June 28, 2006
Other, Other Social Issues
Question from Australia:
If someone had a legal obligation to report child abuse and that person was aware that a mother of an eight year old neglected to change her child’s infusion set for a week at a time, would you say they were obligated to report this? What should this person do? Also, this extends to the person expecting the eight year old to perform a level of self-care without supervision. This does not seem developmentally appropriate for an eight year old. The mother expects the child to manage his own care independently for week long periods and perform his own carbohydrate counting, and administration of rapid acting insulin pre-prandially, both when on shots and on a pump.
Answer:
I cannot provide you with an opinion based on the law as I am neither trained or familiar with the laws of Australia. With that said, if you know of a matter in which, using your professional judgment, you determine that the behavior or activity could be abusive or neglectful or place a child at risk or in danger, you should report this to the appropriate authorities.
DSH
