The Pediatric Emergency Department is the designated child abuse center for Baltimore City. Over one thousand children who are suspected to have been abused visit the department at Johns Hopkins Children's Center each year. There are also many patients admitted for specialty pediatric care due to inflicted injuries.

Johns Hopkins Children’s Center is nationally regarded as a leading advocate for abused and neglected children in both care and policy. Our Child Protection Team, led by Mitchell Goldstein, M.D., is a state authority on child abuse and a vocal advocate for child abuse issues. A multidisciplinary team — including emergency medicine providers, child abuse medicine experts, social workers and child life specialists — provides a comprehensive physical exam and necessary medical intervention while assisting investigating authorities to determine next steps in these difficult cases.

About Child Abuse and Neglect

Statistics on the prevalence of child abuse vary widely, depending on survey techniques and on the way abuse is defined. However, one thing is certain: child abuse and neglect are equal-opportunity destroyers. Abuse and neglect do not know a child’s sex or race, where a child comes from or a child's religion or income level.

To help and read more about child abuse and neglect please visit Child Welfare Information Gateway. Despite the staggering number of abuse or neglect cases, Johns Hopkins Children’s Center stands firm, pledging its support to Maryland communities no matter the cost, ensuring that every abused and neglected child who comes to Johns Hopkins receives expert medical care and compassionate service.

Maryland Child Abuse Medical Providers (CHAMP) Network

The Division of Pediatric Emergency Medicine is involved in developing policies and practice guidelines at the state level through the Maryland Child Abuse Medical Providers (CHAMP) Network. Mitchell Goldstein, M.D., is one of five leaders of the Maryland CHAMP initiative, which also recruits and trains medical professionals in the area of child maltreatment, and provides expert medical evaluations in suspected child abuse cases.

Local Task Force

A group of Johns Hopkins Children’s Center physicians and social workers meet as needed with child welfare and law enforcement investigators, attorneys and other stakeholders to review cases of possible maltreatment. They address legal and medical evidence to determine whether a child has been maltreated. Though the group may influence the possibility of bringing alleged abusers to court, the primary goal of the group is to increase communication between agencies that care for victims of abuse and their families and ultimately improve the lives of the children.