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Signs of Child
Abuse
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Child abuse protection in our society is the
duty, official or otherwise, for all adults. The responsibility
of child abuse protection and keeping children safe from harm
is especially relevant for those who work in a field that has
direct contact with children. This is an onerous task. It is
made particularly difficult because it can be very hard for the
untrained or unperceptive eye to detect what is going on in the
life of children. Nevertheless there are signs of child abuse
and it is helpful for any responsible adult to know what they
are. If there is some awareness of child abuse but a person is
not sure they should discuss the matter with professionals that
can be found in relevant government departments or
agencies.
There are a number of indicative
factors that may alert a person to the possibility that child
abuse is occurring. These signs include physical and
behavioural factors. The presence of one or more of these signs
need not necessarily mean that child abuse is occurring. It is
important to take in to account the whole family situation and
other factors that may be impacting on a child. When weighing
up the circumstances it is helpful to take in to account risk
factors which may include the social and geographical isolation
of the child, violence within the family and the presence of
physical and mental issues with family members of the
child.
Signs of child abuse can include
physical appearance of a child or the circumstances occurring
in a child's life zone. A child may appear to be in a
physically poor condition such as being unwashed, underweight,
tired, poor complexion and hair colour or unhappy. They may
have physical problems that appear as though they have not been
treated. The child may have various sore, nappy rash, urine
scalds and unattended dental issues. The child's hygiene level
may be low.
In more serious cases there may
be more obvious physical signs. This can include bruises;
lacerations and welts to various parts of the body, seen and
hidden. This might even extend to broken bones and fractures.
Note even adult bites and scratches. A child's eyes may be
indicative of abuse for example if they have pools of blood,
this might be a result of head injuries. A child might complain
of having abdominal pains and be vomiting. For someone who has
the reason for closer inspection vaginal mutilation should
sound alarm bells. Often if a parent or a child's carer is
questioned about physical signs of abuse explanations may
arouse suspicion.
Neglected children commonly lack
appropriate supervision. They might avoid going to school. They
often seek out adult attention. Note the behaviour of the
child. A neglected child may have challenging behaviours
including sucking rocks and head banging. It may be the case
that a child is noticed scavenging for food or stealing it from
other children or other places. Children subjected to abuse may
attempt to swallow poisonous substances, drink alcohol and take
drugs.
There may be signs of emotional
or sexual abuse. These factors may be more observable at a
psychological level. For physical abuse and neglect the
observations may be more apparent and it is important for
anyone working with children to be perceptive and alert to
picking these factors up for child abuse
protection.
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