Children’s Social Care has asked for you to have a Child Protection Medical Examination. This will be with a children’s safeguarding doctor (paediatrician). This page will help you to understand what is going to happen at the time, and what might happen after the examination.
What is safeguarding?
Safeguarding allows children and young people to live free from abuse, harm, and neglect.
When we suspect a child or young person has come to harm, professionals have a duty of offering protection, and preventing further harm from happening.
People should never hurt children. Unfortunately, some people do hurt children by hitting them, shouting at them, touching private parts of their body (sexually abusing them) or not caring for them. If someone hurts you or if you see a person hurting someone else, you should tell a grown up that you trust. They will listen to you and help you.
When Children’s Social Care is worried that a child or young person may not be safe or well cared for, they look into this by visiting you and your family. They may come with a police officer. They will then have a meeting to check if you also should be seen by a children’s safeguarding doctor.
Who else could you meet?
Social worker
Social workers work within the community to help children and families; protecting them from harm and supporting them to find solutions to their problems. The social worker will likely come with you to the Child Protection Medical Examination and stay with you whilst you see the doctor if you are happy for this to happen. The social worker may come to see you before the Child Protection Medical Examination. This is so that they can introduce themselves and explain what is going to happen.
Police officer
Police officers play a vital role in keeping us safe. They will be involved to assist the social worker in gathering information about what has happened to you. They may see you before the Child Protection Medical Examination, along with the social worker.
Children’s safeguarding doctor
The doctor you will meet is specially trained to work with children and young people. They are here to listen to you, and to help you, by examining you and speaking to your family and social worker. The doctor may make suggestions to the social worker on how to keep you safe and may also ask you to go to the hospital to have photographs taken. Sometimes, the doctor may ask for you to have a blood test or an X-ray taken too.
Clinical photographer
If you need to have photographs taken, then you will be required to go to the hospital. There, you will meet a clinical photographer, whose job is to capture different types of images, which may include taking photos, videos, or 3D images.
Hospital staff
If you need to go to the hospital, during your visit you may meet several different hospital staff, who are all there to help make sure things run smoothly for you. This may include a receptionist, healthcare assistant, nurse, doctor, or play therapist, for example. They will introduce themselves to you and help make you feel comfortable whilst you are there.
Where it will take place, and who will be there?
Most of the time, you will meet the doctor in a building called Coniston, which is at the back of the Solihull Hospital, by the visitor’s car park. In some cases, you may be asked to come to a community clinic, or a different hospital such as Heartlands Hospital or Birmingham Children’s Hospital.
Child Protection Medical Examination
Being in a new place and meeting new people can be tough.
During the examination, you can have a parent or carer with you. If this is not possible, then your social worker can stay in the room with you if you want them to. They may be sat behind a curtain to give you some privacy.
There will also be another person in the room called a chaperone. They will be there to help you during your time at Coniston.
The doctor or chaperone will measure your height and weight. The doctor will carry out a general examination, such as listening to your heart and chest. The doctor will also carry out a detailed head-to-toe examination.
If there are any injuries or marks seen, the doctor will measure these and draw them in your notes. This examination can take quite a long time, but it is important for the doctor to make a clear record of any injuries or marks on your body.
If you feel comfortable, you will be asked to undress the top half of your body, followed by the bottom half. You should not be asked to remove your underwear unless there are concerns of injuries on your bottom.
Further tests (X-rays and blood tests)
Sometimes the doctor may ask for tests, such as blood tests or X-rays, This will always be discussed with you if these are needed.
If the doctor is worried you might have a broken bone or another injury, you may be sent to the emergency department at the local hospital for further treatment.
Your time to talk
We understand that talking to someone you don’t know very well can be hard, especially if it is about things which are difficult.
As part of the Child Protection Medical Examination, you should be offered the chance to talk to the doctor and chaperone on your own. This is so the doctor can understand what it is like for you at home and school and ask you what you think about what has happened. You can tell the doctor about things you like and things you would like to change.
If you say something which worries the doctor, then they will have to tell your social worker, so that they can work together to keep you safe.
What about my brother/sisters?
If you have brothers and sisters, they may also need to come and meet the children's safeguarding doctor and have the same checks as you. This will happen if we are worried they may have been hurt.
Can I go home afterwards?
We are working together to keep you safe, in the best way possible. For most children and young people, the best place for them is to live at home. Social workers can help your parent(s) and/or carer(s)to keep you safe from harm in this case.
For some children and young people, it is not safe for them to go back home, because there is a worry that they could get hurt. In this case, the social worker will work towards finding a safe place for you to stay. This might be with someone in your family, or with a new person who will look after you, called a foster carer.
If you have any questions you want to ask about your condition or your treatment or if there is anything you do not understand and you wish to know more about, please write them down and your doctor will be more than happy to try and answer them for you.
Last reviewed: 31 July 2024
