Child Protection Program

The Child Protection Program (CPP) at Children's Hospital Boston provides consultation, training and direct clinical services to clinicians, agencies and families coping with child abuse and domestic violence.

Our program includes:

a child Protection Clinical Services (CPCS) Program, an outpatient child maltreatment clinic staffed by psychologists, nurses, nurse practitioners, social workers and physicians with extensive expertise in the evaluation and response to child maltreatment
a child Protection Team (CPT), which provides 24 hour, on-call coverage, expert consultation services, professional training and support to hospital staff on issues of child maltreatment
the AWAKE (Advocacy for Women and Kids in Emergencies) Project, which offers women and children in domestically harmful situations a safe and confidential place to talk and share their experiences

Conditions & Treatments

General Pediatrics

Did you know? Actively protecting our patients

Children's has undertaken a hospital-wide program to train all staff and employees to recognize signs of child abuse and domestic violence, and to educate them about available resources and support services for families affected by violence.

Did you know? Repercussions of abuse

Child abuse is a major public health concern that transcends racial, ethnic, religious and socioeconomic boundaries. It’s been found to correlate with problems of violence, substance abuse, anxiety disorders, depression, suicide and other psychopathology.

Studies suggest that the incidence of certain comorbidities are correlated with duration and severity of abuse, suggesting that reports of abuse to appropriate child protection agencies may have long-term, as well as immediate, health benefits for the victim.

When people ask me what I do, I usually start by saying that I work at Children's Hospital Boston and try to leave it at that. If they probe, I admit that I work in the Social Work Department. If further discussion ensues, I tell them I'm an advocate in the domestic violence program and wait for what almost always comes next…

LINK: http://web1.tch.harvard.edu/chnews/11-01-08/amanda_gaudet.html