Child Protection Team
The Child Protection Team (CPT) at Phoenix Children’s Hospital is a partner in the Childhelp Children’s Center of Arizona. The Child Protection Team is part of a larger group of law enforcement, prosecution, social service agencies, medical professionals and mental health clinicians – all working to provide a safe, secure environment for victims of child maltreatment, including physical and sexual abuse, neglect, and drug exposure.
Phoenix Children’s Child Protection Team is staffed by three highly trained pediatricians, two nurse practitioners, three medical assistants, and a forensic interviewer. There is also a fellowship program. On call 24-hours a day, seven days a week, the team’s primary role is to provide medical exams and forensic interviews on a moment’s notice. They help investigators interpret medical records and testify in several cases per year. They also participate in community education – speaking at conferences, providing training sessions and serving as a resource for others interested in peer review.
Physicians - Child Protection Team
Kathyryn Coffman, MD, Medical Director
Jennifer Geyer, MD
Lisa Kirsch, MD
Tamara Pottker, MD
Leslie Quinn, MD
Jackie Hess, FNP
Cindy Nelson, PNP
Wendy Dutton, RN, PhD, Forensics Interviewer
Alaina Raetz, Trauma/Child Protection Team Social Worker
Michelle Cortez, Clinical Coordinator
Diane Munoz, Clinical Coordinator
Lori Jones, Medical Assistant
The Child Protection Team also partners with city-operated advocacy centers in Glendale, Mesa, Avondale and Eloy, and also provides inpatient evaluations at three Phoenix-area hospitals. Contact CPT team at (602) 282-0078 if you have any questions.
About Childhelp
The role of Childhelp is to evaluate and provide services for child abuse victims and their families, and to assist in the prosecution of their abusers. The Chld Protection Team provides forensic interviews and medical examinations. Other services offered at Childhelp include interviewing child victims and witnesses, interviewing non-offending family members, crisis intervention, referrals to community services, case review team meetings and preparing children and their families for court. Specially trained professionals from most disciplines are available to respond on-site, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Working in collaboration with contributing partners and agencies, Childhelp:
- Reduces the number of interviews a child victim must endure and the time victims and their families spend with the investigation by creating a one-stop investigative resource
- Reduces police and child protective services investigative time (i.e., conducting medical examinations at the center), enabling more efficient case processing and quicker prosecutions
- Increases communication between agencies for an improved understanding of their roles and needs
Through medical assessment and support, Childhelp and Phoenix Children’s Child Protection Team are working together - doing everything possible to restore safety and normalcy to the lives of the children and families affected by abuse.
