Improving mental health assessments in child protection through audit

✍ Scribed by Roger Paxton; Jenny Grundon; Rachel Holt

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1999
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 154 KB
• Volume: 8
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0952-9136
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1099-0852(199905/06)8:3<172::aid-car542>3.0.co;2-y

✦ Synopsis

Improving Mental Health Assessments in Child Protection through Audit

Existing agency records, together with questionnaires completed by social services referrers and mental health providers, were used to identify problems in current arrangements for obtaining specialist mental health assessments in child protection cases. Standards were set and implemented through a multi-agency steering group. The practice of referrers and providers was then reaudited. Sixty-nine social workers, six mental health specialists and 27 child protection initial case conferences (involving 31 children) were involved in the reaudit over a 4-month period. Initially, main problems concerned communications, unclear referral and access arrangements, waiting times and disagreements over prioritization. Standards concerned consultation and decision-making arrangements within the child mental health service, the format of referral and reply letters, the sharing of information and the attendance of mental health professionals at child protection case conferences. There appeared to be improvements in all these areas at reaudit. In conclusion, some shared views of problems, additional support funding and the audit process appear to have helped to improve inter-agency collaboration and develop more ecient referral and care arrangements. There is a need to maintain and further develop this work, and audit would again be a useful means.