Resolved: Intimate Partner Violence in a Child’s Home is a Form of Maltreatment and Should Generally be Reported.

How should we address the situation of children living in homes with intimate partner violence?Even if children are not directly harmed, we know they suffer poor outcomes from these environments. Should this be considered a form of maltreatment?Does this situation fall under our obligation to report to child protective services?This is a common dilemma faced by many mandated reporters, with compelling arguments on both sides of the issue. To shed light on these complexities, we organized a debate featuring four highly qualified national experts who argued for and against the resolution: "Intimate Partner Violence in a Child’s Home is a Form of Maltreatment and Should Generally be Reported." Initially presented at the national meeting of the Helfer Society, we hope this debate advances the discussion on these challenging situations.The Host: Dan Lindberg is a member of Kempe’s Child Protection Team and an Emergency Physician The Debaters: FOR The Resolution: Dr. John Melville is the Director of the Division of Child Abuse Pediatrics at the Medical University of South Carolina, where the law mandates reporting of IPV exposure.  Dr. Antonia Chiesa is the Director of Integrated Healthcare Services at the Kempe Center and the Principal Investigator of the Kempe Care Network, which improves the care of potentially abused children across Colorado.    AGAINST The Resolution: Dr. Gunjan Tiyyagura is a pediatric emergency physician in New Haven, where she helped develop an integrated care model of care for IPV survivors and their children.  Dr. Nina Livingston is a Child Abuse Pediatrician in Hartford, where she partners with her state coalition against domestic violence and is a co-author of the AAP clinical report on IPV and the Pediatrician