A Nurse 's Role On Abuse : Child, Domestic And Elder

There are different types of abuse that can occur within a healthcare setting: physical, verbal, sexual, emotional, psychological, and financial (Duggleby, 2014). The vulnerable populations who are at risk for being abused are women at any stage of their lives, persons with disabilities, of First Nations descent, the elderly, and anybody within a same-sex relationship (Chow, 2013). Abuse can occur in home, in public, and even within the healthcare setting. For the purpose of this paper, we are going to look at physical and verbal abuse within the healthcare setting.

An abused child is any child, up to the age of 18, who has suffered from, or is believed likely to be at risk of, physical injury, neglect, emotional abuse, sexual abuse or verbal abuse. (Source: www.yesican.org)

Child abuse is an issue within society that effects the lives of not only the victims but also the lives of many people in the social order. Child abuse is any mistreatment or neglect of a child that results in non-accidental injury or harm and which cannot be logically explained. There are several forms of abuse and neglect and many state governments have developed their own legal description of what constitutes child maltreatment for the purposes of removing a child and prosecuting a criminal charge. Child abuse consists of different forms of harm including physical, emotional, sexual, and neglect.

Advocacy is a fundamental responsibility in nursing because patients are inherently vulnerable (Creasia & Friberg, 2011). The scenario presented is challenging because, although the nurse suspects child abuse, there is a lack of explicit evidence. Reporting suspected child abuse is a legal obligation for nurses, but the result may have devastating effects for the family. To prevent inaccurate conclusions, a professional nurse should question the mother and child separately and attempt to uncover the

“The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act” states’ that “child abuse is the leading cause of death in children under the age of eighteen.” Child abuse occurs when adults inflict violence and cruelty upon children. Abuse is any willful act that results in physical, mental, or sexual injury that causes or is likely to cause the child to be physically, mental, or emotionally impaired. Abuse happens to children of any age, sex, race, religion, and social status.

Child abuse is the physical, sexual, emotional mistreatment, or neglect of a child. There are four major categories: neglect, physical abuse, psychological/emotional abuse, and child sexual abuse (Levi, Lo, Selby, and Vandenburg). Neglect is a passive form of abuse in which a perpetrator is responsible to

Child abuse is when a parent or caregiver, through action or failure to act, causes injury, death, emotional harm or risk of serious harm to a child. According to The Federal Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, as amended by the CAPTA Reauthorization Act of 2010, at a minimum, child abuse and neglect is defined as, "Any recent act or failure to act on the part of a parent or caretaker which results in death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse or exploitation"; or "An act or failure to act which presents an imminent risk of serious harm (Children 's Bureau, 2010)." The law recognizes a child as being any person who is under the age of 18. The law is broken into 2 sections, and each section treats the idea of child maltreatment in different ways. Criminally, those who abuse children are able to be arrested and prosecuted in court. Civil statutes say that people who suspect a child of being abused are mandated to identify and report it.

Regardless of their area of work, nurses have the potential to be exposed to the intimate partner violence (IPV) continuum. Often noticed as the front line workers, nurses are in a position to observe and assess situations where IPV is suspected, and intervene should these issues arise. Nurses are obligated to provide safe, holistic, quality care to victims of IPV and implement resources such as counseling, community support as well as physical and emotional support; “nurses work with persons who have health-care needs or are receiving care to enable them to attain their highest possible level of health and well-being” (CNA, 2017). Nurses have the ability to be a catalyst for positive change for individuals in abusive situations. Victims

Defining child abuse is a complicated issue. First, currently the United States does not have a standard definition of child abuse because each state has their definition. Definitions are different at the state and federal level. Child welfare agencies also may have different child abuse and neglect definitions. The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) define child abuse and neglect as any recent act or failure to act on the part of a parent or caretaker that result in death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse, or exploitation; an act or failure to act that presents an imminent risk of serious harm (Child Abuse and Neglect User Manual, 2003;

Child abuse is a very sensitive issue that needs to by carefully handled. Child abuse is defined as a no accidental injury or pattern of injures to a child for which there is no reasonable explanation.

According to Webster 's dictionary, child abuse is the mistreatment of a child by a parent or guardian, including neglect, physical abuse and sexual molestation. The medical definition differs fro Webster 's definition only by a few words. The medical

Child abuse is defined as the mistreatment of children or minors, resulting in a variety of harmful and damaging results with regard to the well being and safety of the victim. Child abuse can range in the details and circumstances in which the offence takes place; child abuse can take place in a direct physical fashion, which includes attack and physical assault

Given the aging of the population, elder abuse has become more a prevalent and a more serious issue in recent years. "Every year, an estimated 4 million older Americans are victims of physical, psychological or other forms of abuse and neglect. Those statistics may not tell the whole story. For every case of elder abuse and neglect reported to authorities, experts estimate as many as 23 cases go undetected" (Elder abuse and neglect, 2013, APA report: 1). Elder abuse is both against the law and an ethical issue for the nurse. The nurse must find a way to ensure that the needs of the patient are taken care of, and the stress of the caregiver of the elderly person is managed appropriately. This paper will apply the five steps of ethical decision-making to dealing with the issue (Swinton 2007). The ethics of elder abuse deal with a number of issues that can be extremely sensitive subjects for the nurse; including parent-child relationships; past relationships amongst different members of the family; the responsibilities of caregiving; and the autonomy of the patient.

Child abuse and maltreatment is not limited to a particular age and can occur in the infant, toddler, preschool, and school-age years. Choose one of the four age groups (infant, toddler, preschool, or school age) and discuss the types of abuse that are most often seen in this age. Discuss warning signs and physical and emotional assessment findings the nurse may see that could indicate child abuse. Discuss cultural variations of health practices that can be misidentified as child abuse. Describe the reporting mechanism in your state and nurse responsibilities related to the reporting of suspected child abuse. Include in-text citations and references for each of the scholarly sources used. Respond to other learners ' posts in a manner that

Elder Abuse is defined as any activity performed by an individual whereby these actions cause suffering of the older adult, intentionally or not (Touhy, Jett, Boscart & McCleary, 2012, p. 378). Unfortunately, the incidents of elder abuse continue to rise with the increasing number of people entering older adulthood. It is interesting to note that although elder abuse is highly under reported its occurrence increased three fold over a ten-year period (Friese & Collopy, 2010, p. 61). Certainly, it is a nurse’s duty to provide holistic care to his or her patients, which must include protection from abuse. Elder abuse can take on many forms including physical, emotional, sexual, neglect and financial. It is important to note that for the