This week, 6 – 12 September, Northern Health is celebrating National Child Protection Week.
National Child Protection Week (NCPW) is the annual national awareness campaign focused on protecting children and promoting their rights, safety and wellbeing. It is an opportunity to raise awareness of the importance of keeping children safe and protected from harm.
The theme for this year is ‘Every Conversation Matters, Shifting Conversation to Action’. Conversations can spark new ideas and encourage reflection, but real change occurs when these conversations translate into practical steps that create safer environments and stronger support systems for children.
NCPW helps to turn conversations into action. While the campaign is highlighted during this week, the focus extends throughout the year, bringing people together to strengthen support systems, prevent harm and help children grow up feeling safe and supported.
As healthcare professionals, we are in a unique position to identify and respond to risk, support children and families, and help ensure that all children are safe and supported. Child protection is everyone’s responsibility. Creating a safe environment starts with being informed, listening to children and knowing what to do when concerns arise.
Tanya Ells, Strengthening Hospital Response to Family Violence (SHRFV) Program Manager, says, “Recognising the signs and risk factors indicating that a child may be experiencing harm or neglect is an essential part of protecting children. This includes being aware of changes in a child’s behaviour, interactions, and emotional and physical presentation. Equally important is knowing what to do when concerns arise and ensuring appropriate referral and escalation through our hospital’s child protection processes. Child protection is more than simply responding to concerns, it is about prevention, early intervention and building a culture where children’s safety and wellbeing remain at the centre of everything we do.”
Northern Health is committed to creating a safe environment and reducing barriers for victim- survivors to disclose safety concerns to their health professional and receive support and access to safety. In order to support this response, we have implemented a whole-of-hospital approach to child safety and family violence.
A whole-of-hospital approach is essential as disclosures can occur at any stage of a patient’s healthcare journey. This approach promotes collaborative, coordinated and consistent practice across the organisation. It also ensures that all staff – both clinical and non-clinical – understand their role and responsibilities under the Multi-Agency Risk Assessment & Management (MARAM) Framework and Child Safe Standards.
In recognition of NCPW, the SHRFV Program is pleased to announce the launch of the ‘Family Violence MARAM – Responding to Children Training Module’.
The SHRFV Program developed this supplementary training module to complement and build on our existing Family Violence MARAM Mandatory Training. The training is designed to support clinicians to enhance their knowledge and understanding of children experiencing and exposed to family violence. It outlines the signs and risk factors specific to children and equips clinicians with further skills to identify and respond to our paediatric patients at-risk of violence.
The training outlines our legal and clinical responsibilities under the MARAM Framework and the Family Violence Information Sharing Scheme (FVISS) and Child Information Sharing Scheme (CISS). A key focus of the training is the use of the MARAM Screening & Identification Tool with a child’s parent who may also be a victim survivor of family violence. The Tool is designed to be used with an adult to identify family violence affecting both themselves and their child/ren. The Tool is located on EMR (AdHoc Forms Section) and PROMPT.
All clinicians working with paediatric patients are encouraged to complete this new module at their earliest convenience – available now live on LMS.
The SHRFV Program is also available for specialist consultation and to deliver this training in-person across the organisation. Please contact the SHRFV Program or your area Social Worker if you need to consult or to organise education.
Throughout NCPW, we encourage staff to reflect on the vital role we each play in keeping children safe and to refresh our knowledge of our child protection policies, responsibilities and referral pathways.
Together, we can help create a culture where every child is seen, heard, valued and protected.
Further Information:
Paediatric – Child & Adolescent Safety & Wellbeing
Family Violence – Identification, Response, & Referral
Family Violence MARAM Learning Hub
Child Safe Standards
Pictured in featured image: Tanya Ellis (SHRFV Program Manager) and Alecia Caddy (NUM) with the Children’s Ward Team and patients.