Helping in Child Protective Services A Competency-Based Casework Handbook [Paperback]

This second edition ofHelping in Child Protective Services: A Competency-Based Casework Handbookis a comprehensive desk reference that serves as both a daily guide for workers and a training tool for supervisors and administrators. This invaluable resource provides CPS workers with the knowledge and skills necessary to assist vulnerable families, covering such key issues as assessment, decision making, intervention, child development, medical evaluation, accountability, and the legal framework of culturally responsive practice.

This handbook equips CPS professionals and students to follow the casework process from intake through case closure with step-by-step instructions and examples. Chapters cover child development, key developmental milestones, and the importance of intervention; medical evaluation of child abuse and neglect; how to structure interviews and phrase questions to obtain information from families and guide the casework process; and the importance of accountable practice to families, their agencies, and the public.

This latest edition ofHelping in Child Protective Servicescompiles the most up-to-date research and practice information to help professionals provide the highest quality and most innovative services to children and families.

1. The CPS Experience: Working with a Family from Beginning to End
2. The History of Child Protective Services
3. The Casework Process
4. Key Partners in Protecting Children and Supporting Families
5. Interviewing Children and Families
6. Intake and Investigation: Initial Stages of the CPS Process
7. Assessment
8. Child Development
9. The Medical Evaluation of Abuse and Neglect
10. Interventions with Families
11. The Legal Framework for Child Protective Services
12. Accountability in Child Protective Services
Glossary
Index

Charmaine R. Brittain, M.S.W., Ph.D., is Manager of Education & Professional Development, Ameril"