Hospital Protocol Revision and Annotated Bibliography Within
Within every hospital, clinic, private practice or similar health care facilitator, a strict set of institutional protocols and policies is used to govern the conduct of physicians, nurses, orderlies and any other employees responsible for the delivery of health care at the highest standard. The John Dempsey Hospital at the University of Connecticut Health Center currently maintains a protocol regarding identification and treatment of patients who are suspected of being child abuse victims. Although this protocol is comprehensive in nature, providing health care professionals with clear guidelines to apply during interactions with young patients who are possibly being abused, the rate of reported child abuse cases deriving from the John Dempsey Hospital has fallen behind national and state averages. The purpose of this paper is to implement meaningful changes to the current child abuse policy in place at the John Dempsey Hospital, in order to increase the recent reduction in child abuse reporting.