Expert review concerning the death of a child
This article was first published in the February 2023 Communiqué
In October 2022, CRPO received a letter and expert review from Ontario’s Child and Youth Death Review and Analysis (CYDRA) unit at Office of the Chief Coroner (OCC). The CYDRA unit at the OCC “directly supports the development of effective recommendations for the prevention of further deaths of young persons in Ontario.”
Based on recommendations issued in the review, CRPO reminds all registrants of the enhanced duty to report child abuse and neglect.
Because of this duty, CRPO expects registrants to review training (e.g., self-directed reading or an appropriate training course/webinar identified by the registrant) on their duty to report once every two years. Beginning with the 2023 professional development reporting cycle, under CRPO’s Quality Assurance Program, registrants will be required to attest that they have completed this review. As with all professional development activities, registrants should keep relevant documentation about this training in their professional development portfolio.
The following resources may be useful in considering this issue:
Canadian Centre for Child Protection
Website and resources: protectchildren.ca
CRPO
Disclosing Information to Prevent Harm Professional Practice Guideline: https://www.crpo.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Guideline-Disclosing-Information-to-Prevent-Harm-1.1.pdf
Mandatory Reporting Obligations for Registered Psychotherapists: https://www.crpo.ca/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/List-of-Reporting-Obligations.pdf
Government of Ontario
Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017, S.O. 2017, c. 14, Sched. 1 (see paragraphs 125 to 128 on Duty to Report) https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/17c14
Child welfare and child protection services (website): Child welfare and child protection services | Ontario.ca
Report child abuse and neglect (website): https://www.ontario.ca/page/report-child-abuse-and-neglect
Reporting Child Abuse and Neglect: It’s Your Duty Your responsibilities under the Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017 (brochure, August 2021): https://files.ontario.ca/pdf-3/mccss-report-child-abuse-and-neglect-en-2022-03-31.pdf
Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario and the Ontario Provincial Advocate
Yes, You Can. Dispelling the Myths About Sharing Information with Children’s Aid Societies (brochure): https://www.ipc.on.ca/resource/yes-you-can-dispelling-the-myths-about-sharing-information-with-childrens-aid-societies/
Ontario Association of Children’s Aid Societies
Duty to report (webpage): https://www.oacas.org/childrens-aid-child-protection/duty-to-report/