tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-66271820635015813682024-03-15T19:09:22.834-06:00Child Protection LessonsA look at the lessons that arise from child protection errors and other issues including those that arise from deaths of children involved in systems in the western world.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.comBlogger268125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-17807113979413533742016-07-28T01:56:00.001-06:002016-07-28T02:13:39.013-06:00Australian Four Corners Video<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
There is no doubt that the video presently making the rounds of social media and world news sources is a tough watch. The series of videos show abuse of a boy over time in an Australian institution.<br />
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The videos <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7R9hLKWgVow" target="_blank">can be found here</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=woDiSqyFDuI" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4Wv41sgljY" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YpslEVWXuik" target="_blank">here.</a> But remember, they are not an easy watch as you will se child abuse and torture of a teenage boy, Dylan Voller.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Source: Australian Broadcasting Corporation video posted to YouTube</span></div>
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It will be easy to get focused on how the institution saw the management of children in this fashion as somehow acceptable. And yes, that is an important question. The larger conversation though, is needed about how we treat people within prison systems. In this case - children. Strip searches, isolation and torture, which occurred in this case, come from a philosophy of how people (and I use that word very consciously) are worthy of being treated when in custody.<br />
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There are very different correctional philosophies with Norway often being cited as one where rehabilitation is the paramount objective; Canada with some balance between retribution and rehabilitation and the United States seeming to tip more towards retribution.<br />
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The Australian case is a moment for societies to consider what is the purpose of the criminal justice, child protection and mental health systems and how are they to inter-relate and inter-connect. If we just look at the case of this boy, we will miss the much larger discussion.<br />
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Affecting the discussion is an increasing sense of fear in our societies. There may well be valid reasons for some of that given recent events in Europe from what appears to have been a series of terrorist tragedies to the domestic events such as the Orlando shootings in the USA. Such large scale tragedies deflect us from the reality the, by far, the vast majority of people are in jail for crimes related to mental health, addiction, trauma and poverty. Dylan appears to be an example of such a person.<br />
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How he was treated (and many other cases of people being put into things like long period isolation) will have lasting impacts on their mental health. Every time such methods are used we reduce the probability of successful reintegration into society. The trauma and its mental health impacts accumulate over time. There are many who suggest that techniques like solitary confinement do substantial long term damage to the health of people incarcerated. Some examples of that data can be found through a <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/what-does-solitary-confinement-do-to-your-mind/" target="_blank">PBS documentar</a>y as well as this report <a href="http://www.apa.org/monitor/2012/05/solitary.aspx" target="_blank">the American Psychological Association.</a><br />
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By using these incarceration techniques we are adding to society's burden. Add to this the rapidly expanding field of epigenetics and we see that traumas like this move through generations within the DNA. The implications are that the children of such an abused person will pass their trauma on to the next generations.<br />
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With the type of abuse that Dylan appears to have experienced, we also reduce the probabilities that he could be a successful parent. Not only then does the DNA carry the trauma but there is a significantly increased possibility that the social emotional environment of the next generation will be impoverished. This creates a further burden for society through child protection and its related systems.<br />
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It is this broader conversation that should be happening. Yes, what specifically happened to Dylan matters but the underlying philosophies and practices related to people like Dylan is the bigger picture. A further question that should be examined is why, as societies, are we so willing to buy into approaches that have been shown to not work - indeed to make things worse. A good part of the answer is that we fear people in prisons and also they deserve what they get - except that it is the larger society that pays the greater price.<br />
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Let Dylan Voller's case be an opportunity for the bigger conversation.<br />
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Another view on this conversation can be found <a href="http://socialworkchallenges.blogspot.in/2016/07/kids-in-detention-wider-systemic-problem.html" target="_blank">at the blog of Tony Tonkin.</a><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-48306803519136317692016-07-22T03:03:00.000-06:002016-07-22T03:04:18.160-06:00Intolerance as a risk for children<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
There is a growing intolerance that is becoming evident in the public discourse. There seems a willingness, perhaps under the rubric of freedom of speech, to target individuals, groups of persons or classes of persons. There has been suggestion that racial and immigrant intolerance was related to the BREXIT vote. Some are noting that the present US presidential race is seeing an increase in caustic rhetoric that is sexist, racist and reminiscent of the politics of oppression.<br />
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There has been a linkage to violence with the shootings in Orlando recently targeting gays. There are divisive arguments about refugees, Muslims, minorities. Here in Canada, we still see evidence of racism with a Black person in Toronto, for example, likely to be carded by the police for being Black.<br />
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One can hardly spend time on Facebook without coming across various forms of "hate" speech. Twitter has just banned Milo Yiannopoulous for racist comments about a Black actress. In essence, we have seen the growth of emotional terrorism. It is a form of tolerated bullying.<br />
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What does this have to do with child protection? In general terms, it is the most vulnerable families who come to the attention of child protection. These are also the families that are the targets of the intolerance - poor, racial minorities, LGBTQ community. Many live in areas where community supports, schools, social services and health care are not as well funded.<br />
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When we allow intolerance to grow, then there is also a reduced motivation to find the solutions that can be driven by both public and not for profit agencies. It tends to breed the "pull themselves up by their bootstraps" type of thinking. And if they cannot, then they are not worthy people.<br />
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It also breeds laws where people who can least manage in vulnerable positions are then put at greater risk. Examples can be seen with a variety of legal efforts to limit access to reproductive rights in the United States. But lest anyone think this is a US bashing commentary, be assured it is not. For the intolerance appears to be growing across many nations.<br />
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When you also see the economic challenges that many countries are also facing, then, as seen with BREXIT, there is a diminished willingness to support vulnerable populations that "are not like us".<br />
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This emotional terrorism increases the vulnerability of vulnerable families and, in particular, children. The growing field of epigenetics shows that trauma experienced in one generation is passed on to subsequent generations through the DNA. Thus, when we fail a generation of children, we create both the social and genetic conditions to carry the problems into the next generations.<br />
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This point is made explicitly clear in the Truth and Reconciliation Report in Canada which shows how the traumas arising from the Indian Residential Schools are still being played out in First Nations, Inuit and Metis families across the country.<br />
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Child welfare gets asked to intervene in families where, in reality the problems are not protection of children but systemic neglect that arises from the emotional terrorism (which often plays out in physical conditions) that society has imposed on communities. Child welfare cannot solve these problems and intolerance will lead to the problems becoming more entrenched than they are already.<br />
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The growing social unrest that follows marginalization, which we are seeing in a variety of forums, will put pressure on child protection as these pressures get lived out in family life. There is a need for a large conversation across many political, social and policy forums. Child protection should be part of the conversation so that players can see the downstream implications of intolerance.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-73682679055103303922016-06-29T19:30:00.000-06:002016-06-29T19:30:08.168-06:00The policy debate that should come out of the death of Alex Radita<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Canadian media is covering the current trail of Emil and Rodica Radita for the first degree murder of their 15 year old son Alex. The allegations involve medical neglect of their son's diabetes leading to his death. The family is reported to have been involved in child protection systems in British Columbia and Ontario prior to his death in Alberta.<br />
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Much has been made of the supposed failure of British Columbia social workers to notify their counter parts in Alberta when they learned the family had moved left B.C. They had found out about the move as they were looking for the family when it became apparent they were not following through with Alex's medical care.<br />
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There has also been significant criticism of a judge in B.C. for returning Alex to parental care even when the child protection workers and specialists were arguing against it. National Post columnist Christie Blatchford has been quite critical of that decision and the failure of B.C. social workers to follow up with Alberta.<br />
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Alex Radita at age 15 (Source: Calgary Herald from photos released by the Court)</div>
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Child protection systems are often criticized for their failure to effectively communicate with agencies. It is a theme that has cropped up in most of the 91 public reviews I have examined in Canada. It is also very common in reviews in other countries.<br />
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There is an issue that needs discussing in Canada though, but also in countries such as the United States. Canada's constitution places control of child protection within provincial and territorial jurisdiction (there are specific aspects that are different for Aboriginal on reserve families but that is for another post). Health care and child protection legal processes also fall under provincial jurisdiction. Thus, each province and territory operates their own system, except for Ontario which places delivery of child protection into a complex network of children's aid societies following provincial legislation.<br />
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What this means is there is no national child protection system. It is a series of unique systems. Each jurisdiction has its own legislation, policy, procedures and service delivery mechanism. There is no national requirement for data sharing. Families can and do move between jurisdictions to avoid continuing scrutiny by child protection. They are quite able to do so once their case in one province is no longer active.<br />
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When a case opens in one area, families are asked about their history elsewhere but there is no national database to work from. Should there be? Protagonists of data sharing might well argue for one but those who argue for protection of information and privacy might well make an alternative argument. Child protection legislators and senior managers across Canada might well take the Radita case as an opening for a national discussion. I want to emphasize that many of the workers I know make efforts to learn about families past participation in other parts of the country.<br />
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The Radita case raises some important policy issues and we should not let the chance pass. Another one is about legal duty of care. Like the Jeffrey Baldwin case in Ontario, it appears there were other adult children in the Radita home. Yet the criminal code does not place a duty of care on those who are not parents or legal guardians. Thus, other adults in the home who were aware Alex and Jeffrey were at risk cannot be held accountable . That too should be reconsidered.<br />
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<i>It is important to note that, at the time of writing, the criminal trial noted above is still ongoing. Thus, the accused have not been convicted of a criminal offence in this matter. </i></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-87947037597740623252016-06-27T00:30:00.001-06:002016-06-27T00:30:36.249-06:00Managing the undefineable - the human judgments of child protection <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Child protection is the front end of a bargain between a child and society. Essentially, society says that they will leave a family to raise their children as long as they do so safely. The deal with the child is that, if that does not happen, society will protect the child and the child protection authority will act on behalf of society. It's a bargain that we often do not know how to uphold.<br />
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To begin with, we lay that bargain out through legislation. Inherent in most such laws is a belief that the family is the root of society and is an institution that requires preservation. In other words, society should intrude into the family only as much as needed to protect the child.<br />
