In 1974, a community based project composed of concerned professionals and lay persons contacted us to design and demonstrate the effectiveness of nursing-family assessment procedures with a small number of families in which disturbances had been identified. While we recognize the limits imposed on our findings by the paucity of our sample size, the abuse-neglect families with whom we worked carried a distinguishing set of characteristics which, because of their consistancy, seemed important to report. In addition we wished to share with other health professionals the systematic approach to assessment and intervention which we found useful in establishing rapport and effecting change.