Glossary

Adult - For the purpose of the Family Advocacy Program, an adult is a person who has either attained the age of eighteen or is married.

Advocacy services - Services that are offered to victims of domestic abuse with the goal of increasing victim safety and autonomy.  Services shall include, but not necessarily be limited to, responding to victims' emergency and ongoing safety concerns and needs, providing information about programs and services available to victims and their children in both the civilian and military communities, and providing victims with ongoing support and referrals.

Case Review Committee (CRC) - A multidisciplinary team, also known on some installations as the Incident Determination Committee (IDC), of designated individuals working at the installation level tasked with the determination of abuse and/or neglect incidents.

Child - A child is a person under eighteen years of age for whom a parent, guardian, foster parent, caretaker, employee of a residential facility, or any staff person providing out-of-home care is legally responsible.  The term "child" means a natural child, adopted child, stepchild, foster child, or ward.  The term also includes an individual of any age who is incapable of self-support because of mental or physical incapacity and for whom treatment in a medical treatment facility is authorized.

Child abuse and neglect - The physical or sexual abuse, emotional abuse, or neglect of a child by a parent, guardian, foster parent, or by a caregiver, whether the caregiver is intrafamilial or extrafamilial, under circumstances indicating the child's welfare is harmed or threatened.  Such acts by a sibling, other family member, or other person shall be deemed to be child abuse only when the individual is providing care under express or implied agreement with the parent, guardian, or foster parent.

Civilian protection order (CPO) - A civilian order of protection includes any injunction or other order issued for the purpose of preventing violent or threatening acts, or harassment against, or contact or communication with, or physical proximity to, another person including any temporary or final order issued by a civil or criminal court (other than a support or child custody order issued pursuance to state divorce and child custody laws, except to the extent that such an order is entitled to full faith and credit under other federal law) whether obtained by filing an independent action or as a pendente lite order in another proceedings so long as any civil order was issued in response to a complaint, petition, or motion filed by or on behalf of a person seeking protection.

Coordinated community response - A united community approach to stopping domestic abuse that involves multiple agencies and organizations bringing together their unique skills, expertise, and resources to meet the needs of victims and their children and to hold offenders accountable for their actions.

Domestic abuse - Domestic violence or a pattern of behavior resulting in emotional/psychological abuse, economic control, and/or interference with personal liberty that is directed toward a person who is:

• a current or former spouse
• a person with whom the abuser shares a child in common
• a current or former intimate partner with whom the abuser shares or has shared a common domicile

Domestic violence - An offense under the United States Code, the Uniform Code of Military Justice, or State law involving the use, attempted use, or threatened use of force or violence against a person; or a violation of a lawful order issued for the protection of a person who is:

• a current or former spouse
• a person with whom the abuser shares a child in common
• a current or former intimate partner with whom the abuser shares or has shared a common domicile

Family Advocacy Command Assistance Team (FACAT) - A multidisciplinary team composed of specially trained and experienced individuals who are on call to provide installations advice and assistance on cases of child sexual abuse that involve DoD-sanctioned activities.  The team helps assess the situation, develop a strategy for the investigation, gathers evidence to prosecute the suspect, meet the needs of the victims and their families, and restore public confidence in the out-of-home care program.

Healthcare Provider - Those individuals who are employed or assigned as healthcare professionals, or are credentialed to provide healthcare services (including clinical social workers), at a military medical or military dental treatment facility, or a military family support center, or who provide such care at a deployed location or in an official capacity.  This term includes military personnel, DoD civilian employees or DoD contractor personnel.

Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) - MOUs are written agreements with different agencies or organizations in the civilian community that help to clarify roles and responsibilities and coordinate efforts when responding to incidents of domestic abuse.  DoD policy requires law enforcement and legal officials on military installations to seek to establish MOUs with their civilian counterparts to improve information sharing and investigation of domestic abuse incidents involving Service members.

Military protection order (MPO) - An order issued by a commander to an active duty service member to protect a victim of domestic abuse or child abuse and to control the behavior of the alleged abuser.  A victim, victim advocate, installation law enforcement agency, or FAP clinician may request a commander to issue an MPO.  Among other things, an MPO may order the Service member to surrender his/her government weapons custody card or may order the service member abuser to stay away from the family home if he/she is living on the installation.  Commanders may tailor their orders to meet the specific needs of a victim.

New Parent Support Program (NPSP) - A standardized FAP secondary prevention program using an intensive, voluntary home visitation model developed specifically for expectant parents and parents of children from birth to three years of age who are at risk of child abuse.

Restricted reporting - A process allowing a victim of domestic abuse, who is eligible to receive military medical treatment, including civilians and contractors who are eligible to receive military healthcare outside the Continental United States on a reimbursable basis, the option of reporting an incident of domestic abuse to a specified individual without initiating the investigative process or notification to the victim's or alleged offender's commander.

Safety planning - A process whereby a victim advocate, working with a domestic abuse victim, creates a plan tailored to that victim's needs, concerns, and situation that will help increase the victim's safety and help the victim to prepare for, and potentially avoid, future violence. 

Shaken baby syndrome (SBS) - The term SBS describes the consequences that result from the violent shaking of an infant or young child. 

Substantiated case - A case is substantiated (also known as met criteria) when it has been investigated and the preponderance of available information indicates that the incident meets the DoD criteria for abuse. 

Unrestricted reporting - A process allowing a victim of domestic abuse to pursue an official investigation of an incident using current reporting channels (e.g., chain of command, law enforcement, and FAP) for clinical intervention.

Unsubstantiated case (also known as does not meet criteria) - An alleged case that has been investigated and the available information is insufficient to support the claim that child abuse or spouse abuse did occur. 

Victim advocate - An employee of DoD, a civilian working under contract for DoD, or a civilian providing services via a formal memorandum of understanding between the installation and a local victim advocacy service agency.  The advocate's role is to provide safety planning services and comprehensive assistance, as well as to serve as a liaison to and for victims of domestic abuse.  In addition, advocates educate personnel on the installation regarding the most effective responses to domestic abuse on behalf of victims and at-risk family members.  The advocate may also be a volunteer military member, a volunteer civilian employee of the military department, or staff assigned as collateral duty.