b'A mandated reporter is a person who, because According to Mah, the Standard of Care is fluidof his or her profession, is legally required to and changing. Today there may be no law thatreport any suspicion of child abuse or neglect specificallyclassifiesnanniesasmandatedto the relevant authorities.reporters,hesaid,butthatcouldchangetomorrow.IfacourtdecidedthatasimilarlyBut what is a profession? qualifiedpersonwouldmakeareportinthesamesituationandanannydidnotmakeaMariam-Webster defines the term profession as report, she could therefore be found liable fora calling requiring specialized knowledge and not making a report. So, while there may notoften long and intensive academic preparation. bealegalexpectationofanannybeingamandatedreportertoday,thatcouldchangeEnter the lack of clarity that leaves US nannies anydayshouldStandardofCarecomeintowonderingiftheyarelegallyclassifiedas playbecauseofacourtsinterpretation.Themandated reporters or not.legal duty to warn or duty to protect if someone RONALD MAHmakes a threat to harm or kill another person to www.ronaldmah.comAsnanniesstrivetoprofessionalizetheir theirtherapistcommonlyknownastheindustry by gaining education and training to Tarasoff Dutycame not from legislation but a Ronald Mah is a therapist, educator,transform their occupation into a profession court ruling by a judge. The therapist was found author, and consultant who combinesandgainthesocialacceptancethatcomes to be legally liable for not doing something that concepts,principles,andphilosophyalong with being accepted as professionalsit had previously not been specifically defined as withpracticaltechniquesandis no surprise that nannies do not fit into a box illegal! guidelines for effective and productiveof their own.results.ALicensedMarriageandIs moral obligation enough? FamilyTherapist,hisexperiencesThus,thequestionofwhethernanniesare Within the industry, most would agree that the includeauthoringseveralbooks,legallymandatedreportersremainslargely legal classification of nannies should have no includingDifficultBehaviorinEarlyunanswered and varies from state to state. bearingonwhetheranannyshouldreport Childhood, Positive Discipline for PreK-suspected abuse and neglect, but the reasons 3ClassroomsandBeyond,TheOne-But does it matter? are more complex. Among nannies, it is widely MinuteTemperTantrumSolution,According to Ronald Mah, Ph.D.a California- acceptedthatthereisamoralobligationto Getting Beyond Bullying and ExclusionbasedLicensedMarriage&FamilyTherapist, report suspected abuse and neglect, but Mah is and Empowering Children in Inclusiveauthor,andformerchild-development-center not sure that having a moral obligation is good Classrooms,partneringwithFixedenough. EarthFilmstopresentchildowner who first became acquainted with thenuancesofthenannyindustrywhenhe developmentandbehaviortrainingsThis issue with viewing the obligation to report on 20 DVDs, speaking and educatingpresented on Child Abuse and Neglect at the assolelyamoraldilemmaisthatlegaland2010 INA Annual Conference in San Francisco, groupsaffiliatedwithHeadStart,ethical mandates help people push through the Asian-AmericanCommunityMentalCalifornianannies not being legally classified fear and anxiety surrounding making a report.as mandated reporters in some states may not HealthandWelfaretoWorkandPeople do immoral things. They are scared and training and supervising therapists, inbear as much weight as nannies think. may not report if there is just a moral issue atadditiontomaintaininghisownhand. When the legal and ethical responsibility privatepractice.RonaldisaWhennanniesareconsideringtheir is not clear, it is easy to make excuses and getresponsibilitiestoreport,theymustconsider credentialedelementaryandaway from, as individuals and as a profession, secondaryteacher,Mastersoftheirlegalrequirements,theirprofessional reporting suspected abuse and neglect. Whenrequirements, and their personal values. Their Psychologyinstructorandauthoroftherearestraightforwardlegalandethical theAsianPacificIslanderParentlegal requirements reflect what relevant state mandates, however, the decision of whether tolawsaystheyhavetodo,theprofessional reportornotbecomescleanerandsimpler. Education Support Curriculum. He hasrequirements reflect the ethics they commit to When the decision is left to a moral one alone, beeninvolvedwithEarlyChildhoodEducation for 16 years and has ownedupholdingaspartofprofessionalor you may ignore the whole human process thats andoperatedachilddevelopmentorganizational memberships, and their personal involvedwithdecisionmaking,whichcan center.Ronaldhasservedonthevalues reflect the level of personal responsibility include talking yourself out of doing something EthicsCommitteeoftheCaliforniathey feel regarding making a report of abuse or that you dont want to do. AssociationofMarriageandFamilyneglect. TherapistsandhasservedontheService versus servant BoardofDirectorsfortheCaliforniaBut what nannies may be unaware of is how the How you think of yourself and your roleand Kindergarten Association.Standard of Care may impact their ethical and the language you use to define the work you dolegalresponsibilitytoreport.Mahexplains, can impact how you view your responsibilitiesWhat someone else in the same professional whenitcomestoreportingsuspectedabuserole would do in the same situation, what the and neglect. Mah asks nannies to consider ifexpectation is of any person in that role, that is theyareprovidingaserviceorworkingasawhat we refer to as Standard of Care.servant.NannyMag.com| 27'