Child Abuse: The Health Perspective

Abstract

Current trends in nursing are concerned with providing holistic care and promoting health and healing (McMahon, 1991). Holistic care involves a multidimensional understanding of health that is concerned with physical, emotional, social and spiritual aspects of health. It is appropriate therefore to consider child abuse from a health perspective. Nurses and health visitors have a key role in work for health and child protection. This chapter discusses that particular contribution and provides information for nurses and health visitors in specific areas:

• Child abuse: definitional issues and epidemiology

• Health as a focus for child protection

• Empowerment

• A case study in an accident and emergency department illustrating four key points

• The professional framework: ethics and law

• The Children Act 1989 and Working Together