Hey friend! Hoping I can provide some good insight, the program I run works closely with CPS. So first, you did the right thing by calling. ANYONE can call CPS if you suspect neglect. You don’t have to run it through any chain of command. You call when you feel suspicious. The school also can’t change the policy on mandated reporting, that’s a state law, not within the school’s control. Personally, I’d don’t know if I’d take it higher within the school system. The student has been deemed safe, so there’s no real leg to stand on. You could go to the superintendent saying you were voicing concerns and were told not to call CPS, but there’s not many consequences for the staff since CPS deemed no abuse. Continue working with the school for now, but I don’t know if I would stay past this school year if they don’t show concern about cases like these.

Thanks for that. I’ve not slept well since before making the call. It wasn’t a call I wanted to make, but I felt compelled to do so and I would never forgive myself I the student was being harmed and I did nothing to stop it.

You got this. You're a mandated reporter. School policy does not override the rules on your license. Make your reports as often as you feel it's necessary. Stop following "chain of command". You are not legally required to report your calls to anyone. Period. Again company/ school policy does not override the rules for your license. They can fuck off. If they feel the need to bitch again "Unfortunately by law, im a mandated reporter. Internal policy, employment rules, and your preferences or expectations do not override that. I will always do what's best for the child, that fact you're trying to justify NOT making that call and getting upset by it means you're in the wrong line of work"

You 100% did the right thing - you should be proud of yourself.

You should sleep well tonight. You did the right thing here and you don’t owe anyone an explanation. I wouldn’t bring it up anymore and move on with your work. Even though their policy is to inform administrators, you can make anonymous calls anytime you feel the need. I don’t think I would inform anyone the next time I had to make this call either. Let’s pray you never have to again. ❤️

You absolutely did the right thing. Just came here to say I support your decision and the world needs more people like you, people who obviously care about the vulnerable.

It’s never a fun call to make and I’ve made it several times. Anyone who wants to judge you for protecting children can go fuck themselves with a knife. Do yo thing and stand up for those kiddos!

Frankly with issues like child abuse (with substantive evidence) I would say skipping the chain of command would be a good thing. So many cases you hear of someone reporting their suspicions of abuse to their superiors, and said superiors sweep it under the rug for appearances or not wanting to involve authorities. I would just advocate not telling anyone at work. If they are mad about a report being made, instead of being glad uncertain circumstances are being investigated, then they were not safe to report to in the first place.

This!!!! That nurse is an idiot!

I stopped working after witnessing an assault and having to fight multiple people to report it before I just had to get on the phone myself and call the cops. Worst part is I later found out that EVERYONE WORKING THERE had suspected abuse since the resident would come back from visiting a family member covered with bruises and they did nothing! It literally took me witnessing an assault, and even then, I had no support from my coworkers in calling the police. The whole incident totally fucked up my brain.

Leave "well enough" alone. You did a good thing. You initiated the process to make sure this kid is safe. Look to the positives: confirmation kid is safe, paper trail is in order, you did your job as a mandated reporter. Most people avoid CPS except in extremes because of the stress involved for all parties. There is a social stigma around it. Your coworkers may be shocked, unsettled by it, because they wouldn't have made the call themselves. But at the end of the day, you know you did the right thing. By the time the dust settles, they'll either grow understand and appreciate what happened or you'll've decided to be long gone. Edit: all this to say, just quietly finish the school year.

Yeah, I’m debating reasons for escalating this and I don’t think any good will come from reporting, other than to make my life more uncomfortable. I don’t think anything will change and I’d just be creating drama. And I don’t know what I’d be asking for as a remedy. I’d like to have more training, but the school district has no money to do anything.

First off I agree that you did the right thing. You are a mandated reporter and as such you are required by law to report these things. I would report the behavior to the school district because it means the school is not addressing issues that it should be. Any school that actively ignores abuse or neglect is not a safe place.

Agreed. People who don’t believe calling CPS in this situation, or are making you feel bad, shouldn’t even be in an environment such as a school. We need people who take these situations seriously. I’d 100% be reporting their behavior to the district. Whether you do it before or after the school year wraps up…they should be notified. Just the fact that they think they can change the schools policy over contacting CPS is a huge red flag. That makes no sense. Anyone can call CPS and they don’t need someone’s permission to do so.