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Next comes the decision by child protection to enter the family - but there are certain hurdles:<br />
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<li>Someone must alert the child protection authority that there is a concern. Many countries have mandatory reporting laws that require a variety of professionals to call them. Many do but there are many examples of professionals who do not because past efforts to report a concern have led to no apparent action. Some won't because they are so uncertain about whether the child really is in danger. Some professionals feel that there is little point in reporting a child because the child is already so disconnected and won't comply with efforts to help. This was seen very clearly in the Paige case that led to a blunt review by the <a href="https://www.rcybc.ca/sites/default/files/documents/pdf/reports_publications/rcy-pg-report-final.pdf" target="_blank">B.C. Representative for Children and Youth</a>. </li>
<li>Once the report is filed, a human judgment is made by an intake worker to investigate or simply note the report in case there are further reports. This very human judgment is influenced by such factors as how the report was framed, the degree of danger seems to exist, the resources available as well as the presence or absence of past reports.</li>
<li>If the report is investigated another human judgment is made which is whether or not there is a risk to the child; how serious is that risk; is it serious enough to open a case; could it be handled in a less intrusive way or is the risk sufficient to become quite intrusive.</li>
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Inherent in this series of human judgments is defining safety and risk. There are a multitude of factors that are taken into consideration and the investigator must try to weigh the various options and meaning of the data. Some have suggested that this means structured decisions should be used by entering data into various investigative formats. Yet, in those cases, someone must still find a way to operationalize a way to define and measure safety. Even in cases of structured tools, the front line worker must make meaning out of the data; must find the data; must contextualize the data; must know what to look for and be able to see it. To enter the data they must be able to discern what is in front of them. It is a human judgment process to make meaning out of information even when you enter it into a decision making tool.</div>
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Safety is an incredibly complex concept in which many factors interact in an unpredictable way - parenting, mental health, addiction, community, culture, poverty, housing, schooling, resources, temperament and personality of the child to name a few. The worker has to figure out the interactions. The worker is asked to predict probability for the safety of the child.</div>
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The worker is but one of the decision makers. The data gathered by the worker will be presented to a variety of other human judgment makers as the open case moves along - supervisors, colleagues, contracted community resources, lawyers and the courts, for example. Each will weigh the data (which is typically constantly changing) and judge what is and should happen.</div>
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The family are also making a series of human judgments - what to tell; what to cooperate or not cooperate around; what to try and self manage; how to interpret the direction of child protection and other parties. </div>
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It is a series of human judgments made by many parties with ever changing data that is typically imperfect seeking to predict the behaviour of human beings in an environment where no prediction tool shows reasonable accuracy. No wonder child protection gets things wrong at times - indeed how could they not. So why are we not telling that story?</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-82384709831831341252016-05-29T14:37:00.000-06:002016-05-29T14:37:21.577-06:00Looking at the Sixties Sxoop<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The Sixties Scoop has come to represent the transition from Residential Schools as a means of controlling and disrupting Aboriginal families, communities and cultures across Canada. Indeed, Cindy Blackstock of the First People's Child and Family Caring Society has termed child welfare as the new Residential school.<br />
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An MRU journalism student sought to have a look at the Sixties Scoop and offer some insights into what that period was and profiles two people who were impacted by it. <a href="http://sixtiesscoopalberta.wix.com/sixtiesscoopalberta" target="_blank">The blog can be found here</a>.<br />
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In another relevant report, I have been part of a group that has been looking at how First Nations parents are assessed in the child welfare system. <a href="http://cwrp.ca/publications/3110" target="_blank">The report, Nistawatsimin: Exploring First Nations Parenting: A Literature Review and Expert Consultation with Blackfoot Elders</a>:<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #58595b; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16.9px; widows: 1;">This report provides a comprehensive overview and analysis of the scholarship that encompasses relevant topics surrounding the theme of Aboriginal parenting. It seeks to contribute to a larger conversation about the relationship between child protection services (CPS) and Aboriginal peoples. The focus is on how parents are considered and assessed by CPS. In this report, the authors raise the notion that the foundations of assessment have not been rooted in Aboriginal cultural and their world view of family and parenting.</span></blockquote>
It is one step in challenging how child protection looks at First Nations parents. It is rooted in a Blackfoot view and thus the work requires extension and adaptation to other Aboriginal cultures. But it is a place to start.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-68851681011988385082016-03-25T15:48:00.000-06:002016-03-25T15:48:39.586-06:00The tragedy of the Jian Ghomeshi case but it's not about the judge<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The acquittal of Jian Ghomeshi on four counts of sexual assault has rightly caused an uproar in Canada. But the focus of the debate is not about what the judge did unless you want to congratulate him for doing precisely what we ask judges to of. He assessed the evidence and the credibility of it against the appropriate standard of whether or not there was a reasonable doubt. He concluded there was.<br />
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The real lessons come from what evidence was put in front of the judge which led to the decision. One might also criticize the theatrics of the defence counsel. One might go further and ask whether or not the case was presented in the light of what we really know about the victims of sexual assault.<br />
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In Canada, only about 6 per 100 cases of sexual assault are reported to the police. It's a pathetic statistic but there are many reasons why it exists:<br />
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<li>There is fear of how the victim will be judged - certainly we saw good reason for that fear based on how the victims were dealt with by Ghoneshi's lawyer. That lawyer will no doubt state that she was doing what she was supposed to do - vigorously defend her client. Yet, should a victim leave a cross examination more damaged when she came into the court? The <a href="http://www.macleans.ca/news/canada/lucy-decoutere-on-the-ghomeshi-disaster/" target="_blank">Macleans magazine</a> interview with one victim, Lucy DeCoutere illustrates the high price she paid.</li>
<li>Witnesses are often not believed. My own experience with victims is that telling the story is a huge risk as the victim is not often seen that way. They are probed for evidence that they led the perpetrator on, failed to make clear they were not offering consent or had allowed themselves to become too impaired to properly protect themselves. It's called victim blaming and it's real.</li>
<li>There is much shame arising from being a victim. This arises from some of the same victim blaming forces. There are also some communities and cultures who will also see the victim as forever "damaged goods". </li>
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There are many other reasons but these are some of the most powerful. But there is one even greater reason - women are vulnerable to the societal structures that allow men to dominate, control and demand. We are still socializing boys to believe that somehow they "deserve" what they want which includes sex. </div>
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The judge was missing some clear evidence that helped the court fully understand the behaviours of victims. What the women described on the stand (at least as reported by the media) is quite typical of victims of sexual assault. This includes believing that they were somehow at fault. This leads to further contact with the perpetrator. Victims are also often caught up in the enmeshed dysfunctional relationship were they feel they are responsible for making it better. Courts need expert evidence on these types of behaviours. The effects of sexual trauma also distort memory, impact decision making and influence the cohesiveness of the story. Traumatic memory can compartmentalize the story such that when it is told, it is told incompletely. The court also needs expert evidence to explain the neurobiology of traumatic memory and behaviours that arise from that. </div>
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Children who have been sexually abused are just as likely as an adult not disclose, particularly given that the perpetrator is most often someone they know and trust. As Esposito (2015) notes:</div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Calibri'; font-size: 12.000000pt;">Sadly, disclosure of childhood sexual abuse is often met with disbelief, anger, or rejection.
This leaves a child feeling isolated, unnoticed and unsure. </span><span style="font-family: 'Calibri'; font-size: 12.000000pt;">Children say they don’t disclose
</span><span style="font-family: 'Calibri'; font-size: 12.000000pt;">because they are afraid of the consequences to themselves and others, they feel ashamed
or in some way responsible for the abuse, they are unsure whether an abuse has occurred,
or they do not know where to turn to for help. Children therefore make calculated decisions
about disclosing; they consider who they will tell, whether they will be believed and how
much detail they should provide. (p.1)</span></blockquote>
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We have an urgent conversation in Canada which is how to encourage disclosure and make it safe to do so. We must also speak about how these cases are managed in the courts. The Ghomeshi trial will have a chilling effect on the willingness and ability of victims to disclose. The real lesson from the trial: "You will not be believed; You will be attacked and vilified; Your perpetrator will get away with with it, so why try".<br />
<br />
As a nation, we need to change these messages but we also need to change the message that sexual assault is ever permissible. The cultural position of boys and men needs to change (and yes, males are by far the most common perpetrators). They need to truly understand that consent is a necessity.<br />
<br />
Our non-judicial institutions also need to protect victims far better than they have been. There has been an avalanche of media coverage about sexual assault on post secondary campuses. These stories have, unfortunately, also highlighted how victims in post secondary are not protected. This is an example of how institutions can play a role in prevention but also in supporting victims.<br />
<br />
The story of sexual assault needs changing. Ghomeshi's case took us further away from protection and prevention. The message is loud and clear - even if you are found out and charged, your chances of being convicted are poor. The odds are stacked in favour of perpetrators in this country. How truly sad!<br />
<br />
Reference: Esposito, c. (2015). <i>Child sexual abuse and disclosure: What does the research tell us?</i> New South Wales: Office of the Senior Practitioner, Family and Community Services. Available at <a href="http://www.facs.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/file/0003/306426/Literature_Review_How_Children_Disclose_Sexual_Abuse.pdf" target="_blank">this link</a><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-36867749659604589802016-03-21T14:04:00.000-06:002016-03-21T14:04:04.459-06:00Child Death Reviews - An American imperative?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="http://youthtoday.org/2016/03/federal-commission-releases-recommendations-to-end-child-abuse-fatalities/" target="_blank">Youth Today</a> is reporting on a recommendation from a US Federal Commission that:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'PT Serif', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 29.328px; widows: 1;">wants the states to examine all child abuse and neglect fatalities from the past five years as part of a national strategy to end such deaths.</span></blockquote>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZd0Aw9rfS5hyphenhyphenCuW7eRPdlKWjoay07Ni0o1Yeqeuv6-u2E7FsbfJRL_MQeKhWd94XMQZ3hCGJZSA7wVcf9jCGNM7rBx3D13ou7ps1XLC29a_18VtX8721jzYYAx_O6VAyTpcxt_iesuRoc/s1600/Child+death+review.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZd0Aw9rfS5hyphenhyphenCuW7eRPdlKWjoay07Ni0o1Yeqeuv6-u2E7FsbfJRL_MQeKhWd94XMQZ3hCGJZSA7wVcf9jCGNM7rBx3D13ou7ps1XLC29a_18VtX8721jzYYAx_O6VAyTpcxt_iesuRoc/s1600/Child+death+review.jpeg" /></a></div>
<br />
The notion is interesting. Trying to understand what has gone wrong in the past is often seen as a way to help prevent further deaths. Looking into deaths has become common in many countries. For example:<br />
<br />
<br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Serious Case Reviews in the UK are used as a way to find leanings from deaths that might help the child protection system do a better job protecting children</li>
<li>Large scale formal public reviews are used by politicians to look into high profile cases. In Canada, there has been the Phoenix Sinclair review which published its report in 2015 after months of public hearings. Another example is the Victoria Climbe case in the UK.</li>
<li>The Jeffrey Baldwin case saw a high profile Coroner's Inquiry which received national media attention.</li>
<li>There are inquiries by agencies that represent children and youth such as the Child and Youth Advocate in Alberta which this week issued a report on the death of <a href="http://www.ocya.alberta.ca/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/InvRev_10-Month-Old-Lily_2016March.pdf" target="_blank">Lily</a>. These reviews offer an independent lens on what might have gone wrong.</li>
</ul>
<div>
There are other methods as well such as aggregate reviews by third parties along with internal reviews. The latter are not typically made public. The advantage of many review processes is that they are public allowing citizens to feel that there is a sense of accountability.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
