NCJ Number
60916
Date Published
1976
Length
88 pages
Annotation
THIS SURVEY OF MEDICAL, FORENSIC, AND PSYCHIATRIC ASPECTS OF THE BATTERED CHILD SYNDROME (BCS) CONCLUDES THAT BCS DIFFERS SIGNIFICANTLY FROM NEGLECT AND GENERAL ABUSE, A DISTINCTION THE LAW SHOULD RECOGNIZE.
Abstract
THE SURVEY PLACES PARTICULAR EMPHASIS ON CANADIAN LAW AND RESEARCH. IDENTIFYING BCS SHOULD BE A MATTER OF MEDICAL DIAGNOSIS. WHEN AN INJURED CHILD IS EXAMINED, THE SYNDROME SHOULD BE CONSIDERED WHEN THE CLINICAL FINDINGS DIFFER MARKEDLY FROM THE HISTORICAL DATA SUPPLIED BY THE PARENTS AND WHEN CERTAIN SURFACE MARKS, SKELETAL INJURIES, VISCERAL INJURIES, OR INTRACRANIAL INJURY ARE FOUND. DESPITE RESEARCH AND EMPIRICAL FINDINGS WHICH ESTABLISH A CLEAR DISTINCTION BETWEEN BCS AND GENERAL ABUSE AND NEGLECT, CURRENT LAW COMBINES THE THREE SYNDROMES AND THEREFORE THWARTS EFFECTIVE INTERVENTION AND TREATMENT. LAWS SHOULD BE CHANGED TO EMPOWER MEDICAL PERSONNEL TO PROVIDE IMMEDIATE LIFE-SAVING TREATMENT WHENEVER THE BCS DIAGNOSIS IS MADE. SUCH LAWS WOULD BE ANALOGOUS TO MENTAL HEALTH LAWS PERMITTING INVOLUNTARY PSYCHIATRIC ADMISSIONS TO HOSPITALS. EQUALLY IMPORTANT AS THE MEDICAL AND LEGAL ASPECTS OF BCS ARE THE PSYCHIATRIC ASPECTS OF FAMILIES INVOLVED. PSYCHIATRIC LITERATURE INDICATES NO REAL DISTINCTION BETWEEN ABUSERS AND BATTERERS, BUT SUGGESTS THAT ABOUT 35 PERCENT OF THE BATTERING SITUATIONS ARE SUSCEPTIBLE TO TREATMENTS OTHER THAN SEPARATION OF THE CHILD FROM THE FAMILY. INTERVENTION STRATEGIES SHOULD FOCUS ON ANY OF FOUR AREAS: LIMITS ON BEHAVIOR, DAILY ROUTINES, GIVING OF CARE, AND 'ANCHOR POINTS' --DAILY ISSUES WHICH PROVIDE SAFE OUTLETS FOR AGGRESSION AND FRUSTRATION. BECAUSE BATTERED CHILDREN COME FROM FAMILIES AND WILL THEMSELVES FORM FAMILIES, TREATMENT OF THE WHOLE FAMILY IS NECESSARY TO INTERRUPT THE CYCLE OF CHILD ABUSE FROM ONE GENERATION TO THE NEXT. ILLUSTRATIONS, FOOTNOTES, AND BIBLIOGRAPHIES FOR EACH CHAPTER ARE INCLUDED. (CFW)