California Child Death Review Team (CDRT) Toolkit
The California Critical Incidents Citizen Review Panel (CI CRP) developed this Child Death Review Team (CDRT) Toolkit in consultation with the California Department of Social Services, the California Department of Public Health, and the State of California Department of Justice for the benefit of the counties, agencies, and individuals in California who share CI CRP members’ commitment to preventing child maltreatment fatalities and near- fatalities.
The toolkit will assist county-level agencies working to sustain, create or revive CDRTs in their jurisdictions in California. The toolkit will help counties assess their existing CRDTs and develop policies and procedures to sustain or improve their process. In those counties where there is no existing CDRT, this toolkit will help local policymakers understand the role of CDRTs and will facilitate efforts to create an effective CDRT.
The toolkit provides:
- Key information about the purpose, principles, objectives, and legal requirements for CDRTs
- A resource directory of materials developed by peer CDRTs including ample operating protocols, policies, procedures, reports, and forms gathered from current California CDRTs and from national resources, such as the National Center for Fatality Review and Prevention (NCFRP)
This toolkit would have not been possible without NCFRP resources and its Program Manual for Child Death Review – both the currently posted 2020 version and the previous version which includes printable worksheets and tools. Additional supportive material is available in the 2018 Manual Child Maltreatment Fatality Reviews: Learning Together to Improve Systems that Protect Children and Prevent Maltreatment.
The toolkit is a living document, and the CI CRP will continue to update it periodically to keep pace with developments in California and across the country. If you have resources to add to the CDRT Toolkit or any questions about the toolkit, please contact melissa.connelly@cfpic.org
