Megan Khung abuse case: Was it more than just a series of lapses? | The Usual Place podcast

Описание: In this episode of The Usual Place, host Natasha Ann Zachariah looks at a review panel's findings into the death of four-year-old Megan Khung.

What did the report reveal about accountability across Singapore’s child-protection system, and what are the complexities of navigating child abuse cases?

On this episode are Ms Soh Siew Fong, director of clinical services at Pave Integrated Services, and Ms Theresa Tan, senior social affairs correspondent at The Straits Times.

They walk through the timeline leading up to Megan’s death, where and how processes broke down, and what the panel’s recommendations mean for the social work sector.

Beyond the report, they also get frank about caseloads, burnout and supervision, why the “many helping hands” approach can fail without tight coordination, and the “toxic trio” of family violence that can complicate a case.

They also confront Singapore’s norms around physical punishment - how “discipline” can turn into abuse - and the culture change needed so teachers, neighbours and frontline workers err on the side of safety.

Highlights (click/tap above):
00:00 Intro
4:23 When abuse is dealing with life and death
8:09 Did the many helping hands framework fail?
9:57 When child protection is more than just hiring social workers
10:44 Supervising case workers
17:37 Why do social workers hesitate to make police reports?
30:03 How to attract new case workers
33:39 When physical punishment becomes abuse
41:32 Keeping children safe goes beyond case work

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Filmed by: Studio+65
Edited by: Teo Tong Kai, Eden Soh and Chen Junyi
Executive producers: Danson Cheong, Elizabeth Khor & Ernest Luis
Editorial producer: Lynda Hong

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