There are downsides however. There is somehow a feeling that all deaths can be prevented. That is not the case as it is not possible to predict with any certainity who will or will not kill a child. There is also the negative impact that these stories have in child protection practice. In particular is the impact on worker's decision making - they tend towards bringing more children into care in order to not be the worker with the next case on the front page. That may not serve children well.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
The recommendation in the United States may not be the best use of resources. There are literally hundreds of inquiries in the western world that show oft repeating patterns of practice errors that contribute to poor outcomes for children. A better use of resources might have been to analyze and learn from those inquires. A next step might be to set up a way to use that knowledge while also setting up methodologies to learn from new cases. Going back over a 5 year period will use a lot of resources and be unlikely to yield information that is different from the existing knowledge base.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
By using existing data, there has been an opportunity to reframe how child protection is delivered. This is an opportunity missed. Doing it differently has more promise than spending time looking backward especially when a large database of such learning already exists.</div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-43480934390403784222016-02-25T21:42:00.000-07:002016-02-25T21:42:27.895-07:00Jeffrey Baldwin: A thematic analysis of media coverage and implications for social work practice<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="hd hasAbstract" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 10px;">
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ABSTRACT</h2>
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Jeffery Baldwin died in 2002 in the care of his maternal grandparents. The case received intense media attention at various times over an almost eight-year period. Along with other public documents, the media coverage permits an analysis of the practice errors by Child Protection Services that are related to the failure to protect Jeffrey. Nine key themes emerged around core child protection practices: opening a file; the role of prior knowledge; issues related to assessment; knowing the child and their needs; the role of culture; case supervision; the child as the client; the enmeshment of child abuse; and the role of stability and healing. This analysis offers key lessons to be learned from such cases.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="paragraph" style="font-family: 'Open Sans', sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; margin: 7px 2px 20px; word-wrap: break-word;">
This article has been published in <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13575279.2015.1126225" target="_blank">Child Care in Practice</a></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-69636925585988417202016-02-13T15:13:00.000-07:002016-02-18T14:10:12.878-07:00Sexual assault - two worrisome public events<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The Canadian media has been buzzing with the trial of Jian Ghomeshi. He is a former broadcaster with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). There were women who came forward to tell of their allegations that sexual activity with Ghomeshi was not consensual. He was fired from the CBC and charged with several offences.<br />
<br />
The trial has been high profile. It is perhaps the way that the women have been treated in the court that is the most sensational story. Their behaviour has been dissected in salacious detail. The women have been on trial as opposed to Ghomeshi who did not testify in his defence. The challenge is that victims of sexual assault suffer from memory distortions, enmeshed relationships, shame and guilt and a tremendous amount of fear about how they will be treated by friends, family and the community. The intense cross examination they received in court will have only added to these fragile emotional states. Stories from victims are typically disjointed and often have inconsistencies in them.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibKgdyR3w1sCM3JKUU04ShWhda8X7MdTqxqZaJ9p3tr8vISo67Kn7runkRLOI6bGcrKsJWujikXXVx3pJ1x4tYJjPJmwIZH-FiqlzCt-wm1s9-wD179-IBowgrAeW-A3SIrSdCntiAVZsq/s1600/toronto-jian-ghomeshi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibKgdyR3w1sCM3JKUU04ShWhda8X7MdTqxqZaJ9p3tr8vISo67Kn7runkRLOI6bGcrKsJWujikXXVx3pJ1x4tYJjPJmwIZH-FiqlzCt-wm1s9-wD179-IBowgrAeW-A3SIrSdCntiAVZsq/s320/toronto-jian-ghomeshi.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Jian Ghomeshi</div>
<br />
We await the decision of the court in March.<br />
<br />
However, the real lesson here is for other victims. There is little value in coming forward with your story. You will be treated badly. Your story will be challenged in a way that will go to the heart and will be discredited.<br />
<br />
A good look at the memory issue can be found in this <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/trauma-brain-memory-neuroscience-1.3431059" target="_blank">CBC story.</a> What is important as a take away, is that traumatic memories are not formed and recalled in cohesive, through ways but more as the essential essence of what took place. By comparison, cross examination in courts will focus on minute details, inconsistencies, contradictions and things forgotten. In other words, cross examination will use the very weaknesses of traumatic memory as the basis to discredit the witness.<br />
<br />
The second story comes out of the Vatican. As Time magazine reports (as do many other news outlets)<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #282828; font-family: "georgia" , serif;">The Catholic Church is allegedly </span><a href="http://www.cruxnow.com/church/2016/02/07/what-new-catholic-bishops-are-and-arent-being-told-on-sex-abuse/" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0c97d2; font-family: Georgia, serif; text-decoration: none;">telling</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #282828; font-family: "georgia" , serif;"> newly ordained bishops that they have no obligation to report child-sexual-abuse allegations to law-enforcement officials, saying instead that the decision to take such claims to the authorities should be left to victims and their families.</span></blockquote>
<br />
Given that the Roman Catholic church has been plagued with sexual abuse scandals for decades now, this announcement is somewhat incredulous. The Church is shifting responsibility off to the victims. Many victims will find that obligation onerous. It takes tremendous courage to come forth with sexual abuse allegations but now the victims are being told they must carry the burden further and make a separate decision to bring in the police. That is a lot to ask of victims. Again the Church is failing its victims.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRZITqL51chBs9NfGE69OcptSL1tA1IfKtSj6P_xrBAoJ3En16e_csd9eFEk-WtFJ5j2ng8Daq4nnWxhHIqh7oeeIK8z5_P6I4kGSygfBi1ndMlA0n6ymvdEMIY8G3m_AWG5zBmut590ni/s1600/vatican-priests-roman-catholic-e1420922180144.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRZITqL51chBs9NfGE69OcptSL1tA1IfKtSj6P_xrBAoJ3En16e_csd9eFEk-WtFJ5j2ng8Daq4nnWxhHIqh7oeeIK8z5_P6I4kGSygfBi1ndMlA0n6ymvdEMIY8G3m_AWG5zBmut590ni/s320/vatican-priests-roman-catholic-e1420922180144.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
However, there is a story here that is getting missed which is the obligation in many parts of the world to involve the authorities via child protection. A common theme through much child protection legislation in the developed world is that of mandatory obligation to report when a child may be at risk of harm. Most often that is thought of as a caregiver but priests, nuns and brothers often act in roles of parents in schools, orphanages, athletics and so on.<br />
<br />
We see in Canada how the Church engaged in sexual and physical abuse of First Nations children in the Residential Schools for decades. Those children and their families lacked the capacity to get action. This should be remembered. The obligation to act should rest with the institution on whose behalf the cleric acts.<br />
<br />
Both of these cases highlight how society continues to fail in their obligation to protect people from sexual abuse and assault. The clear messages are that victims will have to struggle to be heard, believed and protected from further abuse.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJjvOyncFmH2I3lz-FKKMH-wXzdO3jbC92XZgmhwebxol7g-2iqoyPChXpYBATKgCPwXnlnmzRDvSLJNpDsIybjOz_7pgg0J-zwWyOC5TDYnreW3QDNXkVNhvr2uwlBTwgW-FlCBcDHwbp/s1600/12728865_10154074653901055_1983507925073746201_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJjvOyncFmH2I3lz-FKKMH-wXzdO3jbC92XZgmhwebxol7g-2iqoyPChXpYBATKgCPwXnlnmzRDvSLJNpDsIybjOz_7pgg0J-zwWyOC5TDYnreW3QDNXkVNhvr2uwlBTwgW-FlCBcDHwbp/s320/12728865_10154074653901055_1983507925073746201_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The graphic above shows very clearly that we have not created an environment where sexual assault can be spoken about. These two stories add to the power of silence. Even if Ghomeshi is found guilty, the trial has sent a clear message to victims, telling the truth is very hard to do and the way in which the case will be managed may do you a lot of harm.<br />
<br />
UPDATE<br />
<br />
The Associated Press reports that, since the course noted above for Catholic clerics:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="ap_para ap_para-9bf7aa2f91f146d7aaeb7f63e8be1255 entry-content" style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype', 'Book Antiqua', serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; margin-top: 5px; padding: 0px; widows: 1;">
Pope Francis' top adviser on clerical sex abuse says bishops have a "moral and ethical responsibility" to report all cases of suspected rape, molestation and other abuse to police — even where local laws don't require it.</div>
<div class="ap_para ap_para-9bf7aa2f91f146d7aaeb7f63e8be1255 entry-content" style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype', 'Book Antiqua', serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; margin-top: 5px; padding: 0px; widows: 1;">
A statement released by Boston Cardinal Sean O'Malley goes beyond the Vatican's current guidelines for bishops. Those 2010 guidelines say bishops and superiors must report suspected cases where civil reporting laws require it.</div>
<div class="ap_para ap_para-9bf7aa2f91f146d7aaeb7f63e8be1255 entry-content" style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype', 'Book Antiqua', serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; margin-top: 5px; padding: 0px; widows: 1;">
O'Malley, who heads the pope's abuse advisory commission, issued the statement after a recent course for new Catholic bishops on handling abuse cases featured a French monsignor who reportedly said bishops don't have to report cases. He said it is up to families and victims to do so.</div>
</blockquote>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-91170965545084730992016-01-16T17:26:00.000-07:002016-01-16T17:30:20.720-07:00Child protection and the refugee crisis<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
It is impossible to read or listen to the news without the subject of the Syrian refugee crisis coming up. It is a displacement of people in mass numbers. Millions of people are internally displaced within Syria and externally displaced, particularly in the Middle East and Europe. Canada is in the process of taking in around 25,000 refugees.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_HxfbzCm-jOODFkKvdUithLXdPsOa63nHWwh6K8coJ-BupMufXdCdIFa0xWo8AkpfLiur9ubVGEBl4wc5CYUr1lT5AFsuaVx7Ip2ZElbP6q9AqA2J0p1tlJ5yTwNrIt53GQjkdCDVp1cS/s1600/4427921003_c12b7b7d8c_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_HxfbzCm-jOODFkKvdUithLXdPsOa63nHWwh6K8coJ-BupMufXdCdIFa0xWo8AkpfLiur9ubVGEBl4wc5CYUr1lT5AFsuaVx7Ip2ZElbP6q9AqA2J0p1tlJ5yTwNrIt53GQjkdCDVp1cS/s320/4427921003_c12b7b7d8c_o.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
The images show how terrifying and tragic the reality is for most of the refugees. Leaving the war zone has not lead to secure placement as they search for stability, acceptance, jobs, homes and the recreation of life for their family. Those watching the current refugee crisis will remind others that the world has faced such crisis before and will likely again.<br />
<br />
For child protection in Canada, the vast majority of these newcomers will not become involved with that system. Some will for typically predictable reasons for the most part - challenges with coming to terms with parenting approaches, children whose trauma makes adjustment to school difficult leading to behavioural problems and emerging mental health concerns. We may hear about those stories as the media seeks to highlight families struggling.<br />
<br />
Child protection and mental health services do have an important role. Helping families to understand Canada and the services available for the transition is top of mind. But there are also some important other steps - helping families connect with new communities; supporting economic connections; integrating children into schools; providing mental health supports at informal levels such that the emotional upheavals and challenges are normalized. Another role will be to help Canadians come to understand the newcomers and their experiences before arriving here.<br />
<br />
Perhaps most importantly, is helping everyone realize that Canada has been accepting refugees for decades and done so successfully.<br />
<br />
There will also be the challenges of ensuring that we do not lose our focus on vital public policy issues for child protection that need government funding and attention. Examples are the impact of homelessness and mental health for families of our veterans; ensuring that we implement the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and working with communities to reduce poverty that too often leads to neglect and child protection involvement. There is room for all of these agendas in Canada. The very worthy plight of the refugees has a prominent place on our national agenda but so do these other issues and yet others not mentioned here.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-17302319345364361252016-01-01T16:07:00.000-07:002016-01-01T16:07:45.981-07:00Psychometrics in Parenting Capacity Assessments: A problem for Aboriginal parents <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
My colleague Amber McKenzie and I have just had an article published on the use of psychometrics in parenting capacity assessments with Aboriginal parents. We raise a number of concerns<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Abstract
Parenting Capacity Assessments (PCA) are used by child protection workers to assist in determining the
ability of a parent to care for their children. They may be used at various stages of the case
management process but these assessments serve as powerful tools for decision making by these
workers. They can also be introduced in court as part of expert testimony. Most PCAs utilize
psychometric assessment measures to elicit data in respect to personality, parenting knowledge, as well
as mental health and addiction issues. The authors argue that the norming of these measures has
insufficient inclusion of Aboriginal peoples to be used for assessments with this population. They further
