U.S. Guidelines on Child Abuse Stress Awareness

Health and Human Services Secretary Margaret M. Heckler, responding to growing reports of sexual abuse at preschool facilities, Thursday announced federal guidelines designed to prevent such abuse through requirements, including increased employee background investigations and policies that encourage surprise visits by parents.

“Day-care facilities have now become an integral part of the environmental and educational world of millions of young American children,” Heckler said in a speech to the National Women’s Economic Alliance. “All of us in government have a vital guardianship role to perform. Our vigilance can make a difference.”

The department urged that states pass laws requiring day-care centers to conduct intensive screenings of potential employees, including fingerprinting and reference and employment checks; to establish probationary periods for new employees and to allow an “open-door” policy that would permit parents to visit facilities unannounced at any time. The department also suggested that day-care workers be trained to spot and report abusers.

The new guidelines were announced as child witnesses in Los Angeles continued their testimony in the McMartin Pre-School molestation case, where seven defendants--including 77-year-old school founder Virginia McMartin--are facing 208 charges of molestation against 41 children.

In legislation appropriating $25 million for day-care worker training and state licensing and enforcement, Congress last year ordered preparation of suggested state minimum licensing and registration standards. States that want to receive their part of the funds must establish procedures by Sept. 30 providing for checks of criminal records and employment history of day-care workers.

The 63-page report of proposed guidelines declared: “One abused American youngster is one too many.”

Freedom for parents to make surprise visits is “important,” the report said, because state and local agencies charged with enforcing laws against child abuse are usually limited in staff and cannot make frequent visits to each facility. “In addition, since most enforcement visits are scheduled in advance, child abuse will seldom, if ever, be observed during a scheduled enforcement visit,” it said.

In recommending background investigations, the report called FBI fingerprint checks a valuable tool, saying that the agency’s fingerprint screening “is more comprehensive than any other criminal record check and is the only feasible way for a state to conduct a nationwide criminal record check.”

The report suggested that state child abuse registries be used as another source of background information on potential employees. But it cautioned that the use of such information “should be carefully weighed, because many registries contain names of people for whom the allegation of child abuse was never substantiated.”