Professionals Resource Page
Multidisciplinary team professionals are an integral component of the child advocacy center response. Teams are comprised of professionals from law enforcement, children services, prosecution, medical health, mental health, victim advocacy, and occasionally additional disciplines. CACs work together with these disciplines to coordinate services, therefore minimizing trauma to child victims, minimizing resource utilization, and increasing collaboration. This page holds valuable resources for professionals including resources on testimony, minimal facts gathering, and when to utilize a CAC.
When to Use a CAC
Whether your county has a formalized agreement with a center in your county, an agreement with a center near your county, or no agreement, a child can be seen at any CAC in Ohio for services. CACs primarily serve child victims of sexual abuse however they can also be utilized to address other forms of victimization including physical abuse, exposure to violence, trafficking, online exploitation, torture, and other forms of maltreatment. Each center has differing protocols and procedures for screening, however referrals can be made by professionals directly to the center or professionals may contact ONCAC for assistance in identifying the best referral recipient for complex cases.
Abuse does not occur in vacuum and often times has an impact on the entire family. CACs can provide services to other children impacted by abuse, as well as can provide some supportive services for families. There may be times when an adult is also a victim in which case additional referrals or engagement of SARTs may be beneficial.
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If a professional is ever uncertain of whether a referral would be appropriate to a center, it is encouraged that they contact the center.
Minimal Facts
One of the unique services provided by CACs are forensic interviews of children. Forensic interviews are interviews conducted by a specially trained individual for children ages 3-18 (sometimes up to the age of 21 if there are developmental disabilities). These interviews are conducted in a forensically sound manner for the purpose of medical diagnosis and treatment and are an evidence-based practice. Forensic interviewing as a practice was developed to reduce traumatization of children by reducing the number of times that children have to provide details about their abuse and doing so in a child friendly and trauma informed environment.
MDT professionals provide an instrumental role in setting the forensic interview up for success while also reducing traumatization by minimizing the number of times the child has to discuss what happened to them. This is done by ensuring that MDT professionals do not conduct full interviews before CAC visits. However, it is important for the safety of the child as well as for the team to have certain base information prior to a forensic interview. This is often referred to as minimal facts and minimal facts interviews are brief interviews that gather basic details as to the nature of the abuse that has occurred, who conducted the abuse, safety needs, and medical needs.
ONCAC offers training on minimal facts interviewing quarterly that is open to all MDT professionals that may receive reports of abuse or conduct minimal facts interviews. Upcoming offerings are listed below:
March 23rd, 2026
June 22nd, 2026
October 5th, 2026
December 14th, 2026
Also available are carry card templates. Carry cards overview contact information for nearby CACs that can be given to MDT professionals such as law enforcement, child protective services, or others that also outlines questions that are typically asked in a minimal facts interview and therefore reducing the risk of conducting an in depth interview prior to a CAC interview. A template is included below where professionals can input their CAC information and/or contact ONCAC for support in identifying the center that would be closest to them.
Testimony
Many professionals on the multidisciplinary team can be called to testify including forensic interviewers, medical professionals, mental health professionals and others. ONCAC has collaborated with prosecution experts to provide training and resources for testifying.
Forensic Interviewers as Witnesses One-Pager
This document reviews how forensic interviewers can be utilized as witnesses for court proceedings as well as applicable state law for the use of forensic interviewers at witnesses.
Helpful for prosecutors and forensic interviewers.
Human Trafficking
Human trafficking impacts several children in Ohio, whether sex, labor, familial, or other forms of trafficking. CACs and their multidisciplinary team partners are generally prepared to provide services to child victims that have been trafficked due to their trauma-informed practices, specialized training, and collaborative approach. More information on responding to children who have been trafficked can be found in the below resource.
SANE Exams
Many centers work collaboratively with P-SANE and A-SANE professionals among other medical providers for the provision of trauma-informed and evidence-based medical care and evidence collection. The below protocols outline best practices for each type of examination.
