Climbie Inquiry sets new standards
- 1Emergency Department, Taunton and Somerset Hospital, UK
- 2Paediatric Department, Taunton and Somerset Hospital
- Correspondence to: Dr J L Louis Emergency Department, Taunton and Somerset Hospital, Taunton TA1 5DA, UK; jason.louistst.nhs.uk
King and Reid1 highlight a number of standards relating to child protection procedures within emergency departments. In January 2003, Lord Laming published his report of the Victoria Climbie Inquiry that contains further recommendations regarding healthcare arrangements for children and procedures for investigation of possible deliberate harm. Those relevant to emergency department practice mainly concern administrative standards, such as recording the name of the “primary carer” for each child attending the department and obtaining information on previous attendances at other hospitals when concerns about deliberate harm have been raised. The recommendations have various suggested timescales for implementation ranging from three months to two years from the publication date and we would urge all those involved with child protection to read the report summary (available at http://www.victoria-climbie-inquiry.org.uk/index.htm) and check that their practice complies with the recommendations.
