The process of child removal is complicated and begins when someone suspects that a child has been abused or neglected. Mandated reporters, who include teachers, health officials, and others who work with children, must report any suspected abuse to the Arizona Child Abuse Hotline. From their report, officials determine the severity of the situation. P1 is the most severe classification and the response time is within two hours. Investigators interview school aged children at school and may remove the children at that time. They then immediately notify the parents of the removal. If they remove, they call PALS, which organizes placement for the children at Casa de los Niños or similar shelters, foster homes, group homes, or, ideally, with other family. Within 72 hours, the Preliminary Protective Hearing (PPH) occurs and the legal process ensues.

Sources:

https://www.azdes.gov/landing.aspx?id=9485

One of the most heartwarming and heart wrenching parts of volunteering at Casa de los Niños is seeing siblings interacting with each other. Most of the children admitted into Casa de los Niños have at least one sibling and some have many more. Siblings are separated into different age groups and are given time with each other every day. But throughout the day, when the groups see each other in passing, siblings will hug each other and proudly tell everyone, “ This is my sister/brother!” I have seen a new admit who was two years old say his sister’s name over and over again. At the most difficult time of this child’s stay at Casa de los NIños, his arrival, he was calling out for his sister, a 7 year old admit in a separate building, because she was the only person who took care of him at home. Later that day, when he saw his sister in a playground separated by a fence from him, they held hands through the fence and touched their foreheads together. It is scenes such as this that make me face the harsh reality about the children at Casa de los Niños: that they were disadvantaged since birth and that they will always face tremendously difficult circumstances as they grow up. For these children, it is a luxury just to spend time with their siblings.

I have witnessed many people with special needs in the child welfare system both at Casa de los Niños and at my home with foster people for whom my parents have provided care. Disabilities are represented disproportionately in the child welfare system because children with disabilities are 3.44 times more likely to be abused than children without disabilities. Within that group, children with different types of disabilities have different levels of exposure to abuse and neglect. Furthermore, abuse can often be the cause of a disability. From my experiences at Casa de los Niños, I have seen that children with disabilities must be treated differently than children without disabilities to maintain a safe and healthy environment for everyone. Although Primary Care Workers (PCWs) try to maintain a fair and equal environment for every child, they often must extend some flexibility to children with disabilities. For example, if a child with autism starts to throw a fit because they want a toy that no one else is allowed to have, they would most likely get their way and be given the toy. Otherwise, they might continue to throw a fit until they are a danger to themselves and other children. Despite this unequal treatment, all of the children at Casa de los Niños get along very well and they all seem accepting, to the greatest extent that a two year old can be accepting, of each other. Children with disabilities are given a tremendous amount of care at Casa de los Niños, not just from PCWs and nurses who are present 24/7, but also from specialists and external medical professionals. Everyone is aware of every child’s individual needs and behaviors.   

Sources:

http://www.thearc.org/what-we-do/resources/fact-sheets/abuse