Impact of a Management Protocol on the Outcomes of Child Abuse in Hospitalized Children in Hong Kong

• NCJ Number: 215871
• Journal: Child Abuse & Neglect Volume: 30 Issue: 8 Dated: August 2006 Pages: 909-917
• Author(s): Anselm C. W. Lee; C. H. Li; K. T. So
• Date Published: August 2006
• Length: 9 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study examined the impact of a hospital management protocol on the outcomes of children hospitalized for suspected child abuse in a Hong Kong hospital.

Abstract

Results revealed that following the implementation of the management protocol, children hospitalized for suspected child abuse were subjected to significantly less investigations such as blood counts (86 percent before implementation versus 16 percent following implementation), clotting studies (75 percent versus 9 percent), and skeletal surveys (78 percent versus 6 percent). The average hospital stay declined from an average of 15.3 days to an average of 6.1 days. The findings also revealed that despite the drop in laboratory investigations and skeletal surveys, there was not a corresponding drop in the number of abuse cases substantiated or in the number of cases officially registered. Other findings indicated that the epidemiological characteristics of the children remained stable across the study period. Physical abuse was the most prevalent type of observed maltreatment and the biological parents were the typical abusers. The authors contend that the improvements observed following the implementation of the management protocol is a result of improved communications among the pediatricians, caseworkers, and the police. The research was retrospective and involved a review of the hospital records of children hospitalized for suspected child abuse during the 2-year period from 1994 through 1995 (before the management protocol was implemented) and during the 2-year period from 2002 through 2003 (after the implementation of the protocol in 1998). Variables under analysis included patient characteristics, the use of laboratory and radiological examinations, abuse substantiation, and official registrations; these variables were compared across the two study periods to determine the impact of the implementation. Specific data analysis techniques included the Fisher Exact test and student’s t test, which were carried out using the Statistics Package for Social Science (SPSS). Tables, references