Child maltreatment is a global problem and a multidimensional phenomenon occurring in all social classes. This study depicts interprofessional collaboration associated with the detection of and early intervention in child maltreatment taking place in the family. The data were collected in a large Finnish city, Tampere (207 866 citizens). A survey was administered to employees in day care, basic education, social and health services, and police ( ). The results indicate that interprofessional collaboration associated with the detection of and intervention in child maltreatment was best accomplished by social service employees and police personnel. Employees in day care, basic education, health services, and police had little knowledge of the methods used in other units. The most support for collaboration was reported by employees in social services and day care. The results provide basic knowledge of interprofessional collaboration associated with child maltreatment between the agencies involved in the study. The research evidence can also be utilized in an international context when developing collaboration between different fields. 1. Introduction The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child [1] emphasizes the best interests of the child and his or her right to special protection. The convention is an effort to secure the child’s right to parents and family, but on the other hand, emphasis is laid on society’s obligation to offer the child protection and care if the child is being maltreated. Following the age definition laid out in the convention, the present study defined all human beings under the age of 18 as children. In this study, child maltreatment refers to physical and psychological abuse, sexual abuse and neglect occurring in the family, and living in the atmosphere of domestic violence. Different forms of maltreatment may appear either in isolation or in various combinations, and it is often difficult to make a distinction between the different forms of abuse [2–5]. Child maltreatment may vary in severity: it can involve any activity or lack of activity associated with a child or a child’s life circumstances resulting in a deterioration of the child’s life situation [2–4]. Child maltreatment is present in all societies, but due to different methods of recording statistics and differences in the detection of the phenomenon, there are no reliable and comparable figures on the incidence of child maltreatment. National assessments and comparisons in Western countries have been made, however [4]. In addition, comparison is made
References
[1]
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989.
[2]
C. Djeddah, P. Facchin, C. Ranzato, and C. Romer, “Child abuse: current problems and key public health challenges,” Social Science and Medicine, vol. 51, no. 6, pp. 905–915, 2000.
[3]
E. Paavilainen and A. Flinck, “Identification of and intervention in child maltreatment. A clinical practice guideline,” Nursing Research Foundation, 2008, http://www.hotus.fi/system/files/Child_maltreatment_identification_ENG.pdf.
[4]
R. Gilbert, C. S. Widom, K. Browne, D. Fergusson, E. Webb, and S. Janson, “Burden and consequences of child maltreatment in high-income countries,” The Lancet, vol. 373, no. 9657, pp. 68–81, 2009.
[5]
R. Tenney-Soeiro and C. Wilson, “An update on child abuse and neglect,” Current Opinion in Pediatrics, vol. 16, no. 2, pp. 233–237, 2004.
[6]
C. Greeley, “The future of child maltreatment prevention,” Pediatrics, vol. 123, no. 3, pp. 904–905, 2009.
[7]
N. Ellonen, J. K？？ri？inen, V. Salmi, and H. Sariola, “Violence against children and adolescents in Finland,” National Research Institute Research of Legal Policy Communications no. 87., Police College of Finland Reports no. 71. 2008, http://www.optula.om.fi/44610.htm.
[8]
Lepist？, S, T. Luukkaala, and E. Paavilainen, “Witnessing and experiencing domestic violence: a descriptive study of adolescents,” Scandinavian Journal of Caring Science, vol. 25, no. 1, pp. 70–80, 2011.
[9]
H. Cleaver and S. Walker, “From policy to practice: the implementation of a new framework for social work assessments of children and families,” Child & Family Social Work, vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 81–90, 2004.
[10]
M. Afza, S. Wardle, and L. Light, “Child protection issues: an audit of general practitioners in a primary care trust,” Child Abuse Review, vol. 16, no. 4, pp. 268–273, 2007.
[11]
A. F. G. Goebbels, J. M. Nicholson, K. Walsh, and H. De Vries, “Teachers’reporting of suspected child abuse and neglect: behaviour and determinants,” Health Education Research, vol. 23, no. 6, pp. 941–951, 2008.
[12]
B. L. Green, A. Rockhill, and S. Burrus, “The role of interagency collaboration for substance abusing families involved with child welfare,” Child Welfare, vol. 87, no. 1, pp. 29–61, 2008.
[13]
“Safeguarding children,” The 3rd Joint Chief Inspectors’ Report on Arrangements to Safeguard Children, 2008, http://www.safeguardingchildren.co.uk/.
[14]
A. Watkin, S. Lindqvist, J. Black, and F. Watts, “Report on the implementation and evaluation of an interprofessional learning programme for inter-agency child protection teams,” Child Abuse Review, vol. 18, no. 3, pp. 151–167, 2009.
[15]
A. Xyrichis and K. Lowton, “What fosters or prevents interprofessional teamworking in primary and community care? A literature review,” International Journal of Nursing Studies, vol. 45, no. 1, pp. 140–153, 2008.
