DHS November lecture examines the application of safety science to improve child protection

OKLAHOMA CAPITOL --The next installment of the Department of Human Services (DHS) Fall Lecture Series is “Improving Child Protection with Safety Science.”  It will be held Tuesday, Nov. 12 from noon to 1 p.m. at the Oklahoma History Center, 800 Nazih Zuhdi Drive in Oklahoma City.

Child Protective Services Agencies (CPSAs) share many characteristics with other organizations operating in high-risk, high-profile industries.  Over the past 50 years, industries as diverse as aviation, nuclear power, and healthcare have applied principles from safety science to improve practice.  This talk will describe the rationale, characteristics, and challenges of applying concepts from the safety science literature to CPSAs.

Guest lecturer is Michael J. Cull, Ph.D, M.S.N., a licensed nurse practitioner with a specialty in child and adolescent psychiatry.   He holds Masters of Science in Nursing from Vanderbilt University and received his PhD from the Institute of Government at Tennessee State University. Dr. Cull is currently an Assistant Professor in Health System Management at Vanderbilt and is the Director of Education and Dissemination in the Office of Quality and Patient Safety for Vanderbilt University Medical Center. His prior experiences at Vanderbilt include serving as Executive Director of the Community Mental Health Center, Administrative Director of the Department of Psychiatry Patient Care Center, and Director of the Center of Excellence for Children in State Custody. Cull has extensive experience with organizational evaluation and improvement in healthcare and the human services.

The Practice and Policy Lecture Series has been developed to provide thought-provoking presentations on Oklahoma's emerging policy issues, trends and best practices. The series is sponsored by the DHS Office of Planning, Research and Statistics and the University of Oklahoma Center for Public Management with the goal of providing the best educational opportunities available in a forum that offers participants an opportunity to question, share and learn from each other. 

All lectures are free and open to the public. For more information contact the Office of Planning, Research and Statistics at (405) 521-3552 or visit the Practice and Policy Lecture Series website 

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