Child Abuse in American Samoa Essay Example for Free

Child Abuse in American Samoa Essay Child abuse and neglect good novel can do countless things for its reader. It ignites curiosity, triggers emotions, expands knowledge and encourages life lessons while transporting eager minds to unimaginable places. Active readers are completely encouraged by these vibrations. However, untold tales can occasionally capture the oppressed narratives of others. The silent pleas of vulnerable individuals can tell a memoir of its own. One key issue is that of child abuse, which has the potential to rob children of the happily ever after that they deserve. The World health organization (2013) defines â€Å"child abuse† as a breach of a child’s basic human rights and encompasses a variety of unethical practices that damage the holistic welfare of a child. Al Dosari, Ferwana, Abdulmejeed, Aldossari and Al-Zahrani (2017) add that incompetent parents or caregivers are at fault and should be held accountable for their forceful and or negligent conduct towards a minor in their care, especially when the potential risk or traumatic event that the child was exposed to could have been avoided entirely. Paterson, Fairbairn-Dunlop, Cowley-Malcolm, and Schluter (2007) assert that abusive parenting is an issue that is limitless in scope and transcends every border, including factors such as ethnicity, nationality and generation. Child abuse occurs in various ways, but the result remains the same, serious physical or emotional harm. Physical or sexual abuse may be the most striking types of abuse since they often, unfortunately, leave physical evidence behind. However, physical abuse is commonly encountered among large families. Parents with either a lower level of education or no education at all, abuse children with good health status and with a significant association (Elsaied, Alsehly, 2017). On the other hand, psychological abuse and neglect are serious types of child abuse that are often more subtle and difficult to spot.Types of Child abuse physical A documentary was filmed following Samoan foster children in New Zealand. A scene in the film shows the consequences a boy faces after being caught attempting to run away from his foster home. The consequences he faced was not your typical western punishment. His foster mom did not ground him or send him to his room. Instead, she had every other boy in the foster home brutally beat him for at least two minutes. One key issue here is that of Physical abuse, it has the potential to injure and ultimately damage the growth and development of children. The Canadian Department of Justice (2012), defines child physical abuse as the involvement or the deliberate use of force on a child, that it causes injury to the child or the child may be at risk of injury. The force may include such acts such as smacking, punching, beating, shaking, kicking, biting, burning, shoving, choking, throwing, stabbing, grabbing or leaving a child in an undignified posture for a long period of time. These usually occur when a parent or a person in the position of responsibility, power or trust takes advantage of their child. The injury is considered abuse whether the person intended to hurt the child or not. Some of the physical signs of abuse would have clear warning signs, such as unexplained bruises, welts or cuts. According to Dr. Joseph A Zenel (2008), that if a child has more bruises, fractures, head trauma, or burns that would simply raise the suspicion of physical abuse (as cited in McNamara, 2008).While all children will take a tumble now and then, look for age-inappropriate injuries, injuries that appear to have a pattern such as marks from a hand or belt, or a pattern of severe injuries. Emotional/Psychological Sexual OtherPolicyWellbeing/symptomsCountry – what is American Samoan doing about the issue? References Elsaied, H., Alsehly, A. (2017). A study of child physical abuse. The Egyptian Journal of Psychiatry, 38(2), 120. J.N. Fishe (2016). Child Abuse and the Law. Rethinking the CAPTA Amendments. Vand Law Rev 1998;183. Fry, D., McCoy, A., Swales, D. (2012). The Consequences of Maltreatment on Children’s Lives: A Systematic Review of Data From East Asia and Pacific Region. Trauma, Violence Abuse, 13(4), 209-233. doi:10.1177/1524838012455873 Neela Dabir, Mohua Nigudkar. (2007). Child Abuse: Confronting Reality. Economic and Political Weekly, 42(27/28), 2863-2866. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.byuh.idm.oclc.org/stable/4419782 Paterson, J., Fairbairn-Dunlop, P., Esther, T. C., Schluter, P. J. (2007). Maternal childhood parental abuse history and current intimate partner violence: Data from the Pacific islands families study. Violence and Victims, 22(4), 474-88. Retrieved from https://search-proquest-com.byuh.idm.oclc.org/docview/208556625?accountid=9816 Xiangming Fang, Deborah A. Fry, Derek S. Brown, James A. Mercy, Michael P. Dunne, Alexander R. Butchart, Phaedra S. Corso, Kateryna Maynzyuk, Yuriy Dzhygyr, Yu Chen, Amalee McCoy, Diane M. Swales, The burden of child maltreatment in the East Asia and Pacific region, In Child Abuse Neglect, Volume 42, 2015, Pages 146-162, ISSN 0145-2134, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2015.02.012