the safety of the child and the potential need for forensic evidence- -> collection. These often have to take place at the scene or prior to the scheduled forensic interview- -> - ->.

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Acknowledgements

I would like to acknowledge the late Rich Kaplan, MSW, MD in the writing of this chapter. May his role as an educational pioneer, collaborator extraordinaire and selfless mentor continue on in those who were fortunate enough to learn from him.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Washoe County Child Abuse Response and Evaluation Team, Reno, NV, 89519, USA

    Kristen J. MacLeod M.D.

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  1. Kristen J. MacLeod M.D.
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Correspondence to Kristen J. MacLeod M.D. .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Nevada , Department of Psychology, RENO, Nevada, USA

    William T. O'Donohue

  2. Department of Psychology, Missouri State University, Springfield, Missouri, USA

    Matthew Fanetti

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MacLeod, K.J. (2016). Working with the Multidisciplinary Team. In: O'Donohue, W., Fanetti, M. (eds) Forensic Interviews Regarding Child Sexual Abuse. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-21097-1_3

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