P3 – explain the factors that would lead of suspicion of child
maltreatment or abuse:
P4 – explain appropriate responses when child maltreatment or
abuse is suspected:
In this assignment I will explain a range of factors that would lead of suspicion of
child maltreatment or abuse. I will also explain what response must occur when child
maltreatment or abuse is suspected.
One of the types of the maltreatment which could indicate the suspected child
maltreatment or abuse is the physical abuse. This could involve factors like bruising
and unexplained injuries. This is a clear indication that the child has been maltreated
or abused. There could also be other factors like soreness, infection but also
underweight. This indicates that the child is poorly treated and not looked after;
possibly treated that way on purpose.
Lastly, in the physical category the indication of maltreatment or abuse could show
the poor personal hygiene as it shows that the child haven’t been taught how to look
after their hygiene, this shows maltreatment as the parents have not been looking
after the child. The child might also be experiencing hunger which means that the
parents/whoever is looking after the child clearly don’t care about them.
Another type of maltreatment is emotional. Thus means that the child might have
abnormal behaviour on the usual basis. Typical factors are withdrawal, this indicates
that the child has been maltreated or abused because they have no wish to interact
with people which suggests that they’ve been treated in a wrong manner (maltreated
or abused). If things like that happen the child might feel aggression and distress due
to the things they have been through.
Contact with other people might make them into a position where they might not
understand if they should trust people or not. This means that in the contact with
people they might express aggressive behaviour due to the fear of being harmed
again. Other emotional factors like low self-esteem could indicate the maltreatment
or abuse the child has experienced. This could involve harassment a bullying in the
past experiences. Other factors like reluctance to go home could indicate that the
child has been maltreated or abused.
Another type of maltreatment is the intellectual; this could involve factors like
developmental delay. This clearly indicates that the child is being maltreated
because the parent doesn’t spend any time with the child by helping them with their
homework or doing anything to help the child with studies. The developmental delay
states that the child is not being looked after properly and it also suggests that the
parents are not interested in the school progress of the child. This indicates a
maltreatment or child abuse as the parents don’t take any notice about the child’s
education suggesting that they might not necessary take into account other factors
e.g. have they brushed their teeth (poor hygiene).