 For working parents with small children, one of the greatest challenges can be finding the best option for child care. Many families turn to nannies to take on that role, but a recent case in Cambridge may cause some parents to think twice, before making a final decision on who takes that spot. We were all, you know, mortified to hear this poor child was hurt. Nanny Ashling McCarthy Brady is charged with assaulting the one-year-old girl she cared for, who later died. The Cambridge nanny is expected to ultimately face murder charges. But the case leaves parents and caregivers everywhere asking how they can prevent something like this from ever happening again. It's so hard to find someone you trust, and sometimes unfortunately the people that end up doing the really bad things often are the people you would last think might, and that's the scary part. Jennifer Russo and Alicia McCarthy are placement counselors at the Boston Nanny Center. The center makes thorough checks into all nanny applicants, and the case in Cambridge reminded them just how important it is to do so. I mean, we definitely took a step back and thought about, you know, all the questions we're asking, the references. We always want to make sure we're making sure that we're screening the candidates as thorough as possible. You know, what it really did was help us realize the process that we do is so important. There are no national standards or laws to follow when it comes to screening nannies. But the center runs several checks, including a criminal background check in the state and a national check, covering everywhere an applicant has lived. Something that concerns the agency is that there just isn't one place to look for all charges and convictions. We try to do as many different steps knowing that there's not just one place to look for all the info. It's really seeing if we can get to every potential spot there might be a record somewhere. The center is part of the International Nanny Association, which does recommend practices for background screening, both for agencies and parents. These recommendations include verifying a nanny's identity, searching for criminal records everywhere they have lived, verifying work and educational history, and searching the sex offender registry. All we can do is assure them that we are screening the candidates thoroughly, speaking with as many references as we can for the candidate, running our appropriate criminal background checks and those things. You know, it really sort of solidified how you can't do enough checking. In the Cambridge case, the cause of death for the child is still pending, but her nanny remains in custody on assault charges. Final charges can only be made once an autopsy is complete, but however they fall, parents everywhere are reminded to screen anyone in charge of their children. For VUTV 10, I'm Kelsey Cody.