Nurses' perceptions about child abuse

  • Authors

    • Ahmad Saifan Assistant Professor, College of Nursing, Applied Science Private University
    • Intima A Alrimawi Assistant Professor, College of Nursing, Birzeit University
    • Ibrahim Bashaireh Assistant Professor, School of Nursing, Philadelphia University
    2015-03-03
    https://doi.org/10.14419/ijans.v4i1.3858
  • Child Abuse, Arab, Nursing, Palestine.
  • Background: Despite the efforts to protect children around the world, child abuse and neglect remain serious and global problems. In Palestine, child abuse is hidden under the community culture, does not appear in the Ministry of Health official reports, and little is known about nurses’ perceptions towards this phenomenon.

    Objectives: To identify nurses’ perceptions about child abuse definition, whether they faced such cases during their work, and how they managed them.

    Methods: Data were collected using descriptive survey (exploratory) approach. A total of 84 nurses from a major hospital in Ramallah city in Palestine were surveyed.

    Results: Only 33% of the participants intend to use referral system in co-operation with the Ministry of Social Affairs, child protection organizations, or the police in Palestine to deal with child abuse cases. The most seen abuse case was neglect (79%), followed by psychological abuse (61%), then physical abuse (57%) and the least seen was sexual abuse (27%).

    Conclusion: Most of the participants do not know how to deal with child abuse effectively. This research provides baseline information for understanding nurses’ practice in the ground, and it helps in presenting the appropriate conditions that enable nurses to fully practice their role toward such cases.

  • References

    1. [1] Adams C. M (2006) The Consequences of Witnessing Family Violence on Children and Implications for Family Counselors. The Family Journal, 14, 334-341. http://dx.doi.org/310.1177/1066480706290342.

      [2] Alrimawi I, Saifan A, AbuRuz M (2014). Barriers to child abuse identification and reporting. Journal of Applied Sciences, 14, 2793 http://dx.doi.org/10.3923/jas.2014.2793.2803.

      [3] Baverstock A, Bartle D, Boyd B & Finlay F (2008). Review of child protection training uptake and knowledge of child protection guidelines. Child Abuse Review, 17, 64-72. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/car.1011.

      [4] Chihak A (2009). The nurse's role in suspected child abuse. Paediatrics and Child Health, 19, S211-S213. http://dx.doi.org/210.1016/j.paed.2009.1008.1005.

      [5] Coughlan M, Cronin P & Ryan F (2007). Step-by-step guide to critiquing research. Part 1: quantitative research. British journal of nursing, 16, 658-663. http://dx.doi.org/610.12968/bjon.12007.12916.12911.23681.

      [6] Currie J & Spatz Widom C (2010). Long-Term Consequences of Child Abuse and Neglect on Adult Economic Well-Being. Child Maltreatment, 15, 111-120. http://dx.doi.org/110.1177/1077559509355316.

      [7] Fraser J, Mathews B, Walsh K, Chen L & Dunne M (2010). Factors influencing child abuse and neglect recognition and reporting by nurses: A multivariate analysis. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 47, 146-153. http://dx.doi.org/110.1016/j.ijnurstu.2009.1005.1015.

      [8] Gilbert R, Kemp A, Thoburn J, Sidebotham P, Radford L, Glaser D, et al. (2009). Recognising and responding to child maltreatment. The Lancet, 373, 167-180. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(08)61707-9.

      [9] Gilligan P & Akhtar S (2006). Cultural Barriers to the Disclosure of Child Sexual Abuse in Asian Communities: Listening to What Women Say. British Journal of Social Work, 36, 1361-1377. http://dx.doi.org/1310.1093/bjsw/bch1309.

      [10] Halileh S & Abdullah A (2009). Child abuse and neglect services in the occupied Palestinian territory. Eastern Mediterranean Health Journal, 15, 1504-1512.

      [11] Hendricks C, Lansford J, Deater-Deckard K & Bornstein M (2014). Associations between Child Disabilities and Caregiver Discipline and Violence in Low- and Middle-Income Countries. Child Development, 85, 513-531. http://dx.doi.org/510.1111/cdev.12132.

      [12] International Council of Nurses (ICN). (2005). The ICN code of ethics for nurses: Switzerland: ICN.

      [13] Keane C & Chapman R (2008). Evaluating nurses' knowledge and skills in the detection of child abuse in the Emergency Department. International Emergency Nursing, 16, 5-13. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ienj.2007.1011.1006.

      [14] Kirkpatrick L & Feeney B (2009). A simple guide to SPSS: for version 16. Wadsworth: Belmont.

