Mandatory Duty to Report Suspected Abuse or Neglect

During a routine office visit, a 78-year-old patient relayed that his son with whom he lived had been increasingly hostile due to drug addiction, and now had sold the father's antique gun collection without permission. The father no longer inquired about his Social Security checks because the son yelled and blamed him for "ruining his life" whenever he raised the check issue. The patient said it was a strained relationship and added, "But that's family, right?"

We frequently receive calls from our members after they inadvertently learn of troubling information during routine screening questions. Reporting suspected abuse or neglect is required of physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and all other licensed medical personnel. 1

A person subject to the mandatory reporting obligation must report when, within the person's professional capacity or within the scope of his or her employment, the person has observed, or has knowledge, or reasonably suspects an incident that appears to involve:

• Physical abuse, abandonment, abduction;
• Isolation, financial abuse, neglect (including self-neglect).

Reasonable suspicion means that it is reasonable for a person to entertain such a suspicion based upon facts that could cause a reasonable person in a like position, drawing when appropriate upon his or her training and experience, to suspect abuse.

Reports must be done in a two-step process:

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• By telephone to the County Protective Services Departmentimmediately or as soon as practically possible;
• And by written report sent within two working days for suspected dependent adult/elder abuse or within 36 hours for suspected child abuse. (Click here to download a Suspected Dependent Adult/Elder Abuse Report; click here to download a Suspected Child Abuse Report.)

In the above instance, it was reasonable for the physician to suspect financial abuse or neglect was occurring. The physician was directed to call his county's adult protective services hotline number.

Authored by
Georgia McCullough, RN, JD
CAP Risk Management & Patient Safety

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1 Reporting is also required by coroners, social workers, law enforcement and others too numerous to list here. For a full list see Penal Code 11165.7 (a)

If you have questions about this article, please contact us. This information should not be considered legal advice applicable to a specific situation. Legal guidance for individual matters should be obtained from a retained attorney.

During this one-hour program, practice management expert Debra Phairas discusses how various business models and operational enhancements can increase revenue to help your practice remain successful in today’s competitive marketplace.