did she do the right thing??

[Lil Sis]

Originally Posted by Bentleys Momma

I think your daughter did exactly what she was supposed to do. Sadly the camp did not. Without "Mongolian Blue Spots" noted on a medical form prior to admission, I believe the camp is legally bound to report the possible abuse to the authorities for investigation.

I am not saying the child is abused just that I believe, based on some prior trainings that I have had with working with children, that it is a legal requirement.

Definitely puts your daughter in an awkward situation and she should never have been judged at a lower level for expressing her concern. What about if she comes across another child who IS being abused and your daughter now hesitates to report a concern out of fear of retaliation on her performance review.

Very sad and says a lot about the camp she where she is working. Not a place I would want my child. More concern over CYA (covering your own a$$ than protecting a child).

Best of luck to you. I would probably rip the camp director a new one if it were my child working there. And then of course my daughter would be embarrased by her momma yet again

I agree, the camp is wrong. Of course I only know Florida law but my degree and training is early childhood development. I used to teach the classes on detecting abuse at the local jr. college required to work in any child care/ day care.
The law here states that the person who thinks there is abuse must report the abuse. Do not report to a supervisor. The theory is the more times the "story" is told it will change or be influenced. Like the kid ssupervisor telling your daughter don't worry. She was wrong, not your daughter!!!!

I would question talking to the mother, she could have made up any story to cover her a$$. I much rather make a mistake reporting abuse than sending a child home to be abused more. I love that your daughter cares.. some people just dont!!

As to the other child, the negelct sounds like another version of child abuse. If I was you daughter I would report that-- she could even make the call from home so the camp does not know. Let the child services check out the home... maybe it will scare the mom into doing laundry!!!

Your daughter is a minor, I wouldn't ripe the camp a new a$$... not my style so I am not too good at that, but I would talk to them.. it is your child. It was the camps place to train her, and her supervisor to guide her.

Tell her I am proud of her from me...
Shinja

[jmdt]

Before camp started she got a sheet on the kids stating allergies, likes dislikes, etc. She knew 1 of the kids had a cleft palet ..things like that. No where on that form did it say that this kid had blue spots on his skin. That is something that the councelors should know. I believe it should have stated this on the paper she recieved. I wonder if it really does say it on his medical form. hmmm. She is positive he did not have those spots the days prior to this incident.
I'm going to ask my son when he gets home as to what the law is. He just graduated from college with a teaching degree. He would know.

[capt_noonie]

I just googled mongolian blue spots:

Mongolian spot - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A Mongolian spot, also known as "Mongolian blue spot," "Congenital dermal melanocytosis,"[1] and "Dermal melanocytosis"[1] is a benign, flat, congenital birthmark with wavy borders and irregular shape, discovered on and named after Mongolians by Erwin Bälz.[2][3] It is also extremely prevalent among East Asians, Polynesians, Native Americans, and East Africans.[4][5] It normally disappears three to five years after birth and almost always by puberty.[6] The most common color is blue, although they can be blue-gray, blue-black or even deep brown.

Origin


The Mongolian spot is a congenital developmental condition exclusively involving the skin. The blue colour is caused by melanocytes, melanin-containing cells, that are deep under the skin. [5] Usually, as multiple spots or one large patch, it covers one or more of the lumbosacral area (lower back), the buttocks, flanks, and shoulders.[5] It results from the entrapment of melanocytes in the lower half to two-thirds of the dermis during their migration from the neural crest to the epidermis during embryonic development.[5]
The condition is unrelated to sex; male and female infants are equally predisposed to Mongolian spot. The spots are harmless.[5] However, recent research has shown that Mongolian spots may occur more commonly in children with certain rare metabolic conditions, such as mucopolysaccharidosis, Niemann-Pick syndrome and GM1 gangliosidosis. [7]
Among those who are not aware of the background of the Mongolian spots, it may sometimes be mistaken for a bruise, possibly resulting in unfounded concerns about abuse.[8]
Prevalence

Rough estimates are that the Mongolian spots are most prevalent among infants of East Asian groups. Infants may be born with one or more Mongolian spots ranging from small area on the buttocks to a larger area on the back. They also occur in about 90-95% and about 80-85% of East African and Native American infants, respectively.[4] Approximately 90% of Polynesians and Micronesians are born with Mongolian spots, as are about 46% of Latin American children (those who have some sort of Native American ancestry).[9] These spots also appear on 1-10% of babies of full Caucasian descent.[4]
[edit] Cultural references

The Mongolian spot is referred to in the Japanese idiom (to have a) blue butt (尻が青い shiri ga aoi?), meaning "wet behind the ears", young, inexperienced.[10][11] In Mongolia, Mongolian spot is mostly called "blue spot."




