Incidents of suspected child abuse should be reported to the
Florida Child Abuse Prevention Program at the Florida Abuse
Hotline:
1-800-96-ABUSE
Eligibility
The existence of suspicion
of child abuse or neglect that has been reported to the Florida Abuse Hotline
and accepted for investigation provides automatic eligibility for CPT assessment
activities. There are no financial criteria for team services.
What are
the Child Protection Teams?
Child protection teams are independent,
community based programs that provide expertise in evaluating alleged
maltreatments of child abuse and neglect,assessing risk factors, and providing
recommendations for interventions to protect children and enhance families'
capacities to provide a safer environment when possible.
CPT services
supplement the child protective investigation activities of the Department of
Children and Families and law enforcement.
Anyone who knows or has reason to
suspect that a child has been abused, abandoned or neglected by a parent, legal
custodian, caregiver, or other person
responsible for the child's welfare is
required by law to report such knowledge to the Florida Abuse Hotline by calling
the toll free number 1-800-96-ABUSE.
Authority
Section 39.303,
Florida Statutes, authorizes the Children's Medical Services
Program in the
Department of Health to develop, maintain, and coordinate child protection team
services through contracts with local community-based programs.
The Child
Protection Team (CPT) program is a medically directed,
multidisciplinary
program based on the idea that child abuse and neglect
involve complex issues
and require the expertise of many professionals to protect children.