The Managed Clinical Network (MCN) covers the Health Boards encompassed by the East Region Planning Group which are NHS Borders, NHS Lothian and NHS Fife. The MCN is accountable to the East Region Child Protection MCN Steering Group and also reports to the Children and Young People’s Health Service Planning Group.
The aim of the MCN for Child Protection is to support clinical service in examination and treatment of children and young people who may have suffered from suspected physical, sexual or psychological maltreatment or neglect. The MCN supports general, specialist and community paediatricians to be confident and competent within child protection work both in the community and acute settings and develop child protection standards and protocols regionally. We provide regional programmes for training and peer review that compliments existing health board arrangements for paediatricians. We contribute to the National data collection strategy and collaborate with the other Regional Child Protection MCNs in Scotland. We continue to support child sexual abuse services, such as peer review and regional out of hours rota, to ensure the delivery of consistent, equitable, high quality services to meet the needs of children, young people and their families in South East Scotland.
The clinical service that the MCN encompasses is the examination and treatment of children and young people who have suffered suspected sexual abuse (known as paediatric forensic examinations). Children are mainly referred by police and social workers in accordance with the local Child Protection Procedures. At present each Health Board provides this service within its own boundaries except for some sharing of services between NHS Lothian and NHS Borders. The examinations involve Specialist Paediatricians and Forensic Physicians (FPs).
