Child Abuse Is A Worldwide Problem

Child abuse is an action by another person, whether it be an adult or another child, which causes significant harm. It can either be physical, sexual or emotional; neglect can be just as damaging at child abuse (NSPCC, 2016). There are many different types of child abuse; domestic abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, online abuse, physical abuse emotional abuse, child sexual exploitation, female genital mutilation, bullying and cyberbullying, child trafficking, grooming and harmful sexual behaviour (NSPCC,

Deaths from abuse are under reported and some deaths classified as the result of accident and sudden infant death syndrome might be reclassified as the result of child abuse if comprehensive investigations were more routinely done. Most child abuse takes place in the home and is started by persons are know to and trusted by the child. Even though it has been widely publicized, abuse in day-care and foster-care setting accounts for only a small number of confirmed cases of child abuse. In 1996, only two percent of all confirmed cases of child abuse occurred in these settings. Child abuses if fifteen times more likely to occur in families where spousal abuse occurs. Children are three times more likely to be abused by their fathers than by their mothers. No differences have been found in the incidence of child abuse in rural versus urban areas. Following are the types of abuse and the

Child abuse means somebody can cause physical injury on a child by no accidental means, causing death, skin bruising, scar, emotional health or impairment of physical. Neglect is the failure to give a child’s basic needs that means educational, physical, emotional and medical needs. Very young children, ages 4 and younger are most likely being physically abused and they are the most repeated victims of child fatalities. 80.8% of wounded cases reported as the children of ages less than 4 years old.

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.

Child abuse is epidemic in many countries as well as the United States. It is estimated that every thirteen seconds a child is abused in some manner: physically, sexually, emotionally or by neglect (Friedman). Each year, there are over 3 million reports of child abuse in the United States involving more than 6 million children. Child abuse can be reduced with proper education of the parents and with greater public awareness.

Child abuse is a social problem that continuously produces a wave of concern. The State of New Jersey Department of Children and Families explains that “Abuse is the physical, sexual or emotional harm or risk of harm to another child under the age of 18 caused by a parent or other person who acts as a caregiver for the child” (2016). The harsh reality of child abuse and its consequences is recognized throughout this essay.

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;

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

There is not one specific type of child abuse in fact there are more than one form of child mistreatment such as: physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, and neglect. Before going into further details of the problems and treatment of child abuse; one must know what child abuse is. The United States Department of Health and Human Services provides a standard legal definition of child abuse, CAPTA (2010) states:

It 's difficult to comprehend that an adult, often a parent or caregiver, would intentionally hurt an infant or child. Yet nearly a million children are abused in the United States. Unfortunately that excludes children who 's incidents of child abuse are unreported and undetected. Child abuse can be defined differently from state to state, but commonly presents in the form of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse, neglect and abandonment. The focus of this review is physical abuse, which is defined as non-accidental physical injury, from bruising to fractures to the most serious cases of abuse ending in death (Sink, Hyman, Matheny, Georgopoulos & Kleinman, 2010).

Letson and colleagues wanted to evaluate prior opportunities of medical professionals to report cases dealing with AHT. One of the early preventive measures to something as dangerous and life threating as AHT is detection. Letson and colleagues reported that in a previous study 31% of children diagnosed with AHT had earlier visited a physician with an injury but their physical abuse was left undiagnosed. The study referenced by Letson et al. was published in 1999. After the completion of their study, they found that 25% of AHT cases are still reported and strengthening the fact that physical abuse still goes unrecognized. The importance of this study was that it was that there had been previous opportunities to identify abuse (Letson et al., 2016).

Child abuse exists in many forms. Many states recognize the four major types of abuse: physical abuse, sexual abuse, psychological/emotional abuse, and neglect. When most people think of child abuse, they usually think of physical abuse or sexual abuse. These two types are the most common and the easiest to detect due the physical signs. Physical abuse can range anywhere from minor bruises to death. Physical discipline, such as spanking or paddling, is not considered abuse as long as it is reasonable and causes no bodily injury to the child. Sexual abuse includes sexual activities done to a child or by a child to

Also, reporting the incident is required if the suspect is dead which should also be included so authorities can decide which action to take. Regardless of federal and state confidentiality laws, a professional is required to report any physical and/or sexual abuse or mental injury of a child. Although, the abuse must be committed by a parent or someone who has custody of the child or by someone who lives in the same household as the child. “Who are the individuals known to be major contributors to the abuse of a child? These individuals vary from parents, either collectively or individually, to other immediate and distant relatives and from trusted individuals to complete strangers. It is not always the case that child abusers act alone, as abuse may occur at the hands of multiple individuals at one time. Within the last decade, approximately 40% of child abuse victims were harmed by mothers acting alone, 18.3% by fathers acting alone, and 17.3% by both parents. Children that were abused by caregivers other than the parents made up 10.7%. These numbers clearly show that it is vital for educators to be trained and prepared to recognize when a child is being abused. For the majority of children, going to school can be a sanctuary and a place where their cries for help are not always vocal or obvious, creating a need for trained observation for

Child abuse is not dependent on a particular socioeconomic level or a particular family type, it occurs globally and among a diverse set of families. While certain factors contribute to placing some families at an increased risk, there exists no predetermined factor that enables professionals to identify perpetrators, or potential perpetrators of abuse. Often

Sometimes the people who are physically abusing these children, turn out to be the parents of the child. Signs of the perpetrator being the parent can be, the adult and child rarely looking at or touching one