August 14, 2000 - Nation's First Child Abuse and Neglect Fellowship Program Begins at Cincinnati Children's Mayerson Center
CINCINNATI -- The Mayerson Center for Safe and Healthy Children at Children's Hospital Medical Center of Cincinnati has become the first such center in the United States to begin a fellowship program specifically in child abuse and neglect.
The Mayerson Center was founded in 1997 by the Manuel D. and Rhoda Mayerson Foundation. This summer, two pediatricians began fellowships at the comprehensive center for child abuse -- one a research fellowship and the other clinical. Joining the Mayerson Center are Kathi Makoroff, M.D., and Neha H. Mehta, M.D.
Few physicians are trained in child abuse and neglect or are doing research in these areas," says Frank Putnam, M.D., director of the Mayerson Center. "We're training the next generation of specialists and researchers who can contribute to the community and the nation through their expertise in this area."
Dr. Makoroff is a clinical staff physician in the divisions of Emergency Medicine and General and Community Pediatrics at Children's Hospital Medical Center of Cincinnati. She also is part of Children's Hospital Medical Center of Cincinnati Child Abuse Team, for which she conducts examinations of children suspected of having been abused.
Dr. Makoroff is a Mayerson Child Abuse Research Fellow. She will study how to better diagnose metaphyseal fractures -- bones broken at the growth plate. These are fractures that often cannot be diagnosed initially on X-ray but are seldom found in children other than those who have been abused. Dr. Makoroff's work will take place as part of the Mayerson Center's Developmental Traumatology Research Team, the key component of the Mayerson Center's efforts to develop effective treatments for abused and neglected children.
Dr. Mehta joins the Mayerson Center as an "Insuring the Children" fellow. She also is a physician in the Emergency Medicine Division. Insuring the Children is an insurance industry, nonprofit organization created to both raise awareness about child abuse and neglect and to support prevention programs. The Insuring the Children Child Abuse Fellowship Program is designed to prepare physicians for an academic and clinical career in child abuse and forensic pediatrics.
As a fellow, Dr. Mehta will learn about the diagnosis and evaluation of child abuse and about testifying in court about abuse and neglect. She joins the Mayerson Center from the University of Kentucky, where she was chief resident in pediatrics. Dr. Mehta earned a medical degree at the Medical College of Georgia in 1996 and did her pediatric residency at the University of Kentucky.
"Our children deserve the best care possible," says Neal H. Mayerson, Ph.D., president of the Manuel D. and Rhoda Mayerson Foundation. "Through our Center fellowships, we are 'raising the bar' of professional practice in this area."
The Mayerson Center for Safe and Healthy Children aims to enhance the ability of families, organizations and professionals to provide safe and healthy environments for children, as well as to prevent, identify, and treat child abuse and neglect.
The center, in partnership with Every Child Succeeds and a variety of community agencies, is implementing the largest-ever comprehensive support program for families and professionals who work with them. This support program is designed to promote healthy children and address problems early in life, thus preventing long-term consequences.
The Mayerson Center for Safe and Healthy Children includes an advocacy program, which brings together the medical, justice, law enforcement, and social service systems to collaborate on cases of actual and suspected child abuse. This results in a more child-friendly and healing experience for abused or neglected children and helps in the successful prosecution of perpetrators.
Contact Information
Jim Feuer, jfeuer@chmcc.org, 513-636-4656
