Understanding the symptoms of abuse and maltreatment and applying effective strategies for safeguarding children and young people
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tormenteddreamer98gmailcom (student)
Health and Social Care National Extended Diploma
Understanding the symptoms of abuse and maltreatment and applying effective strategies for safeguarding children and young people.
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contents page
Page 1- Title page
Page 2- Contents page
Page 3- Physical abuse - signs & symptoms
Page 4- Physical abuse - long & short term effects
Page 5- Emotional abuse - signs & symptoms
Page 6- Emotional abuse - long & short term effects
Page 7- Social abuse - signs & symptoms
Page 8- Social abuse - long & short term effects
Page 9- Intellectual abuse - signs & symptoms
Page 10- Intellectual abuse - long & short term effects
Page 11- Response action 1 and 2
Page 12- Response action 3 and 4
Page 13- Reference list
Physical Abuse – Signs and Symptoms
signs and symptoms of physical abuse and/or maltreatment can include:
bruising on an abnormal place on a child i.e. abdomen, back and buttock. Other places would be on the cheekbones and eye sockets as these are typical more difficult places to bruise.
Bruising on a child who may not be independently mobile, means that it is unable to have been done intentionally by the child themselves.
Multiple bruise or bruises in clusters, this would suggest that the thing that caused the bruise was repeated and therefore intentionally done by someone.
Bruises of a similar shape and size that frequently appear on the child victim. This again would suggest it was purposely done because each child falling over and bruising the same spot more than a few times is highly unlikely to be a coincidence.
Bruises on the neck that look like attempted strangulation of the child. This could have been done by the child or someone else, however strangulation is not something that can be easily accidentally done.
Bruises on the ankles and wrists that look like ligature marks.
Fabricated or induced illness. i.e. being forced to take medication/substances that can harm the child.
Shaking young children and babies which can lead to non-accidental head injuries.
Physical Abuse – Long and short term effects http://www.clker.com/cliparts/x/3/A/F/L/6/sad-baby-hi.png
Long term effects could include weakened bones. This would be because over time, as a child may be subjected to physical abuse in the form of bruises and broken bones, this could lead to permanent damage to the bones once as the child develops.
Another long term affect could be due to poisoning, where a child has been the victim to a fabricated or induced illness. This could cause them to become very ill as the medication they’d take could destroy their internal organs, and affect them in adverse ways. This type of abuse could also lead ...
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Long term effects could include weakened bones. This would be because over time, as a child may be subjected to physical abuse in the form of bruises and broken bones, this could lead to permanent damage to the bones once as the child develops.
Another long term affect could be due to poisoning, where a child has been the victim to a fabricated or induced illness. This could cause them to become very ill as the medication they’d take could destroy their internal organs, and affect them in adverse ways. This type of abuse could also lead to death if not recognised or medical attention is not received in time for improvement.
A child may start flinching when touched unexpectedly by others, giving the indication that they have been hurt previously or they fear that you may hurt them. Changes in mood and personality can also occur as they may become more closed off to others for fear that they find out, or that they are judged. They may learn to respond to it negatively or without dramatic gestures meaning that they don’t speak up when hurt by others later on in life.
a child is abused in their childhood may think that it is a normal way of life and could reciprocate that when they begin to have children of their own, simply because they do not know any better.
Short term affects could include faltering in their mental health so they resort to self-harm and eating disorders to cope. They then may become depressed and even suicidal due to how they feel about the things that have/are happened/happening to them.
Emotional Abuse – Signs and Symptoms
Signs and symptoms of emotional abuse could include: Being overly affectionate towards strangers or people that they haven’t actually known for a very long time.
They might lack confidence or become very anxious and wary around people, whether they are strangers or not.
Don’t appear to have a close relationship with their parent or guardian. This might be evident when being taken to and from nursery or school.
Some children might be aggressive towards animals as a way to take out their frustration, because they think it normal to do so. It may also be a cry for help to show people that something isn’t quite right.
Struggle to control their emotions or frequently have extreme outbursts that seem to not have a reason.
They may lack in social skills or not have as many friends because they may find it hard to do so or have been told things to prevent them from socialising effectively.
Some children may play mind games with people, blackmail them or emotionally manipulate their relatives or peers.