argue that different approaches need to be developed as current approaches, including assessment
measures, are based upon the constructs of the dominant culture, which is individualistic as opposed to
the Aboriginal collectivistic approaches to parenting.</blockquote>
<br />
If you would like to read the article, here is a link to the <a href="http://journals.sfu.ca/fpcfr/index.php/FPCFR/article/view/249/250" target="_blank">First Peoples Child and Family Review</a><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
</blockquote>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-57825149191929354762015-12-23T10:47:00.002-07:002015-12-23T10:49:56.089-07:00Learning from the death of Alex Gervais <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This CBC story about the death of Alex Gervais helps to continue our needed conversation of how we can learn from the deaths of children in care.<br />
<br />
<div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18.9001px; margin-bottom: 1rem; widows: 1;">
Alex Decarie-Gervais' tragic life in the care of B.C's ministry of Children and Family development is the result of a series of missed opportunities by child protection officials, according to his family and at least one expert in social work.<br />
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<div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18.9001px; margin-bottom: 1rem; widows: 1;">
"The system let him down by refusing my aunt the capability of adopting him," said Christopher Decarie-Dawson, Alex Decarie-Gervais' half-brother, from his home in Hull, Quebec.</div>
<div class="figure" style="background-color: white; border-bottom-color: rgb(220, 220, 220); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18.9001px; margin-bottom: 1rem; widows: 1;">
<img alt="Alex Gervais" src="http://i.cbc.ca/1.3372880.1450820928!/fileImage/httpImage/image.JPG_gen/derivatives/original_620/alex-gervais.JPG" height="235" style="border: 0px; display: block; height: auto;" width="320" /><br />
<div class="figure-caption" style="color: #595959; font-size: 0.91667rem; line-height: 1.35em; margin-bottom: 0.5rem; padding-top: 0.5rem;">
Alex Gervais arrives in Quebec in 2008 to visit his half brother Chris and Aunt Line Decarrie, who tried twice to get custody of him. (Line Decarie)</div>
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<div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18.9001px; margin-bottom: 1rem; widows: 1;">
Decarie-Dawson remembers a week long visit with his younger brother in 2008 when Alex was just 10 years old.</div>
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Social workers arranged for the boy to leave his foster home in B.C. to visit their aunt's lakefront home in Quebec.</div>
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Missed chance at a normal childhood</h2>
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"I spent the week with him. He was very nice but very on edge and very jittery … he was very fidgety and anxious," remembered Decarie-Dawson, who, eight years earlier, was born to the same mother as Alex. </div>
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It's not clear how many foster homes Alex had been in by then.</div>
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<img alt="Christopher Decarie-Dawson" src="http://i.cbc.ca/1.3372892.1450820951!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_300/christopher-decarie-dawson.jpg" height="247" style="border: 0px; display: block; height: auto;" width="320" /><br />
<div class="figure-caption" style="color: #595959; font-size: 0.91667rem; line-height: 1.35em; margin-bottom: 0.5rem; padding-top: 0.5rem;">
Christopher Decarie-Dawson says he tried to reach out to his little brother, Alex Gervais, for years, but social workers would not help. (Christopher Decarie-Dawson)</div>
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His placement, at age 18, at the Super 8 motel in Abbotsford, where<a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/alex-gervais-funeral-family-mourns-vows-to-bring-change-1.3256010" style="color: #115278; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;"> he jumped, or fell from a 4th floor hotel room Sept 18.</a>, was his 16th in B.C.'s child protection system.</div>
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"The system let both of us down because I've gone through the exact same thing. I was abused by my mother as well, but I got lucky that I was taken by my father who was not sick," said Decarie-Dawson, who says his mother was diagnosed with schizophrenia and was unable to care for him or Alex.</div>
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Aunts attempts to get custody failed</h2>
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</h2>
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The elder brother credits his aunt, Line Decarie, for saving him and helping his father gain custody.</div>
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<img alt="Alex Gervais" src="http://i.cbc.ca/1.3372908.1450820981!/fileImage/httpImage/image.JPG_gen/derivatives/original_620/alex-gervais.JPG" height="220" style="border: 0px; display: block; height: auto;" width="320" /><br />
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A then ten year old Alex Gervais enjoys an afternoon tubing during a visit prior to Aunt's failed adoption attempt home in 2008. (Line Decarie)</div>
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He is angry her <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/alex-gervais-family-angry-1.3258065" style="color: #115278; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;">attempts to adopt Alex were blocked by B.C.</a> officials who "refused to give custody to (her) because his father was still around, still alive."</div>
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Line Decarie first tried to gain custody of her nephew years earlier, when Alex was four.</div>
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She says police called her to tell her he'd been thrown down a flight of stairs by his father but an Ontario judge decided to give Alex's father a second chance.</div>
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<img alt="Lake house " src="http://i.cbc.ca/1.3372904.1450487642!/fileImage/httpImage/image.JPG_gen/derivatives/original_300/lake-house.JPG" height="240" style="border: 0px; display: block; height: auto;" width="320" /><br />
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Alex Decarie-Gervais (seated), then 10 , enjoyed riding his cousins's boat and spending time at his Aunt's lakeside home in Quebec in the summer of 2008. (Line DeCarie)</div>
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"Alex's father had mental health issues. Why they gave him full custody of Alex I don't understand up to this day," said Decarie, who lost touch with her nephew for several years when his father took him to B.C., where he ended up in foster care.</div>
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The Decarie family didn't see him again until he visited their home.</div>
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At the request of CBC News, Decarie dug through boxes to locate photos of that trip.</div>
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Images of a timid child tubing on his uncle's boat, bonding with the aunt who wanted to be his adoptive mother, and being embraced by relatives paint a picture of a childhood that could have been much different.</div>
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Family lost contact</h2>
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The family says it was more than willing to adopt Alex, so long as it had assurances his father would have no contact.</div>
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B.C. social workers refused, and the Decaries lost all contact with Alex.</div>
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The next time child protection officials called the family would be to notify them of his death says Decarie-Dawson.</div>
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"Because he was in the foster system, so we couldn't get a message to him; we couldn't even find out if he was still alive until we found out that he died," said Decarie-Dawson, angry<a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/teen-in-b-c-provincial-care-dies-in-fall-from-hotel-window-1.3240959" style="color: #115278; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;"> his brother was placed alone in a motel for nearly three months.</a></div>
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"I'm appalled about what has happened to him. He should have had help. He should've had someone to call."</div>
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B.C.'s Ministry of Children and Families would not answer specific questions about the adoption attempt citing privacy law.</div>
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Bias towards biological parents says expert</h2>
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"There might be some missed opportunities," said Dr. Peter Choate, professor of social work at Mount Royal University in Calgary, who has testified as an expert witness in more than 100 child protection cases.</div>
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He says social workers are trained to preserve families, but some give too much preference for parents over aunts and uncles.</div>
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<img alt="Peter Choate" src="http://i.cbc.ca/1.3375710.1450740658!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_220/peter-choate.jpg" height="200" style="border: 0px; display: block; height: auto;" width="177" /><br />
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Family preservation sometimes means social workers are biased toward parents in custody decisions says Peter Choate, professor of social work at Mount Royal College in Calgary. (Mount Royal University)</div>
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"We can be too biased at times towards biological parents and not contemplate what other opportunities may be there that would serve the best interests of the child," said Choate.</div>
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He believes there is a lot to learn from<a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/review-of-alex-gervais-s-death-tainted-family-says-1.3368870" style="color: #115278; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;"> reviewing Alex Decarie-Gervais's case.</a></div>
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"Why did we want to keep Alex in contact with his biological parents as long as we did?"</div>
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"Did we do enough assessment to see the impact of mental illness on the capacity to parent?"</div>
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Choate hopes an independent inquiry will answer those questions, though he warns against a "witch-hunt" against social workers, who have a tough job.</div>
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"You are working with the unpredictability of human behavior … the public has to recognize that these are human beings engaged in very human work." </div>
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<a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/alex-gervais-s-tragic-life-defined-by-missed-opportunities-1.3372859">http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/alex-gervais-s-tragic-life-defined-by-missed-opportunities-1.3372859</a> </div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-73024510692443672572015-12-15T10:14:00.002-07:002015-12-15T10:14:40.775-07:00The effects of parental incarceration on children<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I have written in the past about the impact on chidlren of incarcerating parents. A couple of new reports in the United States highlight the concerns.<br />
<br />
The first report <a href="http://www.childtrends.org/?publications=parents-behind-bars-what-happens-to-their-children" target="_blank">Parents Behind Bars: What Happens to the their Children?</a> really emphasizes that the impact of incarceration on children is not a central part of the conversation. This means that, as a society, we are not talking about the fragmentation of families, the loss of the parent figure, the deterioration of economic and social position and the costs to society when the children are marginalized in this way.<br />
<br />
The report is reminiscent of the Adverse Childhood Experiences studies when the authors note:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Previous research has found connections between parental
incarceration and childhood health problems, behavior problems,
and grade retention. It has also been linked to poor mental and
physical health in adulthood </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
After accounting for effects associated with demographic variables such as race and income, we
found that parental incarceration was associated with:
• a higher number of other major, potentially traumatic life events—stressors that are most
damaging when they are cumulative;
• more emotional difficulties, low school engagement, and more problems in school, among
children ages 6 to 11; and
• a greater likelihood of problems in school among older youth (12 to 17), as well as less
parental monitoring (pp.1-2)</blockquote>
<br />
The report suggests that looking at why and how we incarcerate is important but also says that we must begin to think more carefully about the ways that we support and intervene with the children. There is very little research (and perhaps even less evidence based programming) on how to work with this vulnerable population.<br />
<br />
The second report, <a href="https://cdn.americanprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/09060720/CriminalRecords-report2.pdf" target="_blank">Removing Barriers to Opportunity for Parents with Criminal Records</a> talks about the implications of having a criminal record. The report notes that the United States leads the world in arrests and incarceration so their experience can act as an important source of learning for us. The report notes:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
While the effects of parental incarceration on children and families are well-documented,
less appreciated are the family consequences that stem from the barriers
associated with having a criminal record, whether or not the parent has ever been
convicted or spent time behind bars. A child’s life chances are strongly tied to his
or her circumstances during childhood. Thus, these barriers may not only affect
family stability and economic security in the short term but also may damage a
child’s long-term well-being and outcomes.</blockquote>
<br />
The report also helps us to see the effects across all important domains in a family's life:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-wcQjSXUwe3gW9tVhVfsCNaKn4oHRR0-1_MoDlXvB_DKmConihEED043wFfS6nDRdOXjCZ0tmon5-l49tqoNppLT3n_KQbCNXNg2bAQe4St-NsS9-QKetzaOcwqRuUyVrJKCO28Z1nL5z/s1600/iu.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-wcQjSXUwe3gW9tVhVfsCNaKn4oHRR0-1_MoDlXvB_DKmConihEED043wFfS6nDRdOXjCZ0tmon5-l49tqoNppLT3n_KQbCNXNg2bAQe4St-NsS9-QKetzaOcwqRuUyVrJKCO28Z1nL5z/s320/iu.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Income. Parents with criminal records have lower earning potential, as they often
face major obstacles to securing employment and receiving public assistance.
