Child Welfare System in New York

The essay will expound on New York State laws on mandated reporting of child abuse, defining who a mandated reporter is, the time-frame allocated for an individual to report a suspected child abuse incident as well as enumerate the value of mandated reporters. At a later stage in this essay, we will dive into other terms related to child welfare. In every category, the essay will be keen to explore the role of social workers in the child welfare system. Child abuse is to be differentiated from child maltreatment. In New York, the term child abuse is used to describe three acts that make for child abuse – serious physical injury, creating considerable risk for physical injury or committing an act of sexual abuse against a child.

A mandated reporter is a person who is required by law to report to the relevant authorities any suspicion of child abuse or neglect (State and Services). This role is specific to certain professionals, though it varies according to the state in consideration. Mandated reporters in New York may include social workers, law enforcement, teachers, health professionals, child care providers, among others. The premise is that a mandated reporter is one who works close to populations of children. Despite the common belief that teachers are in the best position to serve the role of a mandated reporter, a 2002 study revealed that 25% of teachers had been found to be responsible for the reports of abuse and maltreatment as compared to legal, medical and social services reporters (Kesner and Robinson, 222 – 231).

In spite of the clear guidelines stipulated for the reporting process, there have been studies that point to a challenge in how a mandated reporter can identify signs of child abuse and maltreatment. One such report was by (Reineger, Robinson, and McHugh, 63 – 69) who assert that mandated reporters often do not report. In their findings, this observation boiled down to two issues – either an ignorance of the legal framework and the reporting procedures and/or the inability to identify the indicators of child neglect and abuse. However, mandatory reporting has had a few significant contributions. For instance, mandatory reporting of child abuse and child neglect has, by and large, led to a decrease in the risk of occurrence and as a result, future abuse (Regis, 11).