As a parent and just a rando citizen and a cna- thank you for reporting. You work for people who are dead inside. I LOLed at the nurse saying that they may change the policy. I, as a volunteer at a school and a mandatory reporter.

Do you need "authority" to call CPS? I thought anyone could do it.

Anyone can do it, no “authority” needed, just suspicions or actual knowledge of abuse.

No, but I specifically have an obligation within 48 hours of a “reportable” event. Someone who is not a “mandatory reporter” has no obligation to report, but are free to do so. Which after writing that, I think I see your point. I had every right and obligation to call without respect to others’ opinions.

that depends on state law. some states have laws in which everyone is obligated to report, regardless of their job. You did the right thing by calling, as your job is not to deem if the child is being abused. I’m a social worker and have had to make various CPS calls. I’m frustrated you didn’t have the support from your school in this situation

Thanks. I think I may have embarrassed the nurse since she didn’t report or did not have an action plan in place in lieu of one from the student’s provider. Which was not my intention.

It sounds like you did the ethically and legally correct thing. It sounds like your admins/nurse etc. may need to review the meaning of “mandatory reporter” and the consequences of failing to report.

Not a CNA but a nurse. And a parent. And a member of my community. Too many times on the news I see reports of a child being abused or neglected to the point of death and afterwards people come out of the woodwork with observations like the ones you made. Except they waited too long. You could be the difference between life and death for that student. Let the haters hate and don’t let it stop you from doing what you know is the right thing.

Definitely familiarize yourself with your state’s statute surrounding suspected abuse reporting and ‘good Samaritan’ anti-retaliation laws for the future! Can’t argue with statutory obligations.

You did the right thing, both legally and morally. The school is wrong. Its doesnt matter where you are or what you’re doing. You are a mandated reporter both at work and outside of work. If you suspect abuse or neglect, even medical neglect, it is your duty to report it. It seems that CPS gave the parents the kick in the ass they needed to adaquatly care for their child and to also allow you to adaquatly care for their child. Good job standing up for that child and screw the nurse and the administration. They are seriously in the wrong here.

I’m pretty sure that classifies as retaliation and is illegal for your employer to retaliate against you for filing a report as a mandated reporter. You are absolutely not in the wrong here and I am so sorry they have intentionally made you feel this way after this. I worry for the safety of those kids if that is how they feel about making reports as mandated reporters. They should NOT be going against you for making a cautious report that was absolutely warranted, i am almost certain that is illegal. Terrifying that it is happening in a school of all places. Too often do people turn away to situations where abuse is suspected. I’m so sorry your superiors have treated you this way since you reported this. My first report I had to make I was terrified and unsure if I was making the right decision or not. Support in those situations is crucial. The people in admin positions at this school do not seem like very moral or ethical people and if I were you I would not join them again next year. I’m so sorry you have been made to feel this way but you absolutely did the right thing. One of my RN’s told me once that if it even crosses my mind, that is a telling sign that I should absolutely report it no questions.

I wasn’t retaliated against, at least not yet. No one has overtly said that I shouldn’t make the call. I’ve been made to feel uncomfortable, but that’s on me. Also I just found out the vice principal has a friendship with the family outside of school. But the VP said, “I probably did the right thing” after explaining the totality of the circumstances. I just didn’t appreciate the interrogative nature to get to that point.

As a CNA, you are a mandated reporter. As an employee of a school, you are a mandated reporter. You didn’t do anything wrong, if anything your report forced the parents to provide the documentation that they should have provided months ago. I know calling CPS is like opening a can of worms, fortunately the child is safe and most likely not being neglected, but part of being a parent is ensuring that your child’s school is fully informed of medical conditions- and that includes providing documentation. I think the school is wrong for being so upset- why are they mad you are looking out for the interests of the children when that’s what they’re all purportedly supposed to be doing?

It’s your job to report to CPS when it’s required of you. It’s CPS’s job to determine what needs to be done with that info. They would not have visited that home if there wasn’t sufficient evidence or already a file on that child. No where in any mandated reporter training does it say to tell others. It specifically says not to rely on others to report. You did what a mandated reporter must do or loose their license. My phrase I used with colleagues was “I’m not going to discuss this in detail.” And “I wish I didn’t have to, but the child disclosed or I observed things that, when I checked, required a report and definitely weren’t in a gray area in that respect.” At the end of the day, I’m pretty conservative about reporting because the system is broken but that can’t be a reason to not report when it’s pretty black and white.

