Abstract “In the U.S. alone, more than half a million reports of abuse against elderly Americans reach authorities every year, and millions more cases go unreported.” (www.helpguide.org/mental/elder_abuse_physical_emotional_sexual_neglect.htm) Our senior citizens eventually become feeble physically which means they are less likely to have the capability to fight off an attacker. Majority of elderly do not see, hear or think as soundly as they once had the competence to do, this leaves them vulnerable for immoral people to take full advantage of them. Elderly are being abused more than we know and often by those who are personably accountable for their care. Sadly, majority of the abuse comes directly from family members of the elderly patient. In 2010 according to research about ninety percent were family members of the person in need of care.
It is a elusive and often misdiagnosed form of abuse. Shaken Baby Syndrome is the leading cause of death in abused children. A paper published in 1962 examined symptoms in infants unrelated to an accident but caused by abuse. The author, C. Henry Kempe looked at “outward physical indications of injury, such as poor skin hygiene, multiple soft-tissue injuries, malnutrition, fractures, and a history of previous episodes suggestive of parental neglect or trauma” (Isser & Schwartz, 2004, p. 291). In 1972 and 1974 a pediatric radiologist named John Caffey looked further at
The Tragedy of Child Abuse A Child Called "It" is a real life story about a boy brutally beaten and starved by his mentally disturbed and alcoholic mother. Dave Pelzer was the third-born of five children (Ronald, Stan, Russell, and Kevin). His father was a firefighter and, according to Dave, his mother was originally a loving, kind, and wonderful person. This all changed when his mother began drinking and eventually became an alcoholic. Even though advocates against child abuse work diligently every day to put an end to child abuse, it is tragic because child abuse can cause physical and emotional distress along with many other factors and child abuse can lead to developmental issues and detachment from others.
But what truly causes it is a mystery that leaves scientists and doctors with just guesses and tests to do. Some people say that babies die of SIDS just from sleeping wrong. In 1994, the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) had a “Back To Sleep” campaign that told parents to always put infants on their backs when sleeping. After that, the rate of SIDS went down by more than 50% (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services). Even with that drop in the death rate, SIDS is still responsible for about 3,000 deaths per year (“Sudden Infant Death” 1621).
Each substance can cause severe and permanent damage to children before and even after birth. Researchers have found that these substances can cause low birth weight, premature delivery, fetal alcohol syndrome, mental retardation, learning disabilities, stillbirth, miscarriages, and under developed limbs. Many babies born to mothers that have abused alcohol and drugs while pregnant are born addicted to the substance and go through withdrawal symptoms after being born. Some women are able to quit using these substances when becoming pregnant but many women are not and need professional help to quit. Pregnant women face many barriers when trying to get help for their substance abuse problems.
Cocaine at that time affected 300 000 to 400 000 newborns in the united states alone in the 1990s (Schoenwolf et al, 2009). The problem still persists however. In some major cities in the united states, as many as 20% of babies are born to mothers who abuse cocaine (Preece and Edward, 2011). There are many ways in which abuse of cocaine can negatively impact an embryo and fetus during its development. One difficulty with researching this specific population is the ability to isolate cocaine as the sole teratogen.
* Physical neglect is the failure to provide for a child's physical survival needs to the extent that there is harm or risk of harm to the child's health or safety. Tennessee Department of Children’s Services receives over 37,000 reports of child abuse or neglect each year. More than 100 children are reported abused or neglected every day. (Department of Children's Services, 2012) Making the decision to report suspected child abuse may be difficult, however it is of great importance. “In most jurisdictions, child protective service (CPS) agencies rely on such reports to open investigations concerning possible child abuse and to begin interventions aimed at protecting the involved child or children, while possibly bringing the perpetrator into the criminal justice system.” (Carleton, 2006) For psychologists
In 1970-2000, there were significant changes in family life such as marriage rate fell by 40%, divorce rates doubled, cohabitation increased but 52% of them split up after having a child. Under these circumstances, child being abandoned or living without parenting increased rapidly. Gradually, broken families became broken society. According to the Britain and American research, children of separated families or been abandon are twice as likely to have behavior problems such as performing less well at schools, smoking, turn to drugs , do heavy drinking, relying in gun justice. They do whatever they want, such as thieving, committing crimes, but adults
In Hunter’s book, which I will be attaining most of my information, he explains the different areas being affected by this abuse which include physical, emotional, mental and spiritual. As adults they may attempt to find help only to receive misdiagnoses or neglect of the real issue. According to Prevent Child Abuse America approximately one in six boys are sexually abused before the age of sixteen. Also according to the American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress among 22.3 million children between the ages of 12 and 17 in the US, 1.8 million had become the prey of sexual offenders. Hunter describes sexual abuse as “any sexual act that an adult does to a child” (Hunter, 1990, p. 3).
Single Parents with Young Children Beckford, Martin “The Telegraph” Oct 10, 2008. In reviewing research from Martin Beckford, Social Affairs Correspondent with The Telegraph, I learned quite a lot of interesting information pertaining to the emotional problems children raised by single parents face. Research says that children from broken homes are five times more likely to develop emotional problems than those living with both parents. This could be true, due to the fact that parentless children, seem to act out more, when one or both parents are missing. The Office of National Statistics, interviewed parents, teachers, and children themselves, and found that many suffer from emotional problems such as depression, anxiety and aggression.