      [15] Kowitlawakul Y (2013). From novice to expert: Sharing professional development experience in different practice settings. Singapore Nursing Journal, 40, 43-46.

      [16] Lee V & Hoaken P (2007). Cognition, emotion, and neurobiological development: mediating the relation between maltreatment and aggression. Child Maltreatment, 12, 281-298. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1077559507303778.

      [17] LoBiondo-Wood G & Haber J (2002). Nursing research: methods, critical appraisal, and Utilization. Mosby, Philadelphia Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics. (2007). Children and Domistic Violence. Available at: http://www.pcbs.gov.ps (accessed 10 October 2013).

      [18] May-Chahal C & Cawson P (2005). Measuring child maltreatment in the United Kingdom: A study of the prevalence of child abuse and neglect. Child Abuse & Neglect, 29, 969-984. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2004.05.009.

      [19] Nayda R (2004). Registered nurses' communication about abused children: rules, responsibilities and resistance. Child Abuse Review, 13, 188-199. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/car.844.

      [20] Oweis A & Diabat K (2005). Jordanian nurses perception of physicians' verbal abuse: findings from a questionnaire survey. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 42, 881-888. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2004.11.005.

      [21] Paxson C & Haskins R (2009). Introducing the issue. The Future of Children, 19, 3-17. http://dx.doi.org/10.1353/foc.1350.0034.

      [22] Pearce J & Pezzot-Pearce T (2013). Psychotherapy of abused and neglected children. Guilford Publications, New York.

      [23] Peat J (2001). Health science research: a handbook of quantitative methods. Sage, London

      [24] Piltz A & Wachtel T (2009). Barriers that inhibit nurses reporting suspected cases of child abuse and neglect. Australian Journal of Advanced Nursing, 26, 93.

      [25] Polit D & Beck C (2010). Essentials of Nursing Research: Appraising Evidence for Nursing Practice (7th Ed.). Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, China.

      [26] Powell C (2007). Safeguarding children and young people: a guide for nurses and midwives. Open University Press, England.

      [27] Reijneveld S, de Meer G, Wiefferink C, & Crone M (2008). Detection of child abuse by Dutch preventive child-healthcare doctors and nurses: Has it changed? Child Abuse & Neglect, 32, 831-837. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2007.09.014.

      [28] Ryan B (2003). Do you suspect child abuse? RN, 66, 73-77.

      [29] Shukri R (2005). Status of nursing in the Arab world. Ethnicity & disease, 15, S1-88-89.

      [30] Sidebotham P, Biu T & Goldsworthy L (2007). Child protection procedures in emergency departments. Emergency Medicine Journal, 24, 831-835. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/emj.2007.051011.

      [31] Starling S, Heisler K, Paulson J & Youmans E (2009). Child Abuse Training and Knowledge: A National Survey of Emergency Medicine, Family Medicine, and Pediatric Residents and Program Directors. Pediatrics, 123, e595-e602. http://dx.doi.org/10.1542/peds.2008-2938.

      [32] Sweileh W, Zyoud S, Sawalha A, Abu-Taha A, Hussein A & Al-Jabi S (2013). Medical and biomedical research productivity from Palestine, 2002 - 2011. BMC Research Notes, 6, 41. http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1756-0500-1186-1141.

      [33] Thurston C (2006). Child abuse: recognition of causes and types of abuse. Practice Nurse, 31, 51-56.

      [34] Tomison A (2007). Overcoming structural barriers to the prevention of child abuse and neglect: Melbourne: Australian Institute of Family Studies.

      [35] Watts-English T, Fortson B, Gibler N, Hooper S & De Bellis M (2006). The psychobiology of maltreatment in childhood. Journal of Social Issues, 62, 717-736. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4560.2006.00484.x.

      [36] Wilson K & James A (2002). The child protection handbook. Edinburgh: Baillière Tindall.

      [37] World Health Organization (2009). Child maltreatment. Available at: http://www.euro.who.int/violenceinjury/violence/20051125_1 (accessed 20 December 2013).

      [38] Yang S (2009). Cane of love: parental attitudes towards corporal punishment in Korea. British Journal of Social Work, 39, 1540-1555. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcn034.

      [39] Young, W & Shami S (1997). Anthropological approaches to the Arab family. Journal of Comparative family studies, 28, 1-13.

  • Downloads

  • How to Cite

    Saifan, A., Alrimawi, I. A., & Bashaireh, I. (2015). Nurses’ perceptions about child abuse. International Journal of Advanced Nursing Studies, 4(1), 30-37. https://doi.org/10.14419/ijans.v4i1.3858