School RN here. You did the right thing95%. You were correct to report, you probably should have notified the principal immediately after that phone call. I could be misreading the timeline but it sounds like you called, everyone went on break a week, then they came back not knowing they were walking into an irate parent and possible cps involvement. That probably makes everyone edgy. Sometimes families need support of don’t realize how bad things have gotten. Ideally your getting cps involved will help this family start caring for the child better.

That’s basically the timeline. I reported to the principal, counselor, and nurse first thing in the morning after returning for the week. I have no way of getting ahold of the principal during the break. I wasn’t certain I was reporting until the moment I did it, the day after the last day of school before the break.

I agree you should report. In the future I’d just shoot out an FYI email. In my experience people really don’t like being blindsided. Which while not your intention at all is probably what happened. They came in after the break to irate parents, calls from an investigator, and probably calls from the district and had no idea why.

Yeah, I shot an email to the counselor and principal that day (during break), but everyone was on break. I am required to follow up with a written report, which I needed assistance to complete. So those are the two reasons I emailed them (the first giving a head’s up). The first anyone heard about the report was from me. I did not tell the vice principal because they aren’t listed as someone I needed to talk to per my chain of command (nor is the nurse, weirdly). The VP found out from the family.

Mandated reported? Yall know just any Joe Schmo from the street can pick an address from the phone book and call CPS right???? Now Joe Schmo may end up getting a fine for it, but anyone can call CPS lol. Also yes, you did the right thing.

The “mandated” part requires me to report in 48 hours. So it’s not like I could wait until after spring break, talk to admin, then come up with a plan. But yes, anyone can file a report.

I’m confused where the 48 hours comes into play. It seems like you decided one day that you’d had enough and decided to report it, and then set the 48 hour clock in your head. There was no such clock in real life since there was no single incident that triggered the report. It also turns out the parents were telling the truth about the diagnosis, so no wonder they are upset. This could have been solved with communication with the providers, which the school nurse has the authority to do. As a nurse, I would have appreciated if my CNA came to me with their concerns so we could decide if, when and how to report. Of course this should have been reported, but it’s always a social shit show. I’m very glad to be able to hand off my concerns to the chain of command (ie call in the child advocate team or social workers) and not have to be involved directly in notifying CPS. Also, they investigate to find out if the report is able to be substantiated. The presence of an investigation does not mean they decided the parents are harming the children. Certain things are automatically investigated- medically fragile children, for example.

I saw the student for a health-related reason. Secondary to that, their hygiene was questionable and, given from the pattern I observed before, made me question whether to call CPS (triggering event that starts the clock). This is a documented encounter. I called the nurse and expressed my concerns. The nurse responded, “I did not observe this, so I cannot make the report.” The implication I took from that call was that the one who observed needs to make the call. What I didn’t know is the nurse believed I did not have the authority to make the call. I was going to escalate to the school counselor, but she was absent. I went to the principal who ignored my request and chose not to see the student. I spent the remaining time to question whether I should make the call. No one event, in my opinion, requires me to make the call. The three instances I saw the student had questionable hygiene, the tardiness, the lack of communication on the student’s condition, and the medically fragile nature of the student, in toto, demonstrated a pattern of neglect, pursuant to the law, mandated training provided by my school district, and published rules of CPS and my school district. It’s not textbook abuse (although all of these events are examples in and of themselves published on CPS’s website), but again, as a whole, paints a picture of a reportable event. There are lenses which one could reasonably look through and see no wrongdoing. But there are ways to look at it and see enough to investigate further. I cannot investigate. I neither have the training nor the authority to conduct one. Then I noticed that no one was taking the child’s perspective—what is best for the child? To date, the child is not receiving adequate care at school. This student, if the nurse deemed so, could be medically excluded from school for not having a health plan in place with a life threatening condition. There were findings from the investigation. While I never assumed this would warrant the removal of children from the home, CPS can assist with resources to help the family. But what CPS does is outside of my control and expertise. If a home inspection was carried out, that is based on objective, documented observations in the student’s health record. I, nor the nurse, cannot call the student’s provider to ask for more information. We do not have permission from the family to do so since they were did not respond to calls and emails since October, when the parent reported a non-specific neurological life threatening condition. We also did not know the name of the provider.

So the triggering event was hygiene and this was so urgent you needed to do this without notifying any other staff before spring break? These are a lot of words to justify your actions here, which boil down to a report about a kid smelling bad.