• Savings and assets. Mounting criminal justice debts and unaffordable child
support arrears severely limit families’ ability to save for the future and can trap
them in a cycle of debt.
• Education. Parents with criminal records face barriers to education and training
opportunities that would increase their chances of finding well-paying jobs and
better equip them to support their families.
• Housing. Barriers to public as well as private housing for parents with criminal
records can lead to housing instability and make family reunification difficult if
not impossible.
• Family strength and stability. Financial and emotional stressors associated with
parental criminal records often pose challenges in maintaining healthy relationships
and family stability (p.2)</blockquote>
<br />
It's a topic that deserves more attention particularly focusing on helping families and children manage the changes, stay connected and build resiliency to face the impacts of involvement in the criminal justice system.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<br /></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
</blockquote>
<br />
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-65855236920711264992015-11-26T11:55:00.001-07:002015-11-26T11:55:36.916-07:00Termination of Parental Rights<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I have just had this article published. It discusses some of the very real challenges we face when trying to address issues if Termination of Parental Rights</div>
<div style="font-size: 16px;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-size: 16px;">
Termination of Parental Rights: A Commentary</div>
<div style="font-size: 16px;">
on Ben-David</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
PETER W. CHOATE</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Child Studies and Social Work, Mount Royal University, Calgary, Canada</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Ben-David (this issue) introduced us to the complexity of the factors</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
that courts consider in termination of parental rights (TPR).</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
It is an opening to understanding which factors are taken into consideration</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
and how courts make these challenging determinations.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Yet there are other questions that must be asked before we truly</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
understand the TPR decisions made by courts across a variety of</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
legal jurisdictions. This commentary argues that we must take the</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
inquiry deeper, asking questions that will unpack the complexity</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
assisting researchers and clinicians. Thus, we will want to know</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
how courts weigh such important issues as the credibility of the evidence.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
What is it about such factors as parental competence, failure</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
of remediation, and other issues identified by Ben-David that cause</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
courts to determine TPR is the best choice? Consideration is given</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
to how Ben-David’s work might be extended using a Canadian</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
perspective.</div>
Journal of Family Social Work, 18:243–252, 2015<br />
<br />
<div style="font-size: 12px;">
<br /></div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-89682795567061642232015-11-21T16:55:00.000-07:002015-11-21T16:55:14.318-07:00Make life "everyday" for foster children<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I am fascinated by a study from the University of Leicester in the UK which looks at the value of simple everyday activities for children in care. It seems that engaging children in the kinds of typical day to day activities can positively impact the sense of well-being. This can be what seems mundane - take the children shopping; play games; help care for pets; get involved in fun activities like going swimming.<br />
<br />
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<br />
These various types of activities engage children with the family system and also expose them to low stress and rewarding experiences. It socializes the child in a different way than may be quite different than experiences prior to coming into care. These sorts of activities, the researchers note, help the children to find their place within the social environment. By being successful and belonging, they can then develop a sense of empowerment in their own world - they be become actors who can create positivity in their life and are not driven by protective reactivity.<br />
<br />
This can also lead children into finding comfort and reward in activities that link them to prosocial environments and connections.<br />
<br />
In the world of increasing budget constraints, ins't it wonderful to think of the power of these everyday types of activities when a child is included in them with the foster family and other peers. This can also mentor children into learning how to manage free time more constructively.<br />
<br />
The report notes:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>The participation of young people growing up in care
is constructed in binary ‘positive’ or ‘negative’ terms.
This research has found that this perception can lead
to facilitated activities being overvalued and everyday
participation being undervalued. The self-expression
found in some forms of everyday participation feeds
into young people’s sense of autonomy, yet this is not
always recognised. </li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Participation facilitated by the corporate parent
and foster carers of young people in care has a
positive influence on the choices young people make
regarding their own everyday participation. But this
works both ways and what they choose to do in their
free time in turn influences their decision to engage
with the types of participation on offer. </li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li> Safeguarding the well-being of young people in
care is a priority for social services and carers.
Ensuring and upholding this priority affects and
takes precedence in different aspects of the young
persons everyday life, including their participation.
The requirement to safeguard can interrupt or even
prevent participation inside and outside of the home.
This leads to young people in care being treated
differently and at times can lead to their exclusion. </li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Participation for young people exists in different
geographical locations. However, when a young
person in care moves placement, participation can be
disrupted or even discontinued. </li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
<br />
The latter point speaks to the need for stability so that children can make connections that they can then hold onto allowing them to expand their sense of place, belonging and worth.<br />
<br />
If you would like to look at the report go <a href="https://lra.le.ac.uk/handle/2381/33114" target="_blank">here</a> and follow the links.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-72492275581861405502015-11-07T13:23:00.001-07:002015-11-07T13:23:40.058-07:00BC Child welfare system broken?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The Representative for Child and Youth in British Columbia, Mary-Ellen Turpel-Lafond, suggests that the child welfare system in her province is broken. She made the comments in a report presented by the ATPN media. One issue that she raises is that, for Aboriginal children, too often funding is linked to the child being in care versus prevention efforts to keep children out of care. Turpel-Lafond has many case examples to back up her worry.<br />
<br />
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<br />
<br />
Prevention needs to address issues that child welfare is not set up to manage. Poverty is the main reason that Aboriginal children are in care. Child welfare cannot solve that. They can only respond to the effects of poverty which are typically seen in the form of neglect.<br />
<br />
As a new federal government takes shape in Canada, now is the time for at least three core Aboriginal child welfare issues to be tackled:<br />
<br />
<br />
<ol style="text-align: left;">
<li>Start fully funding child welfare on reserves across this country;</li>
<li>Implement prevention programs to keep children out of care; and</li>
<li>When it is necessary to provide protection to child keep the child within the community and family system by providing needed supports for kinship care to be successful.</li>
</ol>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
In my view, these are priorities. We should be getting them on to the agenda of this new government.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
To view the ATPN report, go <a href="http://aptn.ca/news/2015/11/02/bc-child-welfare-system-needs-complete-overhaul-says-childrens-advocate/" target="_blank">here.</a></div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-1107624292517629482015-10-12T21:28:00.001-06:002015-10-12T21:28:30.273-06:00The British Columbia Representative for Children and Youth Nails it Again<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond is the Representative for Children and Youth in British Columbia. She has just issued a report, <i>The Thin Front Line</i> that analyzes staffing and related problems in the province's child welfare system. It's a read that is relevant to child protection authorities across Canada and likely elsewhere.<br />
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<br />
She states that "The problems are systemic and have accumulated over time, worsening and not improving." She adds that the complexities of working in child protection have increased over time but there are fewer workers to manage these caseloads. This should sound familiar in many places. She notes that workers have had to struggle with budgetary cuts, staff shortages, high turnover and pressure to meet strict timelines.<br />
<br />
The government of B.C. says she is working with old data. Perhaps so, but the issues that Turpel-Lafond raises are hardly new. Thus, there may be some improvement but one doubts that the picture is much out of focus given what is seen in scrutiny of child protection throughout the Western world. Indeed, her themes very much mirror my own research on child protection errors. Her conclusions also strongly mirror reviews done by many authors.<br />
<br />
Where she gets the story quite straight is in her major themes:<br />
<br />
<br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Workloads are high and complex;</li>
<li>Processes change and are not necessarily clinically focused;</li>
<li>The issues that must be dealt with are often connected to long standing inequities that may be beyond the capacity of a worker to solve. An example is the legacy of the Residential Schools and the Sixties Scoop which decimated the parenting and family structure in Canada's First Nations communities;</li>
<li>Bureaucracy is a burden that takes many hours away from clinical work;</li>
<li>It's tough work so people leave and it's hard to get replacements quickly;</li>
<li>The geography of Canada (in this case B.C.) means that many rural and remote communities get spotty services;</li>
<li>Clinical supervision is required regularly but there are not enough supervisors to manage the needs;</li>
<li>She found too many offices operating in crisis mode which tends to lead to "band aid" social work, as she put it.</li>
</ul>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Turpel-Lafond offers several recommendations which include:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Sufficient budgets to address the staffing and workload issues;</li>
<li>Improve the management systems to reflect the complexity and volume of cases;</li>
<li>Track performance and respond to gaps or poor results;</li>
<li>Get more First Nations workers in place.</li>
</ul>
<div>
She notes that there have been some positive steps such as the introduction of the Family Development Response to help support families with lower intensity issues. </div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
These are not new issues so perhaps the one question she did not ask that needs asking is "Why do these issues keep happening, time and again, from jurisdiction to jurisdiction?" In other words, we are consistently getting it wrong. So how can it be done better. Public reviews need to start talking about that versus repeating themes and recommendations we have seen so often --- or is that governments are not really committed to child protection beyond the band aids? Is that governments don't really want to tackle the complex socio-economic factors that lead to children being at risk - poverty, inter-generational trauma, mental health and addictions and so on?</div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-60189412890818417282015-09-30T06:12:00.001-06:002015-09-30T06:12:55.639-06:00Investigation in British Columbia may be asking the wrong questions<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) announced in B.C. what has been hailed as a groundbreaking investigation. They will look into the actions of care workers who were involved with a First Nations youth, Paige, who died as a young adult from a drug overdose. Paige's case was the subject of a scathing report by the B.C. Representative for Children and Youth, Mary-Ellen Turpel-Lafond.<br />
<br />
<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Paige as an infant, child and youth</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
In that report, social workers are noted to have failed to properly assess her needs; failed to communicate between regions as she moved around the province; didn't persist in trying to work with her as she became more challenging to engage; allowed her to live in some of the most dangerous, drug addicted areas of the province and often saw her without arranging further contact with child protection authorities. She died at the age of 19. She had many problems including Marfan syndrome which left her with very challenging eyesight, medication and cardiac health issues along with her addiction, trauma history and likely mental health issues.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
As the CBC reported on September 18, 2015, "Paige as taken to hospital or detox at lest 17 times after being found unconscious or incoherent; she changed schools 16 times; and she featured in more than 40 police files, mostly for public intoxication." Yet, these incidents generally did not result in filing a report to child protection in accordance with provincial legislation. Like most Canadian provincial child welfare legislation, B.C. requires professionals to contact child protection whenever they suspect that a child is in need of protection.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
