Suspicions of Child Abuse Do you know what to do if you have a patient that you suspect is suffering from abuse? What if the patient is a child? As a nurse, you are a mandated reported, and it's your responsibility to report it and to see that it is investigated. Statistics 4 million child maltreatment referral reports are made annually Child abuse reports involved 7.2 million children. 3.4 million children received prevention & post-response services. 207,000 children received foster care services. 75.3% of victims are neglected. 17.2% of victims are physically abused 8.4% of victims are sexually abused. 6.9% of victims are psychologically maltreated.1 Highest rate of child abuse in children under one (24.2% per 1,000). Over one-quarter (27.%) of victims are younger than 3 years. Annual estimate: 1,670 to 1740 children died from abuse and neglect. Almost five children die every day from child abuse. 80% of child fatalities involve at least one parent. 74.8% of child fatalities are under the age of 3. 72.9% of the child abuse victims die from neglect. 43.9% of the child abuse victims die from physical abuse. 49.4% of children who die from child abuse are under one year. Almost 60,000 children are sexually abused.1 More than 90% of juvenile sexual abuse victims know their perpetrator Estimated that between 50-60% of maltreatment fatalities are not recorded on death certificates. ● Child abuse crosses all socioeconomic and educational levels, religions, ethnic and cultural groups. ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●
Related: Forensic Nurses Child Abuse & Criminal Behavior 14% of all men in prison and 36% of women in prison in the USA were abused as children, about twice the frequency seen in the general population. 8 ● Children who experience child abuse & neglect are about 9 times more likely to become involved in criminal activity. 6 ●
Child Abuse Outcomes Abused children are 25% more likely to experience teen pregnancy. 6 Abused teens are more likely to engage in sexual risk taking, putting them at greater risk for STDs.6 ● About 30% of abused and neglected children will later abuse their own children, continuing the horrible cycle of abuse.7 ● In at least one study, about 80% of 21 year olds that were abused as children met criteria for at least one psychological disorder.15 ● The financial cost of child abuse and neglect in the United States is estimated at $585 billion.8 ● ●
Child Abuse & Alcohol/Substance Abuse ● ●
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1/3 to 2/3 of child maltreatment cases involve substance use to some degree.12 In one study, children whose parents abuse alcohol and other drugs were three times more likely to be abused and more than four times more likely to be neglected than children from non-abusing families.12 Two-thirds of the people in treatment for drug abuse report being abused or neglected as children.10 More than a third of adolescents with a report of abuse or neglect will have a substance use disorder before their 18th birthday, three times as likely as those without a report of abuse or neglect.13 10.3% – 15.8% of children have a parent/caregiver alcohol abuse risk factor.1 25.4% – 33.5% of children have a parent/caregiver drug abuse risk factor.1 25.0% – 33.2% of children have a domestic violence abuse risk factor.
Related: Infographic : What do your scrubs say about you? The factual statistics tell a very sad story; however, the facts are actual. As a nurse, you may be exposed to situations that child abuse is suspected. In the event, you are faced with a situation that you question the explanation regarding a child’s injuries, you should always react. It is much better to have an innocent parent investigated, than to allow a child to continue to be abused. You could be the only chance the child has to escape a dangerous and potentially deadly situation. If you feel you need to alert officials, do so, however do not advise the parents of the child that you suspect abuse. That should be left up to the officials, and if they realize you are alerting authorities, they have a legal right to take the child and leave until they have been charged. Authorities are experienced in handling cases of suspected child abuse.
If the concerns are unfounded, it’s better to be safe than sorry, and any parent should understand your concerns are in the best interest of the child. Authorities can investigate and make a determination, clearing the parents if the investigation proves no abuse occurred. You may be the only advocate the child has, so speak up, and remember you are a mandated reporter. Related: Highly Respected Public Health Nurse Avis K. Warner, RN, will be Spotlighted in the Worldwide Leaders in Healthcare Please follow us on Facebook, Linkedin, Pinterest and Twitter