Social workers say clearer agency roles will help in child abuse cases

Community and social workers often grapple with the weight of their decisions in child protection work, while managing heavy caseloads.

- Syarafana Shafeeq

Factors like strained resources and differing risk assessments between agencies can add to their anxiety, on top of having to make judgment calls in difficult situations, social workers told The Straits Times on Oct 24.

They said the recommendations put out by a review panel on Oct 23 — such as clearly defining the roles of the agencies managing child abuse cases and setting up an appeals system — could provide stronger support for front-line workers.

The review panel was convened to look at the child protection system after the death of four-year-old Megan Khung, who was abused by her mother and the woman’s boyfriend.

It found that there were lapses at multiple points across the system, and a lack of coordination between agencies. One of its seven recommendations was to ensure child abuse cases are mainly managed by child protection case management agencies, like the Ministry of Social and Family Development’s (MSF) Child Protective Service (CPS).

Other groups, like community and social service agencies, should focus on detecting and reporting cases as they interact with children and encounter suspected abuse.

Another key recommendation is to set up an appeals mechanism to address differing views on the risk level of a case between agencies.

Social workers told ST that these moves would be useful if effectively implemented.