Abuse Case Management Research Articles

A Study on the Attributes and Interv ention Measures of Child Abuse Case Management Subjects

A Study on the Attributes and Interv ention Measures of Child Abuse Case Management Subjects

아동학대 사례관리 강화방안에 대한 탐색적 연구

The aim of this study is to explore integrated support services for abused children and their families, emphasizing the distinctiveness of child abuse case management. It seeks to enhance practice at a time when child protection agencies are in the process of transitioning into case management entities. To achieve this objective, individual and focus group interviews were conducted, drawing on recommendations from academic and field experts, and informed by extensive reviews of domestic and international literature as well as insights from child protection agencies. The study's analysis revealed the imperative and significance of adopting a family-centered approach that prioritizes family recovery and empowerment services within the context of child abuse case management. This approach takes into consideration the safety and needs of abused children. Furthermore, to ensure effective management of child abuse cases in the future, there is a vital need to enhance teamwork among child protection teams and specialized child protection agencies. Additionally, systematic efforts should be made by child protection agencies to support the child's adaptation and potential return to the original family, even in cases of separation. Based on these findings, the study delves into practical and policy measures to strengthen child abuse case management effectively.

아동학대 대응체계 변화에 따른 아동보호전문기관의 심층사례관리 과제

This study was conducted for the purpose of exploring the current case management performance of child protection agencies after the publicization of the child abuse response system, and finding the future direction as a specialized agency for in-depth child abuse case management. To this end, from July to September in 2021, we conducted individualized in-depth interviews with five public officials in charge of child abuse investigation. The interview questions were about experiences of cooperation between public child protection sector and child protection agencies, expectations of child protection agencies’ role as an in-depth child abuse case management institution, and future tasks for in-depth case management agencies. As a result of the analysis, study participants who represent the public sector expressed various concerns and expectations about the in-depth child abuse case management of the child protection agencies, and suggested the practice competencies and environmental conditions necessary for a successful transition to the in-depth case management institution. Based on the results of the study, the practice competencies and policy strategies necessary for the development of child protection agencies’ in-depth cases management institution were proposed as implications of the study.

Effectiveness of simulation-based education on nursing students’ professional knowledge, attitude and self-confidence in handling child abuse cases

AimThis study aimed to enhance nursing students’ professional knowledge, attitudes and self-confidence in handling child abuse cases through a Child Abuse Simulation-Based Education (CASE). BackgroundGiven that nursing students seldom learn about child abuse case management in textbooks, simulation-based education could assist them in appropriately handling child abuse cases when they become nurses. DesignUsing a quasi-experimental design. Methods190 nurses enrolled in a night school in-service program at a Taiwanese university were recruited for this study. Ninety-four nurses in the experimental group took a simulation-based education on child abuse while 96 nurses in the contrast group took a general nursing course. The pretest and posttest professional knowledge, attitudes and self-confidence of both groups were analyzed using generalized estimating equations in SPSS V22 software. ResultsFollowing the introduction of the CASE course, the experimental group’s posttest professional knowledge, attitudes and self-confidence in handling child abuse cases were higher than those of the contrast group (p < .001). Further analysis showed that professional knowledge increased with tenure, positivity in attitude increased with clinical ladder rating and male nurses were more confident than female nurses when handling child abuse cases. ConclusionsBased on the results, this study proposes recommendations for implementing child abuse simulation-based education for new nurses and those undergoing continuing education.

A regional multidisciplinary network enhances child abuse case management

We previously reported an inadequate response to intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) cases under 24 months of age in Yokohama from 2011 to 2013. Hence, it is very important to evaluate how the establishment of a regional multidisciplinary network for child abuse affects the response to ICH cases in medical institutions. We conducted a questionnaire survey of ICH cases under 24 months of age from 2014 to 2016 using a regional multidisciplinary network for child abuse established in Yokohama in September 2013. We investigated the patients' characteristics, examinations to identify inflicted injury, and reports made to the hospital-based child protection team (CPT) or regional child protective service (CPS), and compared the results of a previous study and the current study, which corresponds to before and after the establishment of the regional network, respectively. The total number of ICH cases was 50 in 3 years. The number of cases surveyed for covert fracture and fundus hemorrhage increased significantly after the establishment of the regional network (P = 0.0001 and P = 0.0182, respectively). The number of cases reported as suspected child abuse was 41 (82%) to the hospital-based CPTs and 27 (54%) to the regional CPSs. There were significant differences between before and after the establishment of the regional network regarding CPT (P = 0.0062) and CPS (P = 0.0215) reports. A regional multidisciplinary network can enhance response and cooperation to address child abuse. It deepens our understanding of such care and improves awareness by hospital personnel of child abuse.

