On second thought...

There will be no additional entries for my child advocacy elective journal.

Child advocacy is sad, depressing and I have cried enough tears these past three weeks without reflecting and writing about it. This will be all.

But I do want to say that I have the utmost respect and appreciation for those who work in the field day in and day out.

To the 18 full time detectives in Brooklyn whose sole job it is to investigate child abuse cases (both physical and sexual), I raise my glass to you.

To the medical doctors and nurse practitioners that act as consultants, giving up their nights and weekends to review pictures, talk to the detectives and perform physical exams and complete rape kits for forensic evidence when needed, I applaud you.

To the lawyers and judges that sit in court and review the cases and sentence the perpetrators, my thanks.

To the social workers and others that visit the homes and interview the parents, my hat goes off.

It is a difficult, sad, situation when a child is abused. Sometimes these children have no one else, their parents have failed to protect them and so they require an advocate. I don't know that we always get it right, the entire field is shades of gray to me... but to those who spend their careers as advocates I am grateful.

I suppose I am glad for the opportunity to witness these dedicated individuals hard at work. It has been educational and enlightening to meet and talk with them.  And while it is heart-breaking to meet the children and hear about the cases I am glad to now know a bit more about what happens once a mandated reporter call the state registry.

It has been a good but emotionally difficult elective. I won't be sad when it ends... I've cried enough tears already. I cannot wait to go back to the hospital and the smiling happy children in clinic.

Child Advocacy Elective Journal- Entry 1

Yesterday I met Dr. Ajl and got orientated to Child Advocacy in NYC. And by Child Advocacy I mean child abuse and neglect. Sure as a physician you may see or suspect abuse and you are a mandated reporter to the state. But there is SO MUCH more that goes on. A phone call is simply the beginning. And so this month I will learn about ACS, CPS, Family Court, legal guardians, Special Victims Unit, forensic evaluations, foster care, the Medical Examiner's Office, etc.

There are three of us in the elective this month and I actually know both of the other students so that is nice. Yesterday we toured the Brooklyn Child Advocacy Center and met the NP that has devoted the last 16 years of her life to Child Advocacy. And she truly is devoted, like most of the people I think we will meet in this field.

We were given a packet with numerous agencies and contacts and thus I spent most of the morning calling and emailing to set up appts for the month. So far I don't have much booked but I'm sure people will call back, eventually. In the mean time I have a lot to read. And learn. Did I mention I'm so glad that I am doing this elective?

At the end of the month we have to put together a group project to reflect on what we have learned and while I am happy to contribute to something for the group I also want something for myself. I think this month will be hard emotionally and I need a place to process those emotions and think about what I get to see and experience. So this blog will be my space. I will not post cases here or discuss what I see in details because these children must be protected. But my feelings will not be censored. Here what I share will be my own. So stay tuned.

And if you have any reading suggestions, feel free to let me know. I'm taking all suggestions for serious fiction and Child Advocacy related topics.