Some children may even abuse substances as a way of trying to receive help, get away from their home life or even as an act to harm themselves. C:\Users\Tabitha\Desktop\man yelling at child.png
Emotional Abuse – Long and short term effects
As an effect of emotional abuse children can be at an increased risk of developing mental health problems. They may engage in self-harming, develop eating disorders and even suffer from depression and/or anxiety. This can then lead to more serious problems because if a child begins to feel this way for a long time they may also become suicidal and a risk to themselves.
Another long term effect is that over time the child may actually become restricted in their ability to express and feel a full range of emotions appropriately, as well as being able to control them. This can cause issues later on in life as functioning properly in society may be rather difficult for them.
Emotional abuse can cause a child to have a change in the way they might behave. They may not care about how they act or what could happen to them, this is known as negative impulse behaviour and can be dangerous if a child continues to think like this as they grow up. As a result of the abuse they may try to make people dislike them, this is called –self-isolating behaviour. This could be a desperate attempt to shield themselves from letting anyone get close to them and therefore at less risk of being harmed.
All of these can be short term or long term depending on the time frame, frequency and severity of the situation.
Social Abuse – Signs and Symptoms
Social abuse isn’t necessarily an act taken by parents or guardians of the children. A sign of this might be a child not having many friends or interacting with children socially, outside of school. The parent may be withholding them from being able to socialise and keeps them at home or with them at all times.
The more common form of social abuse falls under the category that is bullying and/ or harassment. Signs and symptoms of this includes: belongings getting mysteriously “lost” or damaged. This can be due to the child having had their items stolen from them.
physical injuries such as unexplained bruises, or broken bones that they can’t account for.
Sometimes children who are being bullied might be afraid to go to school, being mysteriously 'ill' each morning, or skipping school. They may also not do as well academically either. They may start asking for, or stealing, money (to give to a bully or because they have been threatened too.) Also, another effect of bullying is children may then begin bullying others.
being nervous, losing confidence, or becoming distressed and withdrawn. This can also cause them to start developing problems with eating or sleeping. C:\Users\Tabitha\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\INetCache\Content.Word\child alone on swing.jpg
Social Abuse – Long and short term effects
There are many long and short term affects of social abuse and bullying. Bullying can have devastating effects which can last into adulthood. At its worst, bullying has driven children and young people to self-harm and even suicide. Children and young people who are bullied are also more at risk of developing mental health problems, including depression and anxiety.
Other effect may include: they have fewer friendships or don’t seem to be accepted by their peers in class. They may also be wary and suspicious of others and untrusting. They are quite likely to have problems adjusting to school and don’t do as well as their peers academically.
Long term effects could include substance abuse as they develop it to be a coping mechanism. They could also become aggressive later on in life. This could also be a short term effect if children are influenced early on and begin to bully their classmates.
In 2015 alone there were almost 26,000 counselling sessions where children went because of or about bullying. C:\Users\Tabitha\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\INetCache\Content.Word\lots of blue people.png
Intellectual Abuse – Signs and Symptoms
Signs and symptoms of intellectual abuse includes: Parent’s withholding their children from attending school. This can lead to a lack in basic math and english skills.
That can then lead to a domino effect whereby that will cause them to struggle academically, and then left vulnerable to bullying by other children.
Another sign could be a developmental delay in the child. They may not be at the same level of reading or be able to understand things that a typical child of their age should be able to know.
Discrimination is another sign, a child may be subject to intellectual abuse if another person, adult or child, is purposefully rude or neglectful of a child due an intellectual disability.
This can also be in reverse where a child can be picked on or called names for being ‘too smart’. Labels can include ‘nerd’ and ‘dork’ and can come from anyone they may know, adult or not.
The overall unauthorised absence rate for year 2014 alone in the UK resided at the following percentages:
State-funded primary schools 1.9% State-funded secondary schools 5.3% SEN Schools 14.6%
Intellectual Abuse – Long and short term effects
Response action 1 & 2
Response action 3 & 4
Reference list
https://www.nspcc.org.uk/preventing-abuse/child-abuse-and-neglect/physical-abuse/signs-symptoms-effects/
http://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/CG89/chapter/1-Guidance#physical-features
http://www.helpguide.org/articles/abuse/child-abuse-and-neglect.htm
https://www.nspcc.org.uk/preventing-abuse/child-abuse-and-neglect/bullying-and-cyberbullying/
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/416343/SFR10_2015_text.pdf
by
tormenteddreamer98gmailcom (student)
