Mandated Reporter Training: Identifying and Reporting Child Abuse and Maltreatment

About Mandated Reporter Training: Identifying and Reporting Child Abuse and Maltreatment

The purpose of this training is to provide staff with the knowledge to make an informed decision about whether a situation involves child abuse or maltreatment/neglect, what staff’s reporting obligation is, and how to go about making such a report. Staff will be introduced to the Child Protective Services (CPS) system, and given some background information on CPS. From there, staff will move into looking at the questions of what is child abuse; and what is maltreatment/neglect. During these sections, staff will define what a child is, what child abuse is, and what maltreatment/neglect is. Staff will also learn to identify common indicators. This module will address the do’s and don’ts of talking with children, along with how to determine if there is reasonable cause to suspect child abuse or maltreatment. Next, staff will put their learning into real world examples in the learning exercises module, where they will be asked to evaluate their response as a mandated reporter to a particular situation. Staff will also evaluate four different scenarios and how you would respond to those cases. Finally, staff will be taken through what to expect when making a call to the SCR, how to follow up on the report, and the local response of the Child Protective Services. This training was developed by the New York State Office of Children and Family Services.

Who Should Attend?

This course is required for all mandated reporters – those who are required to report any and all suspected cases of child abuse that they are aware of.

Benefits of the Program

Participants will:

• Be able to effectively report child abuse or maltreatment/neglect to the New York Statewide Central Register for Child Abuse and Maltreatment.
• Better evaluate situations to determine whether there is reasonable cause to suspect child abuse or maltreatment.
• Learn to identify the physical and behavioral indicators commonly associated with child abuse and maltreatment.

Course Prerequisites

There are no prerequisites required to take this course.

Course Components

Once enrolled in the course, learners will complete:

• An interactive, two-hour eLearning program.

Completion of all components is necessary to receive a Certificate of Completion.

Continuing Education Units

There are no CEUs associated with this course.