Office of the Provincial Advocate for Children and Youth Annual Report
On Tuesday February 24, 2009 David Rivard, Chief Executive Officer of the Children’s Aid Society of Toronto was mentioned in a Toronto Star article regarding their story from the previous day, on a report from the Office of the Provincial Advocate for Children and Youth, entitled 90 Deaths: Ninety Voices Silenced. The Office of the Provincial Advocate for Children and Youth serves youth in provincial care through individual, systemic and policy advocacy. In the article, Mr. Rivard stressed the fact that there is no need for a parallel review process of child deaths. During the conversation with the reporter Mr. Rivard also mentioned that confidentiality and privacy issues would need to be addressed before any information could be transferred to the Provincial Advocate’s office and that there already is a process in place through the Coroner’s Office to review child deaths in Ontario. Unfortunately the article did not reflect these comments. Privacy and confidentiality matters are amongst the guiding principles and of the utmost concern to all CAS’s, and any inference that case files would be turned over to any office without the strictest regime of attention being applied to client and staff privacy concerns is not in keeping with this approach.
On National Child Day, the Ontario Association of Children’s Aid Societies (OACAS) and the CAS of Toronto remind Ontarians to make our most vulnerable children and families a priority.
Veteran child psychiatrist, Dr. Jim Wilkes, was recognized today for his significant contribution to protecting children and youth from abuse and neglect. The sixth annual Stand Up for Kids Award, sponsored by the Children’s Aid Society of Toronto (CAS of Toronto), Catholic Children’s Aid Society of Toronto (CCAS), Jewish Family and Child Service, and Native Child and Family Services of Toronto, was presented to Dr. Wilkes today by the Honourable Deb Matthews, Minister of Children and Youth Services, as part of Child Abuse Prevention Month. The award was presented today at Queen’s Park in Committee, Room 230 at 12:30 p.m. 
Foster Family Week runs from October 19 to 26, 2008. This week honours foster parents who play an essential and irreplaceable role in caring for children. Thank you for all that you do for our children and youth. We are always in need of more foster homes, particularly for infants and toddlers, youth 12 to 16 years and children with special needs.
Educating the public about child abuse and neglect 