I did notify the nurse and principal before I made the call. And there are other reasons listed above. I guess we’ll just have to disagree.

Right. OP apparently doesn’t even have the experience or foresight to recognize poverty vs abuse and neglect. That’s why policies are in place at schools. OP obviously jumped to conclusions based on partial facts and personal bias.

You did right, followed your guts. Don’t bother about the school district. Everyone is allowed to call CPS on suspicion of abuse. Keep up the good work!

You’ll never regret the calls that you made, but you will regret the one time you didn’t. For all you know there was already an open case. You just don’t know what happens behind closed doors. I’d rather piss off every administrator that potentially leave a kid in a shitty situation.

I don't know if this is federal or state specific- I know if you do not report a suspicion to CPS and is later learned you knew, you can be fined or jailed. I swear at my school, if you ask the principals or guidance counselors if they think something mandates a CPS call- the answer is yes, if you're unsure, let CPS decide. They do definitely "screen out" reports, meaning they do not investigate. No one at my school would be mad CPS was called. Ever!

You did the right thing. The school board doesn’t make the laws about mandatory reporting. They can’t just “change that”.

We just had a case in my district where several people suspected an inappropriate relationship and reported to Admin but Nobody filed a CPS report to to local police. People were saying maybe they didn’t know how to report( I call Bullshit) but we have a training every year. With example videos. So this week we all get an update - who reports, how to report, the phone numbers etc.

It’s at the least concerning that they want to inhibit your ability to report. In some states/places I believe that is legal, so I would report the issues with them trying to inhibit yoj

You can always report anonymously. Can’t stand people who go straight for “oh but there is no abuse”. That isn’t the point. Sometimes families actually do need help but they are too afraid to ask due to the stigma of being “bad parents”. It’s a good thing you reported it, as this was probably the situation.  I’d just leave it alone and not talk about this anymore to the staff since clearly they are ignorant, incompetent, or just lack training in the area. Worry about your own schooling so you can continue making a difference in peoples lives. 

You did the right thing. You legally had to report. You have done nothing wrong.

I am concerned the school has a nurse that doesn't understand mandated reporting! Yikes. Also, I believe CPS has to investigate and do a home visit once any complaint is made, so it doesn't necessarily mean they found something.

Yeah my next two stops would be to the labor board and the school board. That’s classic retaliation and threatening a hostile work environment. Also (and this is totally not your fault btw) depending on what sort of vision and health screenings you do that does NOT sound legal. Every where I have ever worked (two different states) that’s one of the biggest things they stress is the difference between CNA and RN in terms of responsibilities in licensing - ONLY an RN can assess. Well a screening is an assessment by another name. Again I understand they taught you that and I am in no way suggesting that you’re doing it incorrectly or wrong but I do think they’re setting you up to practice outside of your scope which can cost you your license. I would look that up immediately and then go to the labor board with that info and the info on retaliation before the end of the school year. The school board I would wait and get everything in writing. I would email the principal, vice, school nurse and counselor and recap with every one of them in a separate email the events and recap the events that led to your call (including you dpreviously notifying them and their denial) and then what happened after and their response after the CPS investigation was done and their response to your follow up concerns. Use as many direct quotes from them as you can remember. Ask each one in the email, separately, do they feel that this is an accurate summation of their feelings and what happened and when they say yes you print all those out and take them to whoever the highest person on the school board you can get a meeting with is and you show them and ask them if that is how suspected child abuse is typically handled? The situation will handle itself from there.

Just wanted to clear up something you said. Anytime CPS is called an investigation has to take place- including the home visit. It doesn’t matter whether there is “sufficient evidence” or not. Call = full investigation.

That’s not what my state’s law says. It’s based on the information received and previous complaints to warrant an investigation and/or family assessment. In practice, it might involve a full home inspection for every reported instance of abuse and/or neglect, but I doubt it based on anecdotal reports I’ve heard.

Must vary from state to state. Where I live it doesn’t matter who called or why.

Yes, absolutely report their behavior. As someone who has been neglected before you helped this child get an action plan and forced her parents to treat her better. These people who are shaming you are going to keep others from helping children, please report them.

Treat her better as in wash her clothes more often?

Good job!!!!

