The life of a child protection worker can be summed up in five simple words"whatever you do is wrong". It is sad commentary that such an important profession should have such stigma attached to it, but that is the reality of it and anyone who chooses to enter the profession needs to be aware of it.

A young child protection worker under my supervision came to me one day clearly frustrated and visibly upset.

"This is the only job I have ever had that people will spend hours telling you how to do your job," she said; "And then tell you in the next breath that they themselves would never do it."

The fact that no matter what a child protection worker does he or she will always be considered "wrong" by some; coupled with the fact that there are plenty of untrained "experts" available frames the delicate balance that child protection workers must maintain in order to be successful in their primary focus, which is protecting children.

Unlike many professions, there is very little for a child protection worker that constitutes a clearly defined formula for success. There are law books, medical books, accounting books, blueprints and other materials that help lawyers, doctors, CPA's and building contractors do their jobs well. The same cannot be said for a child protection worker because every case, every situation and every scenario is different and unique in some aspect from all others. The bottom line becomes "do what your gut tells you is right".

Now this is not to say that child protection workers are always improvising and making up the rules as they go. All states have child protection laws, sometimes called "Children's Codes" that must be followed by workers. A child protection worker is expected to operate within the boundaries of those laws and furthermore is expected to demonstrate to a court of law that he or she has done so.

It is a common misconception that child protection workers have an immense amount of power and while that may be true on a limited basis, it is important to remember that courts of law are always the entities that have ultimate power, not the child protection worker. Virtually everything that a worker does is reviewed by the courts and ultimately judged to be correct or invalid. This is part of the checks and balances system so critical for the protection of human rights.

A child protection worker must also have a strong will, a mental toughness, and a sense of confidence in his or her skills in order to be successful.

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