Effect of behavioral health services and neighborhood disadvantages on recidivism: a comparison of mental health court and traditional court participants

This study investigates the impact of behavioral health services and neighborhood disadvantage on recidivism among offenders with mental illness in mental health courts (MHCs) and in traditional courts. Although treatment is believed to lead to reduced recidivism for offenders with mental illness, little research has been conducted with MHC participants. Furthermore, neighborhood disadvantages are known to influence recidivism generally, but environmental factors have not been examined in the MHC context. Data from the MacArthur MHC study were analyzed including 741 offenders with mental illness. Multilevel negative binomial regression was used to investigate individual and neighborhood level variances on recidivism and to control for the over-dispersion data. Neighborhood disadvantage data were obtained from the American Community Survey linked with residential data from participants. MHC participants received more behavioral health services of all types than the treatment as usual (TAU) group with the exception of substance abuse case management. However, MHC participants lived in the more disadvantaged neighborhoods compared to the TAU group. MHC participants receiving substance abuse therapy were more likely to be arrested compared to the MHC participants without this therapy. A significant effect of neighborhood disadvantage on arrests was found across all study models. Professionals should recognize the importance of issues related to treatment-related variables and neighborhood disadvantages to develop, provide, and implement innovative interventions for offenders with mental illness. Understanding behavioral health services and neighborhood disadvantage associated with recidivism can help to more efficiently target research, practice, and policy for offenders with mental illness.

The Case Management Approach to Protecting Older People from Abuse and Mistreatment: Lessons from the Irish Experience

The aim of this paper is to inform the development of social work practice and policy by applying a practice-based evidence perspective to the experiential knowledge of social workers responsible for managing cases of elder abuse in Ireland. The study adopted a qualitative descriptive research design. Semi-structured interview data were collected from a purposive sample of eighteen senior case workers and inductive thematic analysis was undertaken. The findings are presented according to three themes: elder abuse case management, practice strategies for overcoming challenges and augmenting protective practice. By examining practice in the context of wider socio-political and legislative contexts, the paper provides learning in key areas for the protection of older people. The challenges to case management practice and the strategies employed to respond to these challenges are discussed in terms of adult protective service policy development and its relationship to practice. While recognising the imperative to respect a client's right to self-determination, increased statutory authority for the duty of the state to protect older people from abuse as well as the role of the case worker to act on behalf of the state to implement protective interventions is important for the future development of the service.

A randomized controlled trial of consensus-based child abuse case management

Objective This study evaluates the effects of expert-assisted child abuse and neglect case management in the German child welfare and healthcare system as perceived by the case workers themselves. Methods Case workers with different professions (social workers, counselors, clinic-based and office-based psychotherapists, and physicians) participated in the study. They were responsible for 80 child protection cases which were enrolled for the study and randomly assigned either to expert-assisted case management or to case management as usual. The sample represented a broad range of child protection problems with alleged or confirmed physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse and/or neglect. The victims were between 0 and 18 years of age. The intervention group received two to six case review sessions provided by child protection experts from outside of the case workers’ own institution within 6 months after referral of the case. The case workers’ satisfaction with the perceived degree of child protection, their level of certainty in the process of investigation, risk assessment and intervention planning, the quality of inter-institutional communication, and the involvement of children and families were evaluated. Results Overall, only few between-group differences indicated effects of the intervention program. There was a statistical tendency toward more satisfaction with the perceived degree of child protection in the intervention group. Certainty in the estimation of suspected child abuse decreased significantly in the intervention group, compared with the control group, whereas certainty with respect to intervention planning increased. There were no group differences in the estimation of inter-institutional communication. Case workers in the intervention reported significantly fewer legal prosecutions of the perpetrators than case workers without expert assistance. However, the involvement of children in planning the interventions was significantly lower in the intervention group. Conclusions Expert-assisted case management may change the case workers’ perception of the evidence for abuse and guide their interventions to provide child protection. Modifications of the method should consider improved participation of the child.

Perceptions about services and dropout from a substance abuse case management program

AbstractThis article uses event history analysis to examine certain determinants of dropout from a case management program that serves homeless adults with substance abuse problems. The examined determinants are perceptions of conventional treatment services: (a) client perceptions concerning the value of the conventional services that case managers help them to obtain, (b) the views of use services held by social contacts, and (c) client perceptions of the legitimacy of conventional services. The findings, some of which involve statistical interactions, suggest that clients drop out of case management services more slowly (a) when they favor pursuit of particularly efficacious conventional programs; (b) when they find conventional programs to be of low legitimacy; (c) when, under special conditions, they perceive that conventional services are less caring; or (d) when social contracts do not pressure them. These findings generally imply that clients look to case management services when they are more skeptical about conventional services. The variables predicting dropout from case management poorly predict continuation in conventional substance abuse services, indicating that dropout is linked to perceptions of services in context‐specific ways. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comm Psychol 35: 583–602, 2007.

Polarity analysis in child abuse case management

Polarity analysis in child abuse case management