Afternoon Program
Ethics of Working on a Multidisciplinary Team
Amy Russell, MSEd, JD, NCC, Executive Director, Arthur D. Curtis Children’s Justice Center
Session Overview
This session will address ethical issues and practice recommendations for professionals who participate as part of a child abuse multidisciplinary team (MDT). Discussion will cover the importance of balancing the needs of the suspected child victim and the rights of the family with statutory obligations of the MDT members. Discussion will also address the various involved disciplines and their professional ethical codes and how conflict may arise across disciplines using case examples and potential resolution. Finally, this session will address training needs for professionals involved on the MDT members to facilitate decision making and recommendations for child maltreatment cases.
Handouts/Links:
Learning Objectives
- Identify various ethical codes for members of the multidisciplinary team.
- Discuss challenges and conflicts that may arise when working with multiple disciplines.
- Discuss case examples to resolve issues that may arise for members of multidisciplinary teams.
Presenter Bio
Amy Russell is Executive Director of the Arthur D. Curtis Children’s Justice Center in Clark County, Washington, and is a licensed attorney and a nationally certified counselor. Ms. Russell has worked with victims of violence and trauma in several capacities, including interviewer for suspected child victims of abuse and exploitation and child witnesses of federal and state crimes; counselor for survivors of homicide victims; and pro bono attorney for abused children in dependency court. She has also served as executive director of several Children’s Advocacy Centers; provided training on child abuse investigations, interviews and litigation; and authored multiple articles on forensic interviewing, child maltreatment and vicarious trauma.