Incest: Intake and Investigation

Incest: Intake and Investigation

Titre de l'ensemble: Sexually Abused Children and their Families

This chapter discusses intake and investigation of incest. During the past several years, United States has enacted legislation to facilitate and mandate the reporting of abuse and neglect of children. The best reporting laws in the world, however, will only compound the problems of the abusive family if those responding to the reports do not know how to intervene effectively. It is important that the intervention provide protection to the endangered child and be of assistance to the family, though all concerned may not recognize it as assistance at the time. Under Colorado law, reports of child abuse and neglect, including sexual abuse, may be made to either the appropriate law enforcement agency or the county department of social services. Those social workers who receive initial reports of alleged abuse and neglect are designated as child welfare intake workers. They constitute one or more separate and distinct units with their own supervisory head. The skills needed and the basic orientations for both these important tasks vary, though the two functions must be compatible and allow easy flow of case material from intake to ongoing units specializing in provision of child protection services.