[16]
M. A. Cerezo and G. Pons-Salvador, “Improving child maltreatment detection systems: a large-scale case study involving health, social services, and school professionals,” Child Abuse and Neglect, vol. 28, no. 11, pp. 1153–1169, 2004.
[17]
J. Molyneux, “Interprofessional teamworking: what makes teams work well?” Journal of Interprofessional Care, vol. 15, no. 1, pp. 29–35, 2001.
[18]
Unicef, “Child poverty in perspective: an overview of child well-being in rich countries,” Report Card 7, Unicef Innocenti Research Centre, Italy, 2007, http://www.unicef.org/media/files/ChildPovertyReport.pdf.
[19]
M. L. Clarke, “Out of the wilderness and into the fold: the school nurse and child protection,” Child Abuse Review, vol. 9, no. 5, pp. 364–374, 2000.
[20]
L. Little and G. K. Kantor, “Using ecological theory to understand intimate partner violence and child maltreatment,” Journal of Community Health Nursing, vol. 19, no. 3, pp. 133–145, 2002.
[21]
K. F. Gaffney, B. Barndt-Maglio, S. Myers, and S. J. Kollar, “Early clinical assessment for harsh child discipline strategies,” The American Journal of Maternal Child Nursing, vol. 27, no. 1, pp. 35–40, 2002.
[22]
American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Child Abuse and Neglect, “When inflicted skin injuries constitute child abuse,” Pediatrics, vol. 110, no. 3, pp. 644–645, 2002.
[23]
W. M. Marijcke and K. D. Browne, “Identifying abused children using assessments and observations in the classroom: a preliminary study,” Child Abuse Review, vol. 12, no. 5, pp. 315–334, 2003.
[24]
M. McAllister, “Domestic violence: a life-span approach to assessment and intervention,” Primary Care Practice, vol. 4, no. 2, pp. 174–189, 2000.
[25]
D. Banks, A. L. Hazen, J. H. Coben, K. Wang, and J. D. Griffith, “Collaboration between child welfare agencies and domestic violence service providers: relationship with child welfare policies and practices for addressing domestic violence,” Children and Youth Services Review, vol. 31, no. 5, pp. 497–505, 2009.
[26]
D. D'Amour, M. Ferrada-Videla, L. S. M. Rodriguez, and M. D. Beaulieu, “The conceptual basis for interprofessional collaboration: core concepts and theoretical frameworks,” Journal of Interprofessional Care, vol. 19, no. 1, pp. 116–131, 2005.
N. Burns and S. Grove, The Practice of Nursing Research. Conduct, Critique and Utilization, Elsevier Saunders, St. Luis, Miss, USA, 5th edition, 2005.
[29]
H. Rae, K. McKenzie, and G. Murray, “Health care workers' knowledge of current child protection legislation and child discipline practices,” Child Abuse Review, vol. 19, no. 4, pp. 259–272, 2010.
[30]
A. ？deg？rd, “Time used on interprofessional collaboration in child mental health care,” Journal of Interprofessional Care, vol. 21, no. 1, pp. 45–54, 2007.
[31]
A. A. Chanmugan, “Qualitative study of school social workers' clinical and professional relationships when reporting child maltreatment,” Children & Schools, vol. 31, no. 3, pp. 145–161, 2009.
[32]
T. Morrison, “The strategic leadership of complex practice: opportunities and challenges,” Child Abuse Review, vol. 19, no. 5, pp. 312–329, 2010.
[33]
T. Sanders and C. Cobley, “Identifying non-accidental injury in children presenting to A&E departments: an overview of the literature,” Accident and Emergency Nursing, vol. 13, no. 2, pp. 130–136, 2005.
[34]
D. S. Ziegler, J. Sammut, and A. C. Piper, “Assessment and follow-up of suspected child abuse in preschool children with fractures seen in a general hospital emergency department,” Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health, vol. 41, no. 5-6, pp. 251–255, 2005.
[35]
K. McKenzie, H. Powell, and L. McGregor, “The impact of control and restraint training on nursing students,” Learning Disability Practice, vol. 7, no. 9, pp. 34–37, 2004.
[36]
HM Government, “Working together to safeguard children: a guide to inter-agency working to safeguard and promote the welfare of children,” 2010, https://www.education.gov.uk/publications/eOrderingDownload/00305-2010DOM-EN.pdf.
[37]
L. Bunting, A. Lazenbatt, and I. Wallace, “Information sharing and reporting systems in the UK and Ireland: professional barriers to reporting child maltreatment concerns,” Child Abuse Review, vol. 19, no. 3, pp. 187–202, 2010.
[38]
Child Welfare Act 683/1983, 417/2007.
[39]
K. Holm and J. G. Llewellyn, Nursing Research for Nursing Practice, W. B. Saunders, Philadelphia, Pa, USA, 1986.
