With a vision of ensuring that all children have the opportunity to thrive in a safe and enriching environment free from abuse, neglect and family violence, the USF Child Protection Team provides child victim and family assessments, links families to needed services and conducts community trainings on child abuse and neglect. The team provides assessments for more than 1,700 children and their families each year.

As part of a statewide system of twenty-three Child Protection Teams, our team of medical, psychological and casework staff provide a full spectrum of services. While at the USF Child Protection Team, children and their families receive high quality, multi-disciplinary assessments to evaluate concerns of abuse and neglect in a child friendly environment. Our assessments include:

• Medical Assessments and Consultations
• Psychological Evaluations
• Specialized Interviews
• Family Psycho-social Assessments
• Developmental Screenings

The team is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to ensure that the necessary services are offered as needed.

As children and their families move through the child welfare system the team also facilitates case staffings to develop intervention plans, makes treatment referrals so that families get the assistance they need and provides expert court testimony to assist the judicial system.

In an effort to increase public awareness and to enhance the expertise of community professionals, USF Child Protection Team staff are also available to provide trainings on a variety of child abuse and neglect topics Interested parties can call us @ 250-6670 to discuss topics.

Mary Lee