Increased risk for child maltreatment in those with developmental disability: A primary health care perspective from Israel.
Kids with developmental disabilities are flagged for suspected maltreatment six times more often in primary care—intensify your vigilance.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Enav et al. (2020) checked primary-care records in Israel. They looked for suspected child-maltreatment reports.
Kids with developmental disabilities were compared to kids without. The worse the disability, the closer they looked.
What they found
Children with developmental disabilities were flagged six times more often. The risk grew as disability severity grew.
The signal came from routine doctor visits, not special clinics.
How this fits with other research
Titlestad et al. (2019) saw the same pattern. They counted broader family adversity and found rates 28–60 % higher. The two studies line up like puzzle pieces.
Joëlle et al. (2022) went rural Tanzania. No formal reporting system exists there, yet families told of extreme stress and halted schooling. Their stories extend the Israeli numbers into a world without paper trails.
Gallagher et al. (2014) and Cacciani et al. (2013) shift the lens to parents. Child behaviour problems doubled maternal depression and tripled clinical distress. Maltreatment risk and mom’s mental load rise together.
Why it matters
Six-fold odds mean every routine visit is a screening shot. Watch for bruises, missed meds, or sudden behaviour spikes. Pair your behaviour plan with a warm hand-off to social work. Ask mom how she is sleeping. One extra question can open the door to support that lowers risk for the whole family.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: Child Maltreatment (CM) is a worldwide phenomenon. Literature suggests that children with disabilities are at increased risk for CM. However, limited information exists regarding if such increased risk is noted in community primary care clinics. AIM: To report on the incidence of CM in children with and without disabilities attending community primary care clinics. METHOD: This was a cohort study of children belonging to a Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) in Israel. The study group consisted of children with disabilities and the control group consisted of children without disabilities. Formal reports to child protection services, medical and sociodemographic data were extracted from designated documentation and medical records. RESULTS: The odds to be identified as suspected CM, after adjusting for sociodemographic variables, was 6.2 times higher among children with disabilities compared to children without disabilities and 5.0 times higher among children with severe vs. mild disability. CONCLUSIONS: Developmental disability is a risk factor for CM, and is noted even more seriously in community primary care clinics. CM positively correlated with the severity of disability. The presented data marks higher figures than previously reported, enhancing understanding of the scope of the problem and its relation to the type of organization being examined.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2020 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2020.103763