Monday Keynote, 8:30AM
Not Just Rivalry: The Invisibility of Sibling Aggression and Abuse
Presenters: Corinna Jenkins Tucker, PhD, CFLE; Tanya Rouleau Whitworth, PhD
Summary: Sibling aggression is the most common form of family violence, but it is often minimized or dismissed. This keynote presentation will provide an overview of sibling aggression and abuse (SAA), including its prevalence, associated family conditions, harmful impacts, and barriers to seeking and receiving help for SAA. Participants will learn about four types of SAA: physical, psychological, property, and sexual. A classification of sibling dynamics will be presented, distinguishing sibling rivalry and conflict from sibling aggression and abuse. Research will be presented showing that despite being viewed as harmless, SAA is associated with negative impacts on mental and physical health and interpersonal relationships across the lifespan and should be considered an adverse childhood experience. Practitioners in relevant professional fields lack training on the topic and policies and laws to address this form of family violence remain virtually non-existent. Victimized children, adult survivors, and families face extensive barriers to seeking and receiving help. This presentation will argue for a shift in the way that professionals, families, and society perceive and respond to SAA, indicating the need to take it seriously as a form of family violence and a widespread public health problem.
Objectives: Participants will be able to discuss the prevalence of sibling aggression and abuse, variation in experiences among diverse groups, and impacts on mental and physical health and interpersonal relationships across the lifespan; explain cultural and institutional factors that make it difficult for children, parents, and professionals to recognize and respond to sibling aggression and abuse.
Monday, 10:15AM
Human Trafficking: Working Together for Better Identification and Prevention
Presenter: Dena Nazer, MD, FAAP
Summary: Human trafficking has been increasingly recognized as a major public health problem. It is a crime based on exploitation of the most vulnerable and marginalized individuals of any community and is a violation of human rights. Children are especially at risk of victimization and may experience considerable physical and mental health consequences. Adding these problems to pre-existing vulnerabilities and adversities makes human trafficking a complex health issue that needs to be addressed by a multidisciplinary team including health care providers. We all have a responsibility to work together to prevent, suspect and report suspected trafficking and offer services as appropriate.
NOTE: This presentation fulfills the LARA requirements for the mandatory one hour education on human trafficking.
Objectives: Participants will be able to explain the various types and venues of human trafficking in Michigan and the United States; identify potential victims of human trafficking within healthcare settings; recognize warning signs of human trafficking in both adults and children; identify available resources for education, prevention, and reporting suspected cases involving minors; implement a trauma-informed, rights-based approach to the initial evaluation and discuss ways in which you may contribute to a multidisciplinary response to human trafficking; dispel myths, unlearn and relearn together to deepen our understanding of this crucial topic.
Monday, 11:45AM
Law & Order: CPS – Strategies for Courtroom Success
Presenter: Michael R. Schweyen
Summary: Protecting children is one of the most vital responsibilities we share. Whether conducting investigations, performing examinations, meeting with victims, consulting with experts, visiting scenes, documenting abuse, or interviewing witnesses—our roles demand dedication and resilience. Yet, after all that work, we often face one of the most daunting challenges: testifying in court.
Courtroom testimony brings together many of life’s most stressful elements—public speaking, scrutiny, hostile cross-examination, personal insecurities, and the serious consequences of the outcome. It’s an environment that can feel overwhelming, even for seasoned professionals. In this presentation, Assistant Attorney General Michael Schweyen, Litigation Specialist for the Children and Youth Services Division of the Michigan Attorney General’s Office, will share the strategies he finds most effective for successful courtroom testimony. From preparation techniques to handling opposing counsel, his insights will help equip child protection professionals to navigate this critical aspect of their work with confidence and clarity.
Objectives: Participants will be able to explain the role of witnesses in court on child abuse cases; discuss the psychology of the trier of fact and how to maintain credibility; identify different techniques for improving efficacy of testimony as well as deal with the stress of testifying; confront the strategies of cross examination.
Tuesday, 8:30AM
Brave Girl, Speak: Moving Beyond Survival of Child Sexual Abuse
Presenter: Kendall Clayton, LPC
Summary: Kendall Clayton will talk about her lived experiences of child sexual abuse to provide a framework for how one transforms from victim to advocate. The presentation will include an overview of abuse dynamics and barriers to disclosures, an exploration of the needs of victims and their immediate non-offending family members post-disclosure, and identification of actions that promote post-traumatic growth that influence the long-term outcomes for child abuse survivors. Attendees will recognize their contributions to the field leave a lasting impact on the children they serve.
Objectives: Participants will be able to recognize the physical, emotional, relational, financial, and environmental impacts of child sexual abuse on primary and secondary victims; identify three common barriers that prevent children from disclosing abuse; evaluate agency effectiveness in providing trauma-informed advocacy to primary and secondary victims of child sexual abuse.
Tuesday, 10:00AM
Recognizing and Responding to Sibling Aggression and Abuse
Presenters: Corinna Jenkins Tucker, PhD, CFLE; Tanya Rouleau Whitworth, PhD
Summary: This workshop presentation will focus on prevention, screening, and intervention for sibling aggression and abuse (SAA). A brief overview of SAA definitions will be provided, and attendees will learn that SAA should not be overlooked, due to its prevalence and harmful impacts on children, families, and adult survivors. Guidance will be provided on signs and symptoms of SAA and incorporating SAA screening into existing practice. Evidence-based strategies for intervening after SAA has occurred will be reviewed. Attendees will leave with practical tips to encourage sibling positivity and prevent and cope with sibling rivalry, conflict, aggression, and abuse. Information on existing law and policy, as well as recommended policy changes, will also be covered. Policy changes that could be instituted include expanding the focus of mental health and social services agencies, hospitals, and community centers to include identifying and providing education about SAA as a form of family violence and child maltreatment. This endeavor could begin with screening for SAA as part of the ACE inventory. Such screening could create opportunities to offer evidence-based prevention and intervention tools to individuals and families, and if needed, referrals for abuse. Case examples and excerpts from survivor narratives will be infused throughout the presentation.
Objectives: Participants will be able to explain that prevention and reduction of harmful sibling dynamics will improve siblings’ well-being and relationship across the lifespan, shield family members’ relationships with one another from estrangement, and lower family stress; identify best practices to detect, address, and prevent sibling aggression and abuse to protect children and help survivors heal.
Tuesday Keynote, 11:30AM
Medical Child Abuse
Presenter: Shalon M. Nienow, MD, FAAP
Summary: Medical Child Abuse (MCA), formerly known as Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy, is a complicated form of child maltreatment that is often difficult to recognize until it reaches severe stages. The hallmark of this form of abuse is that the medical system is manipulated into causing physical and/or psychological harm to a child at the instance of a caregiver. In this form of maltreatment caregivers fabricate, exaggerate, or induce symptoms and/or illness in their child. This leads to unnecessary and potentially dangerous medical interventions. This session will help participants to identify concerning cases early, understand appropriate responses, and recognize best steps in medical management.
Objectives: Participants will be able to explain the spectrum of vulnerable child syndrome and medical child abuse; identify appropriate steps in the medical management of these complex cases.