It is the failure of authorities to make these reports that is the subject of the police investigation. But are they asking the right questions? It's tempting to be satisfied that the police may hold these workers accountable for their failures. That may make many professionals more aware although that might also lead to flooding the system with reports and more children coming into care. There can be a "fear chill" arising from such police efforts.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Despite the merits of a police investigation, it may be that the wrong questions are indeed getting asked. I find myself wondering (as I have with virtually all of the over 900 child welfare practice reviews I have read) what structural conditions lead to these kinds of failures.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
</div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>What causes professionals to believe that a report should not be done?</li>
<li>What allows workers to believe that hard to reach youth are so challenging that you let them be in dangerous situations?</li>
<li>What circumstances lead workers to fail to gather data from others who have worked with a youth?</li>
<li>What did professionals believe would make a call to child welfare not worth doing?</li>
<li>What is that professionals did not understand about their duty to report or has past experience caused them to believe that such calls are not worth doing because they cannot see any changes occurring?</li>
<li>What kinds of supervision exists to support these decisions?</li>
</ul>
<div>
Yes, it is worth asking why these workers did not do what should be done but the questions are much broader. There has never been a prosecution under this section of the B.C. legislation. Turpel-Lafond hopes that this will be a turning point. I fear it may not be the one she wants. How many professionals will now decide that working with child protection cases should be avoided, for example.</div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-14354226964585009092015-09-07T16:35:00.000-06:002015-09-07T16:35:14.943-06:00Taking a resiliency approach<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">One of the challenges in child protection, is being faced with an onslaught of significant problems. There is the daily dose of abuse, neglect, addictions and violence. It is not hard to become overwhelmed with the repeated stories of tragedy. Case loads, when high, also make it challenging to get out from under.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl8M_p5RtPGWMu5JBWlNA-ldON-oF7aS8VP9FzENEiaPFHRu4A4nnu3LnevMq0oATeUzgj9c81G5fQ0v0w3aC2cd_IcL-Fg3qHCNmcYu1NQiRq8tsLpIhGM_9yyQuRpLjdW9g89iCGav-y/s1600/resiliency_L.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl8M_p5RtPGWMu5JBWlNA-ldON-oF7aS8VP9FzENEiaPFHRu4A4nnu3LnevMq0oATeUzgj9c81G5fQ0v0w3aC2cd_IcL-Fg3qHCNmcYu1NQiRq8tsLpIhGM_9yyQuRpLjdW9g89iCGav-y/s1600/resiliency_L.gif" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Workers faced with this, have a natural tendency to see deficits as the story of the client or the family. Further, the majority of assessments tend to emphasize those issues. Many of the mental health and psychometric tools are largely focused on the deficit or identification of problems. Mental health practitioners look for diagnostic clues which can skew their perspective to a symptom based analysis.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I have become interested in the notion of resiliency in child protection as a way to shift not only our view of the client but also the nature of the relationship that we have with them. There is research that tells us that the relationship is the most powerful tool that we have in our work. I am reminded of the work of Maiter, Palmer & Manji which notes:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #403838; line-height: 19px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Parents appreciated workers who were caring, genuine, empathetic, exceptionally helpful, non-judgmental, and accepting. Negative qualities of workers identified by parents were being judgmental, cold and uncaring, poor listeners, critical, and insincere.(from the abstract, 2006)</span></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">To gain trust and be effective, we also need to have patience and begin to understand the ecological reality of the client - including their strengths. What got me thinking about that is a TedTalk by Dr. Gabor Mate speaking about addiction. He suggests that we ask the question "What is right about it?" Imagine asking that question with our clients. We begin then to explore the value of what the client has been doing even when we can easily see it as harmful. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The power of the relationship can also be seen in a Canadian study in 2012 by Gladstone et el.:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #2e2e2e; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 23px; word-spacing: -1px;"> A relationship was found between workers' perception of parent engagement and parents' perception of their own engagement, as well as between the perceptions that workers and parents had around their own respective engagement. Workers who were satisfied with service outcomes were significantly more engaged than those who were unsatisfied. Parents thinking that their children were safer as a result of intervention were significantly more engaged than parents who thought that their children were less safe. The strongest reason given by parents for positive change was being able to trust their worker (p < .001) and believing that their worker was knowledgeable about parenting (p < .01). (again from the abstract)</span></span></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I reflected further on this when working with a client recently who has a substance abuse problem, mental health issues and self harming behaviours. It is quite easy to get focused on the problems. But when I went to Mate's question, I began to see how she had survived and coped with a long list of traumas in her life. Her support system had collapsed and her internal resources were overwhelmed. She had found a way to exist. Reframing the behaviours in this way changes how she is seen but most importantly, how she reacts to the relationship.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">One of the barriers to change can be what we believe is possible. If we do not see that it can be done, then it takes a strong client to prove us wrong. Not to be mistaken, there are clearly situations where clients resist change or it is just too much for them.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">There are also now indicators that, just as trauma can pass between generations through DNA (e.g think of the study of epigenetics) there is also data that suggests that recovery, resilience and strength can pass as well. For an interesting brief read on this, you might look at Dr. Laura Kerr's <a href="http://www.acesconnection.com/blog/the-intergenerational-transmission-of-recovery" target="_blank">blog</a>. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">There is also research out of the United Kingdom suggesting that it is worth looking at the child's well-being. The Children's Society has recently published the 2015 Report, <i>The Good Childhood.</i> I like this report as it invites us into a broader and richer view of seeing how a child is doing. The report starts by noting:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Though it is easy to slip into a shorthand
of happiness, well-being is about so much
more than this. It is about how young
people feel about their lives as a whole,
how they feel about their relationships,
the amount of choice that they have
in their lives, and their future. Wellbeing
matters as an end in itself, but
also because it is correlated with other
outcomes in life such as physical and
mental health...</span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">In essence, what this all begins to tell us that there are very good reasons to be hopeful in many of the cases we work with - not all - but many. It is also worth remembering that our goal is not perfection but good enough (Choate & Engstrom, 2014).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">References:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Gladston, J., Dumbrill, G., Leslie, B., Koster, A., Young, M. & Ismalia, A. (2013). Looking at engagement and outcome from the perspectives of child protection workers and parents. <i>Children and Youth Services Review, 34</i> (1), 112-118. <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2011.09.003">doi:10.1016/j.childyouth.2011.09.003</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Maiter, S., Palmer, S. & Manj, S. (2006). Strengthening social worker-client relationships in child protective services: Addressing power imbalances and 'ruptured' relationships. <i>Qualitative Social Work, 5</i>(2), 161-186. <span style="background-color: white; color: #333300; line-height: 12px;">doi: </span><span class="slug-doi" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333300; line-height: 12px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">10.1177/1473325006064255</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Pople, L. The Children's Society, Rees, G., Main, G. & Bradshaw, J.. (2015). <i>The Good Childhood Report 2015.</i> London: The Children's Society. </span></span></h1>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-48537883307037926652015-07-26T11:31:00.001-06:002015-07-26T11:31:47.812-06:00Dissenting opinions really matter<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Imagine being in a case conference and not feeling that the assembled group has considered all of the needed information. Imagine as well, that you are a junior in the room. What typically happens, is that the junior will keep quiet. They may try to explain their concerns to a trusted colleague later but their ideas are lost to the group.<br />
<br />
The aviation industry has considered this problem as contributing to airline accidents. They have been working at creating an environment where all in the cockpit feel comfortable speaking up. The risks for a plane are a bit more obvious - if the error occurs it might crash killing many. But it is in the analysis of prior accidents that it has become clear that speaking up can save lives.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigQEELUhvyj69ada4q0l7Xgz5ZON-amwWwfpqKcqtKciR6vvzCkB8y15uISpb-qt_xIzqHDi4a35VTZrRXqKdiyxg_bv_NLffCXYhvuBCPsg5OSMCPJ04PBmYJm4ZHkss1qoFXPe4vgAKo/s1600/iu.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigQEELUhvyj69ada4q0l7Xgz5ZON-amwWwfpqKcqtKciR6vvzCkB8y15uISpb-qt_xIzqHDi4a35VTZrRXqKdiyxg_bv_NLffCXYhvuBCPsg5OSMCPJ04PBmYJm4ZHkss1qoFXPe4vgAKo/s320/iu.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Professor Eileen Munro of the London School of Economics has pointed out in earlier writing that we should learn from other industries who have taken time to dissect how to prevent disaster. She believes that there are lessons to be learned. I agree.<br />
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For too long, however, we have relied upon the courage of a dissenting member of the group to speak up rather than encourage dissenting opinions. When that occurs, we tend to see group think - this is where the group coalesces around the opinion of the majority. In particular, the group tends to conform to the opinions of the more powerful members. This leads to errors in thinking and decision making because it assumes that the powerful member or the group has it right.<br />
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The group may, however, in seeking consensus, also filter out data that contradicts the group or power member opinions. Thus, they become selective in what data they consider rejecting data that strays from the group opinion. It leads to conformational thinking as opposed to critical thinking.<br />
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Serious case reviews and similar reviews of death and injury in child protection cases has identified this concern.<br />
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The minority opinion can often contain insights or perspectives that have not been given much consideration or analysis. These opinions can open up new perspectives or link previously unlinked data. They can also act as a way to ensure various options are considered.<br />
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It shouldn't take courage. Rather, it should be encouraged. The group leader should seek the conflicting opinions. The challenge is that it takes time - typically in short supply in high demand, high caseload environments. Yet failing to do so places people at risk.<br />
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For the minority opinion holder, there is also the use of language. Certain terms and words catch the group's attention more than others. Indicating that you have serious concerns, serious reservations, you are quite uncomfortable with the direction being taken, you think that the plan is unsafe, are all terms that can garner the group's attention. How we say it matters as much as what we say.<br />
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By encouraging this approach, we can reduce harm to children and families. In a previous blog I spoke about the B.C. Supreme Court decision that held social workers liable for their decisions to place children in the care of an abusive father. The judge's decision illustrates that contradictory data did exist. This might be an example of how group think occurred and dissenting opinions were either squashed or not voiced. There are many other examples.<br />
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But it is up to managing leaders to create an environment where various points of view are welcomed. When a dissenting opinion occurs, how can it be seen as needed and explored? Management can act in a way that sees the opinion as needed or do the opposite. Thus, the quality of the supervisory environment serves to encourage or discourage the voicing of minority ideas. Otherwise, it can be very lonely to be the "other voice".<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-11558353703398288622015-07-16T19:47:00.000-06:002015-08-08T10:26:38.604-06:00BC Child Welfare is found to have caused injury to children through misfeasance <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Imagine,
if you will, that child protection authorities get it so wrong that the
children are placed in the care of the abusive parent with the active support
of child protection. Imagine that, as a result, the children having been
sexually abused but not believed. Imagine that the youngest will be sexually
abused by the father while the child is in the care of child protection.
