It takes a team to ensure best response to assault, abuse

    Sexual Assault Response Advocates is a child advocacy center accredited by the National Children’s Alliance. NCA is a nonprofit membership organization whose mission is to promote and support communities in providing a coordinated investigation and comprehensive response to victims of child abuse.
    The first standard to be an accredited agency is a multi-disciplinary team. Every accredited CAC must demonstrate not only that it has an MDT but also that this team’s work is supported by a written interagency agreement, that written guidelines outline each discipline’s roles and responsibilities, that team members are routinely involved in MDT interventions and that team members communicate ethically, legally and in a timely fashion.
    Child sexual abuse is a multifaceted problem that is best dealt with using an inter-disciplinary approach to care and services. A functioning MDT is the foundation of a CAC. An MDT is a group of professionals who represent various disciplines and work collaboratively from the first point of report to assure the most effective coordinated response possible for every child.
    Ideally, through this intervention, child victims and families experience a reduction in potential trauma, improved services to help child victims of abuse recover and heal, all while preserving and respecting the rights and obligations of each agency to pursue their respective mandates. The focus and approach of the MDT is first and foremost victim centered.

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