Posted by pegasus on November 10, 2011, at 9:09:55
In reply to Re: Need Advice *****Likely Trigger***** » TherapyGirl, posted by sleepygirl2 on November 9, 2011, at 22:09:10
I'm a mandatory reporter in my state, and I know that the laws require me to report child abuse, but not abuse of at-risk adults. I'm *urged* to report abuse of at-risk adults, but not required.
For child abuse, I have to report within 24 hours of receiving the information. And I have to report if I have reasonable cause to believe there may have been abuse, or if I have reasonable cause to believe that the abuse might occur in the future.
In order to report, though, I have to have identifying information about the possible abuser or victim. Did you tell her their names? Or enough information that she can easily know who they are?
If so, then in this situation, I would actually think that the mandatory reporting requirements have been met. So, this does sound like a mandatory reporting situation for your T, if your state requires reporting for at-risk adults.
Usually, if I am concerned that I'm getting into mandatory reporting territory with someone, I can stop them from giving me identifying information, at least. That's where I think your T should have warned you. That said, though, sometimes people just tell you things all at once, without you having a chance to warn or stop them. But if that's what you did, I would like to have seen your T be a bit more apologetic or gentle, or something with you around this. It sounds like she assumed you had the mandatory reporting requirement in mind while you were talking, which is not a good thing to assume. Mandatory reporting laws are tricky, and it's hard to keep them in mind when you're in the thick of a situation like this. Especially when you're talking to someone with whom you otherwise have very confidential discussions.
Hey, let us know how it goes with your boss and the reporting, and with your T.
And, wow, I agree with you about the Penn State thing. The part that gets me is the football fans standing behind the officials who didn't report what sounds like a really obvious and horrible instance of child sexual abuse. How can anyone say what they did is OK? All those poor boys who could have been spared . . . I can barely stand it. :(
- Peg
poster:pegasus
thread:1002040
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20111017/msgs/1002122.html