Imagine, as well, that the misfeasance is led by a supervisor who develops a
closed mind on the case. If imaging this and more seems possible, then you can
well imagine the case of J.P., her three children and the father, B.G.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">A
decision on this case has been issued by The Honourable Mr. Justice Walker of
the British Columbia Supreme Court. He lays out the cause of action this way:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">The
plaintiffs’ claims are framed in negligence, breach of fiduciary duty, and
misfeasance in public office (“misfeasance”). The essence of those claims is
that the Director and her agents failed to assess and investigate the reports
of sexual abuse; wrongly apprehended the children and then misled judicial
authorities during a subsequent apprehension proceeding; and, permitted B.G.
unsupervised access to the children despite a supervised access order of this
Court, with the result that the youngest child was sexually abused by B.G. The
plaintiffs further allege that what gave rise to this misconduct was an
unreasonable and unyielding belief on the part of the Director, one wholly
unsupported by the available information, that J.P. had mental health issues
and was unfit to parent, and that B.G. was the parent best capable of caring
for the children. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Justice
Walker will find that the child protection authorities are indeed guilty. In
particular, he will be highly critical of the supervisor whom he determines
developed a fixed view, based on uninvestigated and false allegations which he
would expect staff to also accept. Justice Walker further notes that the
behaviour of the supervisor adversely impacted the police investigation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Justice
Walker states:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">...The children
described sexual touching, including digital touching of genitalia and the
anus, oral copulation, and partial penile penetration by their father. B.G.
denied all of the allegations. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">[14]
The Director failed to assess and investigate the report of sexual abuse of the
three older children as well as required by the standard of care….<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">social
workers involved in the case disregarded evidence supporting the sexual abuse
allegations and failed to ensure that the Director carried out her own assessment
and investigation <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Justice
Walker goes on to describe how child protection developed a view that the
allegations of abuse were fabricated and related to a mental illness suffered
by the mother - a conclusion that Justice Walker concludes had no merit to it.
Further, Justice Walker, in measured language of the court, makes it clear that
child protection misled courts and lied about information. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">By
February 2010, nearly all of the social workers involved with the case had
determined that the children should be returned to the care of their father,
and they actively supported B.G.’s claim for sole custody. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">The
decision goes on to note:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">[24]
Until mid-December 2011, the Director continued to deny the veracity of the
sexual abuse allegations. On December 14, 2011, however, during the First
Trial, the Director admitted in a written statement that was handed to the
Court shortly thereafter that it was possible that the children had been
sexually abused by their father. The Director continued, however, to support
B.G.’s claim for sole custody and guardianship. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">[25]
Suddenly, and following her appointment of new trial counsel, the Director
reversed her position on March 29, 2012, after some 64 days of trial. She
withdrew her protection concerns about J.P. and advised the Court that the
children should be returned to their mother. The trial of the issues between
J.P. and B.G., including the allegations of sexual and physical abuse,
continued and concluded in May 2012. I found that B.G. had sexually and physically
abused his three eldest children and physically abused J.P., and ordered that
sole guardianship and custody go to J.P. I also ordered that B.G. be denied
access to his children. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Justice
Walker concludes:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">[35]
I have determined that the infant plaintiffs have established the liability of
the Province for negligence and breach of fiduciary duty owed to them. The
plaintiffs, including J.P., have also proven the misfeasance claim. I have
determined that the Director and certain Ministry social workers acted well
outside of their statutory mandate and the duty to protect children. The nature
of their tortious conduct varies depending on the individual. It ranges from
intentional misconduct, bad faith, reckless disregard for their obligation to
protect children, breach of the applicable standard of care to unreasonably
supporting the custodial interests of the children’s father even if it meant he
sexually abused them. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">[36]
Fault for the ongoing failure of the Director and her agents to carry out their
obligations to act in the best interests of the children and to protect them
from harm is not attributed solely to a single Ministry employee. The Director
had many opportunities to carry out a proper assessment and investigation
of the reports of sexual abuse and to assess the information and evidence
provided to her on an ongoing basis, including during the Apprehension
Proceeding. Different employees are at fault for different and not necessarily
mutually exclusive reasons depending on the point in time. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">[37]
A key feature of the Director’s conduct in this case is that she and many of
her agents approached the case in front of them with a closed mind, having
concluded at a very early stage, before the children were interviewed, that
there was no merit to the sexual abuse allegations and that J.P. had fabricated
them and had coached her children to make their disclosures. The Director’s
focus turned away from the best interests of the children and on to J.P. As I
previously noted, until the 64th day of the First Trial, the Director’s
steadfast position was that the sexual abuse allegations were groundless and
that J.P. was unfit to parent because she was suffering from mental illness or
instability that posed a risk of emotional harm to the children. J.P.’s
persistence in her claim that her children had been sexually abused by their
father was held against her by the Director because she thought the manner in
which J.P. continued to act on her belief caused and would continue to cause
emotional harm to the children. The Director supported B.G.’s claim for custody
of the children at an early stage in the case, and then unreasonably and
aggressively stuck to that plan until March 29, 2012, to the detriment of the
children. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">In
the end, Justice Walker will hold child protection liable and will also
determine at paragraph 1086 that "Immunity afforded by the <i>CFCSA </i>to
good faith discretionary decisions is not afforded to the Director and social
workers in this case." In essence, Justice Walker determines that child
protection did not act in good faith.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">This
case has the risks of the specific social workers being targeted (as happened
in the United Kingdom with the Baby Peter case) and the real issues of systemic
problems in child protection not getting discussed. In my research of hundreds
of cases where things have gone wrong, there are some strong themes that we see
in this case. Yes, it appears that the social workers here did not do their job
well, but it is the fact that many practice issues seen here are not unique to
this case. Therefore, one must conclude that there are some fundamental issues
with how child protection is done that we see these issues repeat across cases
and across jurisdictions both within Canada and elsewhere in the western work.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Here
are some of the themes in this case and others:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Hostile
divorce matters are often not well managed in child protection. Many times,
they are not seen as a child protection issue. In this case, child protection
did get involved but then, without proper investigation, took sides.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Not
understanding domestic violence – the mother, who was passionate about trying
to get people to hear her concerns, was labeled mentally ill (partially at the
instigation of the father). Yet, in domestic violence cases, it is often the
more “hysterical” party who is telling the truth. It is the calm, cool one who
is often the perpetrator. It takes skilled investigation to sort through this.</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Mental
health issues need professional assessment – child protection workers do not
possess the advanced training, in most cases, to determine the presence or
absence of a mental illness. Experts in the field need to be brought in (not
done in this case). Even then, the presence of mental illness does not preclude
a parent being appropriately concerned; does not determine parental capacity;
and does not make the other parent more capable.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Group
think – in this case, a unified view of the case was developed, led, it seems,
by the supervisor. There did not appear to be room for dissension which is one
of the most important voices in case management. It is dissension that often
leads to critical thinking. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">5.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Ethical
practice means being willing to go against the group or the leader. There were
some hints that others may have been open to seeing the problems in the case
management. Justice Walker talks about deception, lying and misleading courts.
Here is an example why child protection workers need to be licensed
professional social workers who can be held accountable for ethical practice. I
do not know if these individuals were, but it does show how having child
protection worker behavior linked to a code of ethical practice is important.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">6.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">The
best interest of the children was lost. They were not properly assessed or
heard which means that their voice was not at the forefront. Other cases have
shown that the voice of the child needs to be central to the case.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">7.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Using
selective data and filtering out competing information – good case management
means being open to competing data. This does not occur when workers believe
that they know it. It is an imperative that each new piece of data be seen as
adding to, detracting or altering present understandings – but which is it?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">8.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Interagency
communication adds to good case management. Justice Walker noted “The Director
delayed in delivering documents requested by another branch of government…” It
has been shown time and again that information held and not shared diminishes
effective case management.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">The leadership was deficient - it did not appear to offer balance, critical review as well as an instance on continual data gathering and review.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">This
case matters because it shows how poor practice gets compounded as the case
goes along, ideas become fixed and unchallenged, children get lost and are
harmed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">The BC Representative for Children and Youth has called for the case to receive a full inquiry. This is the kind of case that should because there are many systemic issues to be considered. These children have been damaged, and likely will suffer life long impacts. How we can avoid such harm from bad practice needs to be understood. These are common errors of reasoning that front line practitioners need to better understand.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">The
case can be found at <a href="http://www.courts.gov.bc.ca/jdb-txt/SC/15/12/2015BCSC1216.htm">http://www.courts.gov.bc.ca/jdb-txt/SC/15/12/2015BCSC1216.htm</a>
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">August 8 2015</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Since I wrote this post, three important things have occurred:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial;">1. The Minister has appointed an independent officer, former senior government official, Bob Plecas, to investigate this case.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial;">2. The Representative for Children and Youth, Mary-Ellen Turpel-Lafond, has been bypassed to conduct the investigation even though it would fall within her jurisdiction. She has issued a press release saying she may yet use her powers to investigate and thus, will not work with Plecas. She has powers to take evidence under oath which Plecas does not. It is curious that the government has by-passed the Representative. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial;">3. The BC Government has appealed the decision which the mother has called cruel.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-83952168088789570912015-07-09T11:49:00.001-06:002015-07-09T11:49:52.398-06:00Attachment parenting, resilience but sometimes things go very wrong<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
There are some very good resources to help parents offer their children good parenting. Virtually every parent I have ever met, even abusive ones, have loved their children even if they didn't know how to love them well. But what leads children who have had good parenting into trouble?<br />
<br />
<br />
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<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/i6bLzCv0nsA/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/i6bLzCv0nsA?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
<br />
Resources:<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.askdrsears.com/topics/parenting/attachment-parenting" target="_blank">Dr. Sears website for attachment parenting</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.resilienceproject.org/presenters/12-dr-michael-ungar" target="_blank">Dr. Michael Unger's resiliency project</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://drgabormate.com/" target="_blank">Dr. Gabor Mate's website</a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-78624265660000733912015-06-28T08:58:00.000-06:002015-06-28T08:58:24.884-06:00Justice Clarence Thomas' dissent in the gay marriage decision sends a dangerous message<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
One might rightly wonder what the US Supreme Court decision on gay marriage might have to do with some issues in child protection. The obvious will be around the legal definition of marriage and thus the legal definition of family. Decisions around parenting, guardianship, adoption, divorce, custody and access as well as child support will all have impacts. Although, as we have seen in Canada, legalization of a union between two people of the same gender has not led to disastrous results in those legal and social police areas.<br />
<br />
I am, however, rather disturbed with Justice Thomas' comments in his dissent where he fails, in my view, to understand the impact of trauma. He states:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">The corollary of that principle is that human dignity cannot be taken away by the government. Slaves did not lose their dignity (any more than they lost their humanity) because the government allowed them to be enslaved. Those held in internment camps did not lose their dignity because the government confined them. And those denied governmental benefits certainly do not lose their dignity because the government denies them those benefits. The government cannot bestow dignity, and it cannot take it away.</span></blockquote>
