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Child neglect leads to developmental delays and long-term health issues. School nurses can help by using family-centered approaches and teamwork to support at-risk families.
Area of Science:
- Child development
- Pediatric nursing
- Family systems theory
Context:
- Child neglect is a significant public health issue with severe developmental and long-term consequences.
- Neglected children exhibit delays in mental, motor, linguistic, and social skills.
- Consequences include personality disorders, sleep disturbances, and increased risk of suicide attempts.
Purpose:
- To present an approach for school nurses to support families with neglected children.
- To highlight the importance of family-centered interventions in addressing child neglect.
- To emphasize the role of positive attributes and respect in working with at-risk families.
Summary:
- The study outlines an approach for school nurses using the Calgary Family Assessment Model and a model for disadvantaged families.
- It recommends nurses focus on positive family attributes, respect family values, and avoid judgment.
- Teamwork is crucial for nurses to effectively support families and prevent further neglect.
Impact:
- This approach can improve the health and well-being of neglected children.
- It empowers school nurses to provide effective, empathetic care to vulnerable families.
- Adopting a strengths-based, collaborative approach can mitigate the risks associated with child neglect.
Abstract:
Neglect is seen as a chronically insufficient quantitative or qualitative response towards a child's physical needs. Neglected children often demonstrate considerable developmental delay, manifested through deficits in their mental, motor, linguistic and/or social skills. Neglect can carry profound consequences for the children who are the victims. Some of the children suffer diverse types of long term sequelae. They display personality disorders, sleep disturbances, suicidal tendencies or attempts, and they are runaways. The problem of neglect is associated with several factors; it is a multi-factorial phenomenon. The importance of intervening with these children's families in order to improve the overall health of the children is an essential element in the role of the school nurse. The author developed an approach towards families with neglected children based upon the Calgary Family Assessment Model (1984) and the model for care of disadvantaged families designed by Thibaudeau and Reidy (1982). The author recommends that nurses, working with negligent families, look for the positive attributes of family members. Too often, health professionals only look for the negative. It is important that nurses accept the values of each family. The attitude of the nurse should be one of respect and confidence, not one of judging or working against the family value system. The importance of team work can not be overemphasized. It is difficult for a nurse to be alone in front of passive families who do not recognize their own negligence. They need a team able to understand the problems and formulate new strategies. A discouraged professional person leads to the risk of multiplying the forms of negligence.