(a) Purpose of multidisciplinary child abuse team. It is the primary responsibility of the district attorney to develop a multidisciplinary child abuse team (MDT) in the district attorney's county or contiguous group of counties, per Section 7110 of Title 10 of the Oklahoma Statutes (10 O.S. § 7110). The MDT approach is:
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(1) used whenever feasible for investigations and treatment planning involving cases of child sexual abuse, serious physical abuse, and serious neglect;
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(2) used to enhance the investigative process and maximize services provided to the affected children and families; and
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(3) not required when there is reasonable cause to believe that a delay in investigation or interview of a child victim could place the child at risk of harm or threatened harm.
(b) Multidisciplinary child abuse team members. The MDT members include, but are not limited to:
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(1) mental health professionals;
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(2) law enforcement;
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(3) medical personnel;
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(4) Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) Child Welfare (CW) staff;
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(5) MDT coordinators or child advocacy centers personnel; and
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(6) the county district attorney or assistant district attorney.
(c) Multidisciplinary child abuse team functions. The function of the MDT is dependent upon available resources and includes, but is not limited to:
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(1) joint investigations of child abuse reports by law enforcement and CW staff whenever possible; •
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(2) development of written protocol for investigations and for interviewing children; •
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(3) identification, improvement, and delivery of services to child victims and their families;
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(4) training in the multidisciplinary team approach; and
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(5) formalized case reviews.
(d) Participation of CW staff in the multidisciplinary child abuse team process. CW staff participates as members of the MDT in joint investigations and attends meetings and case reviews pertaining to child sexual abuse, serious physical abuse, and serious neglect by the person responsible for the child. • 3
(e) Child abuse multidisciplinary team account. Funds collected from fees for civil cases filed in district courts of Oklahoma are deposited with OKDHS and are designated as child abuse multidisciplinary team account (CAMA) monies, per 10 O.S. §§ 7110.1 and 7110.2.
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(1) OKDHS distributes CAMA monies to functioning freestanding MDTs approved by the Child Abuse Training and Coordination Council (CATCC) and to child advocacy centers (CACs) accredited by the National Children's Alliance (NCA).
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(2) CAMA monies are:
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(3) After the NCA's five-year accreditation, the CAC must secure a third-year interim review in order to continue to be eligible for CAMA monies.
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(A) The Children's Advocacy Centers of Oklahoma, Inc. (CACO) administers the review by procuring an NCA site reviewer who resides outside of Oklahoma and has no conflict of interest. The CAC submits to the reviewer 60 days prior to the on-site review:
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(i) current Interagency Agreement;
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(ii) current Multidisciplinary Child Abuse Team Protocol;
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(iii) current financial audit;
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(iv) current program budget;
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(v) proof of general and professional liability coverage for the CAC board of directors and officers;
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(vi) Internal Revenue Service letter of 501(c)(3) status or government affiliation statement letter;
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(vii) demographic information for the community;
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(viii) statistical data; and
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(ix) NCA accreditation standards certifying documents.
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(B) The site reviewer makes a one-half day on-site visit to the CAC and administers the review in the same manner as the NCA accreditation process.
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(C) The CAC demonstrates performance of the essential components of the NCA accreditation process with full cooperation and availability of requested personnel.
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(4) Failure of the third-year review requires a fourth-year review, but does not make the CAC ineligible for CAMA monies. If the CAC fails the fourth-year review:
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(A) the CAC may submit, within ten working days from the site reviewer's written notice of failure:
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(i) a written request for further review by the CACO board of directors; and
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(ii) documents pertaining only to the CAC's understanding of the compliance issues. Information for the purposes of improvement or change of practice is not considered; and
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(B) the CACO board of directors secures three additional NCA site reviewers from outside Oklahoma to review the written findings.
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(5) When the review failure is upheld or when the CAC does not request further review of a failure notice, the CAC is no longer eligible for CAMA monies until reaccredited by the NCA.