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In this, he essentially states that a person can be subject to mass trauma created by the state and still hold onto their human dignity. This is wrong and I believe that history and science of trauma would support that. The whole purpose of mass incarceration, genocide, stripping people of rights is to remove their sense of worth - their dignity. Certainly some, those with particular resilience, are able to sustain when given ways to heal. But most will be forever impacted by the trauma and their dignity will indeed be fractured.<br />
<br />
When we suggest in a justice system otherwise, as Justice Thomas has done, then we remove part of the consideration of the impact of trauma on the victims. That also removes their dignity as it will take vindication that comes with people knowing the truth of the trauma and the effects of it.<br />
<br />
Here in Canada, for generations, we have denied that the mass trauma of taking First Nations children away from their families and putting them in abusive Residential Schools. Through the publication of the recent Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report, we have seen how the dignity of First Nations peoples were destroyed as part of this cultural genocide. That is real. It is by honouring the truth, that dignity can be found again in the person, the community and the culture.<br />
<br />
Justice Thomas' statements must be challenged because of the message that they send to justice systems about trauma. I anticipate (or at least hope) that he meant something different but his words are the record.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-47444938452375936732015-06-22T09:50:00.000-06:002015-06-22T09:51:47.320-06:00Paige is a distressing story<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The story of how a British Columbia First Nations girl was let down by child protection authorities has been documented in a report by the province's Representative for Children and Youth. It is a hard read. Page after page, you are left wondering how social workers decided to make the decisions they did - leaving this vulnerable child in care situations that were clearly risky; believing that interventions would work when there was little evidence that they would; failing to see the child. As the report notes on p.5, "Professional standards of care were not upheld in how Paige was treated."<br />
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<br />
This is a child who was subject to maltreatment throughout her life - from infancy to early adulthood when she would die. In some ways, looking back, you can see that she was destined to die early given the amount of maltreatment in her life. She experienced a number of adverse life experiences (ACEs). The ACE research project shows convincingly, that people who experience three or more of these events, have a dramatically higher rate of illness, addiction, mental illness and early death. Based on what is written in the report, her score may have well been in the range of 6.<br />
<br />
It didn't have to be that way. Early intervention could have made a difference in terms of both the quality of her life and its duration. She need not have ended up in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver - one of the most social disadvantaged communities in Canada.<br />
<br />
Having researched hundreds of reports like Paige, I am struck by the similarities of repeating problems including (but certainly not limited to):<br />
<br />
<br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>being too optimistic that change will occur thus minimizing or not seeing the ongoing and growing risk factors;</li>
<li>failing to see that repeated efforts at change are not making a difference;</li>
<li>not putting the needs of the child as the most significant priority;</li>
<li>failing to coordinate information available from a variety of sources;</li>
<li>failing to look for the permanent solution believing that being with biological parents was somehow preferable; </li>
<li>creating instability through multiple moves and placements;</li>
<li>failing to follow up on case plans;</li>
<li>having poor case supervision;</li>
<li>not really knowing the file;</li>
<li>not completing needed risk assessments;</li>
<li>not understanding the nature of addiction.</li>
</ul>
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<br /></div>
<div>
The Representative's report states on p. 6:</div>
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<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="text-align: left;">
This is a child who should have been permanently removed from her mother’s care at an early age. She was the subject of no less than 30 child protection reports during her 19 years, involving allegations of domestic violence, neglect and abandonment. Her mother was actively using alcohol and drugs and there were no signs of that behaviour abating. Paige was repeatedly returned to her mother by the Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD) despite glaring and unavoidable evidence that this was not a healthy, nurturing or safe environment for any child and wasn’t ever likely to be.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="text-align: left;">
As a result, Paige’s life was a case study in chaos. By the time she was 16, she had moved no less than 40 times, between residences with her mother, foster homes, temporary placements and shelters. After her mother moved them to the DTES in September 2009, Paige lived with her in toxic environments and moved another 50 times, living in various homeless shelters, safe houses, youth detox centres, couch-surfing scenarios, foster homes and a number of Single Room Occupancy (SRO) hotels.</blockquote>
<br />
As I noted, I have read quite literally hundreds of these reports from Canada, Australia, the USA, England, Ireland, Scotland --- the themes are painfully consistent. So why is that?<br />
<br />
Often we think of systemic problems - poor resourcing, over worked social workers, funding problems, weak supervision of front line managers. These are all true. As a profession, however, we must start to look at the quality of care that we are providing. Ultimately, we are responsible for what we do with a client.<br />
<br />
We also need to look at the education social workers receive. How well are we preparing students for the real world challenges of managing cases like Paige? We also need to look at politicians for honest leadership that is backed up with funding, resources and the sense that child protection is a priority as opposed to a service to keep the sad stories in check. Political leadership also recognizes that there are problems which child protection cannot solve - poverty, crime in communities and so on.<br />
<br />
As a society, we need to have a longer attention span to these issues. Stories like page hit the headlines, people shake their heads and wonder how such a tragedy could occur, politicians nod and speak of change and then……… nothing. The story fades while the media seeks out the next big tragedy to talk about. The themes are telling about tragedy not about actual real change. When society really pays attention, things might change because then the politicians can expect to be held accountable.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09231361409140543650noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6627182063501581368.post-75974720025311481772015-05-06T10:08:00.000-06:002015-05-06T10:52:14.099-06:00The Expert witness in child protection - putting limits on<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span lang="EN-US">The role of expert witness can be quite
powerful in courts. They can have a strong impact on how judges see information
and they get an opportunity to frame the data. In child protection, they
complete assessments such as parenting capacity (PCA), addiction, mental health
and cognitive and risk.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">Courts in Canada, have addressed the
position of the expert witness in a leading case. The Supreme Court of Canada
(SCC) in the case of Mohan noted that an expert must meet certain criteria. The
United States has considered this in two leading cases, Frye and Daubert. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">In R. v. Mohan, the SCC identified four
criteria for the admissibility of evidence:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<li>It must be relevant </li>
<li>necessary to assist the trier of fact</li>
<li>should not trigger any exclusionary rule</li>
<li>must be given be a properly qualified expert </li>
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Careful readers will note similarity between the Daubert conclusions and Mohan.</div>
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<span lang="EN-US">Writing for the court which held this
unanimously, then Justice Sopinka stated:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1c1c1c; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Expert evidence, to be necessary, must likely be
outside the experience and knowledge of a judge or jury and must be assessed in
light of its potential to distort the fact</span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1c1c1c; font-family: "American Typewriter";">‑</span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1c1c1c; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">finding
process. Necessity should not be judged by too strict a standard. The
possibility that evidence will overwhelm the jury and distract them from their
task can often be offset by proper instructions. Experts, however, must not be
permitted to usurp the functions of the trier of fact causing a trial to
degenerate to a contest of experts.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">In a just released decision, the SCC has
gone further. Writing for a unanimous SCC decision, Justice Cromwell wrote:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-ansi-language: EN-CA; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The concept of apparent bias is not relevant to the
question of whether or not an expert witness will be unable or unwilling to
fulfill its primary duty to the court. When looking at an expert’s interest or
relationship with a party, the question is not whether a reasonable observer
would think that the expert is not independent. The question is whether the
relationship or interest results in the expert being unable or unwilling to
carry out his or her primary duty to the court to provide fair, non-partisan
and objective assistance. </span></i><span style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-ansi-language: EN-CA; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">(</span><span style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-ansi-language: EN-CA; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">White Burgess Langlille
Inman v Abbott and Haliburton Co., 2015 SCC 23)</span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-CA; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">This takes the role of expert further by
insisting that the expert has an obligation to the court and the court is
charged with ensuring that the expert fulfills that duty. For those who have
made a living as “hired guns”, this decision is dangerous news. The highest
Canadian court has made it clear that the expert has a primary duty and that
duty is to the court. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">The SCC goes on adopting an Ontario case,
Abbe, stating:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-CA; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">As stated in Abbey, the test for admissibility of expert evidence is now
two-fold.</span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language: EN-CA;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; mso-ansi-language: EN-CA; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">First, the threshold: <i>Mohan </i>factors: relevance,
necessity, absence of an exclusionary rule, and a properly qualified expert. At
this point, the expert should also be able to acknowledge that <b><i>she
understands that she has a primary duty to the court to give fair, objective,
and non-partisan evidence, and that she is willing and able to fulfill that
role. </i></b>Absent a challenge from the opposing party, an affirmative
answer to this question will generally be sufficient to establish this
threshold requirement.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; mso-ansi-language: EN-CA; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Second step: The person challenging the ex-[pert (which will be rare)
must show that there is a realistic concern that the expert is unable and/or
unwilling to comply with his or her duty. It is not enough to simply
allege that the expert has a relationship, interest, or connection to the
litigation or to a party. A simple economic concern will likely not be enough,
given the realities of modern litigation. However, if there is a concern such
as : where the expert has a direct financial interest in the outcome of the
litigation; a familial relationship with one of the parties; where the expert
will likely incur professional liability is her opinion is not accepted by the
court; or <b>where the expert assumes the role of an advocate for a party,</b> then
this concern may be made out. The onus then shifts back to the side calling
that expert to show why the concerns are not legitimate. (emphasis added.</span><br />
<span style="color: #222222; mso-ansi-language: EN-CA; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #222222; mso-ansi-language: EN-CA; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; mso-ansi-language: EN-CA; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">This really does
challenge the notion of the expert as an advocate for one side. The court is
really challenging that role. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; mso-ansi-language: EN-CA; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Experts need to be
challenged in my view. I have appeared as an expert in about 150 cases. Thus, I
speak from direct experience. An expert must bring to the court data, and an
ability to interpret data, that the court is not in a position to do. In
assessment work, an expert must also be able to address the standard against
which clinical judgment has been made. How has the expert determined that the
parent is or is not capable of meeting the needs of the child? Thus, the expert
must be able to articulate the basis of the conclusions.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; mso-ansi-language: EN-CA; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">A colleague and I
looked at the PCA process and concluded that the standard was poorly outlined.
We argued a parent needs to be only good enough. If there is not an articulated
standard, then the assessor is able to make one up. Most assessors are from in
a privileged position in society by virtue of education, social class and
perhaps quite often culture, race and gender. In other words, their social
location is quite different from the client in the child protection system. In
the absence of a standard, the assessor will draw from their own social
location (whether consciously or not) to determine whether a parent should
raise their children.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; mso-ansi-language: EN-CA; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What these court
decisions mean is that an expert in child protection should be challenged to
determine if they have a clear and articulated understanding of the standards
against which they have judged a parent. If they cannot, then I would argue
that they have not met the criteria of an expert and should be challenged.
Indeed, the court should, not accept someone who cannot do this. It is not a
good use of scarce court time. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">Reference:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-CA; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Choate, P. W & Engström, S. (2014). The ”good enough” parent:
Implications for child protection. Child Care in Practice, Vol. 20 (No. 4)
368–382<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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