Introduction : Acknowledgments
The Authors
Ann S. Botash, MD, the author of the original Child Abuse Evaluation & Treatment for Medical Providers, is the principal author of this revised edition. Dr. Botash is a distinguished board certified child abuse pediatrician and educator. In 1998 she played a pivotal role in establishing the McMahon Ryan Child Advocacy Center in Syracuse, New York, and served as the Medical Director or co-Director of the Center for nearly 30 years. She is also the founder, and since 1998, served as Director of the New York State Child Abuse Medical Provider (CHAMP) program. As a SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor at Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital, she serves in multiple roles, including Vice Chair for Education, and in past roles, as inaugural Division Director of Child Abuse Pediatrics and inaugural Child Abuse Pediatrics Fellowship Director. She has made significant contributions to medical and non-medical literature, including online educational materials, and has served as the principal investigator for various grants. Her achievements have been recognized with numerous national and local awards, including the prestigious 2022 Certificate of Special Recognition for Contributions in Pediatric Education from the American Academy of Pediatrics. Dr. Botash is also the Senior Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs and Faculty Development at the Alan and Marlene Norton College of Medicine at Upstate Medical University.
As the principal author, Dr. Botash revised a majority of the content. This includes writing the chapters on Child Sexual Abuse Triage, History, Physical Examination, Laboratory, Radiology, Diagnosis, Treatment and Follow-up, Documentation, Reporting, and Children and Adolescents with Disabilities. Steven Blatt, MD, wrote the chapter on Foster Care chapter; Alicia Pekarsky, MD, wrote the Interdisciplinary and Multidisciplinary Teams and Legal Issues chapters; and Janet Rozenswieig, PhD, MPA, wrote the chapter on Sexual and Sexualized Behaviors in Children. In addition, Lawrence Ricci, MD, wrote the section on Photographic Documentation in the Documentation chapter.
We want to recognize the other experts who contributed to the development and evolution of this work: Dana Kaplan, MD, who suggested and reviewed medical content; Sarah J.C. Reckess, JD, who reviewed the content of the Legal Issues chapter; and Liz Bowen, PhD, who contributed her expertise related to children and adolescents with disabilities and communication challenges.
We also want to thank the Center for Bioethics and Humanities at the Norton College of Medicine, SUNY Upstate Medical University, under the leadership of Amy Caruso Brown, MD, for their thoughtful review, edits, and support.
Collaborative Support
The Child Abuse Medical Provider (CHAMP) Program Faculty provided invaluable feedback, especially in reviewing and updating the Directory of Child Abuse Agencies and Organizations. Their availability for questions and commitment to best practices helped strengthen this resource.
We also gratefully acknowledge Trish Booth, MA, who served as editor and collaborator from the start. Her partnership with Dr. Botash and her dedication to clarity, structure, and educational value shaped the quality of the content. This revised and expanded website would not have been possible without the technical expertise of our webmaster, Marie Williams, and her suggestions related to layout, readability, and best practices for an educational website.
This revision also acknowledges the foundational work of the Child Abuse Evaluation & Treatment for Medical Providers project, directed by Dr. Ann S. Botash of SUNY Upstate Medical University and edited by Trish Booth. The original project involved contributions from over 30 individuals, including medical professionals and advocates across New York State's child protection centers, hospitals, and advocacy organizations. We particularly honor the memory of Jane A. Barker (Safe Horizon), Beverly Boucher (NYS Department of Health), and Leah Harrison (Children's Hospital at Montefiore) whose advocacy for abused children inspired the original work and continues to guide our mission.
Project Management and Sustained Support
This work could not have been completed without the exceptional coordination and dedication of JoAnne Race, MS, CHAMP Program Manager. Her behind-the-scenes efforts — from managing author communications and editing images to monitoring budgets, tracking progress, and keeping the project moving — were vital to its success. Her work continues a tradition of strong CHAMP leadership, following the contributions of Linda Markell and Anne Galloway, RN, past CHAMP managers.
Grant Support
CHAMP is extremely grateful for the support provided by the New York State Office of Children and Family Services. Its grant in 2005 was crucial to the production of the original ChildAbuseMD website and the web book, Child Abuse Evaluation & Treatment for Medical Providers. This grant not only supported the revision of the web book, it expanded the website’s features and increased the flexibility and capabilities of both CHAMP websites, ChildAbuseMD.com and CHAMPprogram.com. These improvements will enable CHAMP's creation of new educational materials and activities to improve the medical response to child abuse.
