Reporting Suspected Child Abuse

Abstract

To the Editor.— I refer to the question and answer entitled Reporting Suspected Child Abuse (1982;248:235). A few additional comments can be made. The frustrated physician who wrote the letter is to be commended for having done his best to report suspected cases of abuse. I would expect that, while criminal actions against parents or removal of children from their homes was infrequent in the cases he reported, other interventions such as involvement by Children's Protective Service workers or public health nurses and referrals to mental health agencies or parent support groups may have taken place as a result of his actions. He has probably done more good than he realizes. The time-consuming and financially draining experience of dealing with the legal system can be minimized by the efforts of the lawyer who has issued the subpoena. Medical societies can play a role in making known to juvenile court judges