Loss of anonymity for expert witnesses will undermine child protection
Janaki Mahadevan
Monday, June 27, 2011
Fewer health professionals will come forward as expert witnesses in child protection cases after losing their anonymity and immunity from being sued, the chief executive of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) has warned.
Chris Hanvey’s comments come after two legal cases involving expert witnesses; the first case, Jones v Kaney earlier this year ruled that expert witnesses were no longer immune from being sued. Meanwhile, in May, the president of the family division in the High Court Sir Nicholas Wall ruled that a paediatrician who acted as an expert witness could be publicly named.
Hanvey said the judgements risk reducing the numbers of expert witnesses who are already in short supply.
In a comment piece for CYP Now, Hanvey said: "Doctors feel stigmatised, targeted and unprotected. We must of course weed out those who do not meet the high standards required. But what we don’t want is bona fide experts being unwilling to be involved."
Hanvey said that doctors are left fearing disciplinary proceedings as a result of either over-diagnosing or under-diagnosing child abuse.
"We are in a position where many health professionals are very reluctant to undertake child protection work," Hanvey added. "This is a pressing issue and ultimately there is only one group that will lose out – the children we seek to protect.
"Everyone is scared of being the next scapegoat, and developments such as the two recent cases make it more difficult to reinforce the message that child protection really is everybody’s business."