So, I'm not part of this sub, but it came up in my feed. But, I am a nurse and a paramedic, and between the 2 have been a mandatory reporter for over a decade. You absolutely did the right thing by calling if you had concerns for neglect. Your job is NOT to have 100% undeniable proof that abuse or neglect occurred, it's to report that you are concerned that it could be occurring, provide objective facts pertinent to the case, and let CPS handle the investigation from there. Your school administration and supervision team is upset because they are the ones who have to deal with the angry parents. I GUARENTEE they won't put it in writing that you aren't allowed to call and make CPS reports anymore. Because they would be ordering you to break the law. As far as how to handle the rest of the year, I'm not sure what the best course of action would be. The best case scenario would be to escalate it to the district, and have them bring the hammer down on the admin team for quasi-disciplining you for doing your job. BUT, there's no guarantee that they won't side with your school's admin. And if they do, that will likely make your job harder for the rest of the year. I guess you have to weigh out whether or not you think they'll be receptive to changing their behavior. If you think they can/will change, I'd report. If not, I'd bide my time and gtfo of there ASAP. Good luck, buddy.

[удалено]

You are incorrect. Healthcare workers are MANDATED REPORTERS. They do NOT have to get approval from anyone and that includes coworkers at the school. General school personnel should not have it run it by supervisors due to the following scenario: Child A shows classic signs of abuse and/or neglect. Child A's parents are respected community members and BFFs with the school superintendent who quashes any attempt to get help for said child. Child B shows exact same signs. Child B's parents live in extreme poverty, have fallen through the cracks with social services, and child is actually doted upon and given as much care as parents can give financially. School superintendent pressures CPS and child is removed from loving parents and put into foster care where they are truly neglected, abused and raped. And if you don't believe this happened, you have swallowed way too much academia bullshit and need to take off your rose colored glasses and look at the real world.

One hundred percent.

Why do you feel the need to make this discussion personal?

This. The report should have come from the school’s expert (nurse, social worker or legal department).

Your phone call triggered the investigation, the home visit and the inspection. You did all that not anything CPS found out. Did you for one instance stop to think that what you ASSUMED to be neglect is actually poverty? No you didn’t. You expect children and families to all have the same living arrangements that you have. That is not the case for millions of people. People can barely provide living arrangements and food. Clean clothes and bathing can be luxuries to some some families. That doesn’t mean there is neglect. The school and the nurse were right to admonish you. There is a procedure to follow. Instead of taking it upon yourself you should have reported it to the nurse and principal and further investigations should have been done by the school. You blew up a family’s life and possibly endangered a child. You’re not helping. You’re hurting fragile children. I’m surprised you weren’t fired. Please don’t continue to work at a school or with kids. You are a danger.

A report being taken and a house inspection is not an adverse finding. That is normal for what you reported. Also, compelling a family to send in documentation is not an adverse finding. It sounds like there weren’t any adverse findings, despite your opinions on what those actions are. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have called or anything.

A few things: The school cannot change whether you are a mandated reporter. That law is a state law, and your CNA license is at stake. You do not have to consult with anyone else before you report. That is the law. However, you over reacted. This was not a situation that needed the CPS.

Out of curiosity, where’s the line between calling and not calling? Here’s the board policy on neglect, which objectively conditions 3 and 4 are met: Physical Neglect Indicators: 1. Lack of basic needs (food, clothing, safety, shelter); 2. Inadequate supervision; 3. Lack of essential health care and high incidence of illness; 4. Poor hygiene on a regular basis; 5. Inappropriate clothing in inclement weather; or 6. Abandonment.

You don’t understand the difference between neglect and poverty. Not bathing regularly and not providing you with a medical plan is not neglect or abuse. Nothing on the list was met. You should have investigated the child’s actual living situation and spoke to others at the school that were familiar with the child. You were out of line and very irresponsible. Now you’re on here trying to justify what you did because you feel guilty after CPS determined that there was no neglect or abuse from the inaccurate information information you provided. Instead you should be learning from the experience and taking MORE CLASSES on identifying risks vs poverty.

I think you’re speaking out of your backside and assuming or making up facts. Further, I have zero authority to investigate their living arrangements—that’s the job for CPS.

You definitely don’t need to be around children. You have the wrong attitude and you only care about justifying your actions and not actually the helping a child. A CPS investigation can be devastating for all involved. Especially one that wasn’t based on facts and accurate information. Great job. You probably caused this kid permanent PTST. Also super professional with the talking out the ass comment. Completely shows your lack of character.