Is the boy of eastern Asian decent? Seems like it would be more likely to be true if he is. From this article, seems like they are just birthmarks, and not a "condition" like cleft palate like another child has. For example, if I had a child with a large birthmark, I wouldn't mark it on the sheet, just as I wouldn't if they had like a huge mole or something. However, the boy did say his mom hit him. That's still concerning.

[DvlshAngel985]

When it's something big and can be mistaken for something else, it's better to be upfront about it. My older brother has a huge birthmark on his arm. He is lighter skinned than I am, and the birthmark is a bright red. People have thought that my mom burned him. (when he was little) And i had a few scares myself. It's odd to get on the school bus and have people you never talk to tell you there is something wrong with your brother. My mom learned to just let teachers and others know, the giant mark on his arm has been there since birth.

You're right about it being a concern regardless. Children of that age do not lie.

[capt_noonie]

That's a good point. ^^^

[capt_noonie]

Actually, now thinking back to elementary school, there was a girl who had an interesting birthmark. She just said "oh it's a birthmark" when people commented on it. In a few months and years later it was still there, unchanged, so yes we knew it was a birthmark. The interesting thing about the mongolian spots, is that it is said to fade by 4 yrs old or so, and completely by puberty.

But yes, kids that age usually do not lie. They are brutally honest.

[Lisa and Pic]

My retirement job is in the child abuse field. So, have strong opinions about this.

Your daughter did the right thing and actually it is the law that she do this. The camp is wrong. Please help your daughter report this to the local Cabinet/Social Workers in your area. This can be completed anonymously, if needed. They will do the investigation. Neither one of you would want to live with a decision to ignore this, if something happened to this child. Unfortunately child abuse can happen in any social-economic class, including parents that can afford to send their children to camp.

[Lil Sis]

Originally Posted by Lil Sis

I agree, the camp is wrong. Of course I only know Florida law but my degree and training is early childhood development. I used to teach the classes on detecting abuse at the local jr. college required to work in any child care/ day care.
The law here states that the person who thinks there is abuse must report the abuse. Do not report to a supervisor. The theory is the more times the "story" is told it will change or be influenced. Like the kid ssupervisor telling your daughter don't worry. She was wrong, not your daughter!!!!

I would question talking to the mother, she could have made up any story to cover her a$$. I much rather make a mistake reporting abuse than sending a child home to be abused more. I love that your daughter cares.. some people just dont!!

As to the other child, the negelct sounds like another version of child abuse. If I was you daughter I would report that-- she could even make the call from home so the camp does not know. Let the child services check out the home... maybe it will scare the mom into doing laundry!!!

Your daughter is a minor, I wouldn't ripe the camp a new a$$... not my style so I am not too good at that, but I would talk to them.. it is your child. It was the camps place to train her, and her supervisor to guide her.

Tell her I am proud of her from me...
Shinja

Originally Posted by Lisa and Pic

My retirement job is in the child abuse field. So, have strong opinions about this.

Your daughter did the right thing and actually it is the law that she do this. The camp is wrong. Unfortunately child abuse can happen in any social- Please help your daughter report this to the local Cabinet/Social Workers in your area. This can be completed anonymously, if needed. They will do the investigation. Neither one of you would want to live with a decision to ignore this, if something happened to this child. economic class, including parents that can afford to send their children to camp.

I so agree... report from home to the child service department of your state...anonymously would be good. If you are wrong you incontinence the family-- if you are right you save a child's life.

[Lisa and Pic]

Originally Posted by Lil Sis

I so agree... report from home to the child service department of your state...anonymously would be good. If you are wrong you incontinence the family-- if you are right you save a child's life.

From what I understand the Social Workers will do the investigation and maybe come to the conclusion it is Mongolian spots. At least the parent will let someplace like the camp know next time about this. As Lil Sis says, it will be an inconvenience to them and that is just the way it goes.

But, on a different note, as my husband says... most things boil down to money. The supervisor does not want this reported, because she is getting a pay check. The camp does not want this reported for obvious reasons. If one of the parents is physically abusing, neither one of them want it reported. (One enabler, one abuser) On top of that, they know how to play the game, too. So, the only advocates for this child is your daughter and you right now.

Hard decision... good luck with that and will say a prayer for the child's well being.

[Lil Sis]

just to add. If the child care center had any reason to think there was child abuse and they do not report and it turns out to be abuse..... I think they could be fined, closed down etc. That is why they gave your dtr a low rating, to keep her quite ????