NRNP 6665 Discussion 2: Ethical and Legal Foundations of PMHNP Care

Child and Elder Abuse Reporting Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example

Child and elder abuse reporting constitute the steps taken by witnesses or the victims of abuse to report their experiences to legal authorities. The U.S. regulations require individuals to report suspected child abuse to local authorities, such as Child Protective Services (C.P.S.), while suspected adult abuse is reported to relevant authorities like the Adult Protective Services (A.P.S.) (Department of Children and Families, 2022). The C.P.S. and A.P.S. deal with abuse issues to facilitate justice and treatment of the victims, especially physical and psychological treatment. (Child and Elder Abuse Reporting Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)

Hupe, T. M., & Stevenson, M. C. (2019). Teachers’ intentions to report suspected child abuse: The influence of compassion fatigue. Journal of Child Custody, 16(4), 364-386. (Child and Elder Abuse Reporting Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)https://doi.org/10.1080/15379418.2019.1663334

Various studies examine the ethical and legal issues in reporting child and adult abuse. For instance, Hupe and Stevenson (2019) examined the influences of compassion fatigue on teachers’ decision to report child abuse to relevant authorities. The study involved a survey of 299 teachers and school administrators. The study results indicate that increased compassion fatigue was associated with the teachers’ increased negative attitude toward reporting child abuse cases. The teachers’ knowledge about reporting decreased with an increase in compassion fatigue. Hupe and Stevenson (2019) concluded that teacher compassion fatigue perpetuates child suffering and abuse. Notably, issues like compassion fatigue, secondary traumatic stress, job burnout, and knowledge about child abuse predominantly affect people’s ability to effectively report child abuse cases. These issues increase among individuals with low moral compasses, negatively impacting child development.(Child and Elder Abuse Reporting Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)

Mathews, B. (2019). A taxonomy of duties to report child sexual abuse: Legal developments offer new ways to facilitate disclosure. Child Abuse & Neglect, 88, 337-347(Child and Elder Abuse Reporting Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example).https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2018.12.003

The study by Mathews (2019) focuses on the legal foundations of child abuse reporting. The researchers explored the developments in legal duties for reporting suspected child abuse cases and the rationale justifying the obligations. They utilized criminal jurisprudence, public health law, and children’s rights and ethics to justify the duties to report child abuse cases. The findings indicate that individuals have seven legal obligations to report suspected child abuse cases. They include the obligations of all adults to report suspected cases of child abuse and report known offenses of abuse, especially sexual abuse. Besides, people in positions of authority and professionals dealing with child protection are also obligated to protect children from abuse. Other obligations are on people working in child and youth institutions, practitioners, and individual duties based on tort law. These legal duties focus on child abuse detection and prevention and should be embraced to help reduce child abuse cases within society.(Child and Elder Abuse Reporting Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)

Dow, B., Gahan, L., Gaffy, E., Joosten, M., Vrantsidis, F., & Jarred, M. (2020). Barriers to disclosing elder abuse and taking action in Australia. Journal of Family Violence, 35, 853-861(Child and Elder Abuse Reporting Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example).https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-019-00084-w

The study by Dow et al. (2020) focuses on the ethics of reporting elder abuse. The researchers aimed to determine the experiences of older people about elder abuse and the factors that make it challenging to report such cases. They conducted semi-structured interviews among individuals from Seniors Rights Victoria (S.R.V.) cases between 2012-15. The collected data was analyzed through analysis, with the findings suggesting that parental bond, shame, and stigma impeded reporting of elder abuse orchestrated by the victim’s older children. Most victims fear experiencing negative consequences for themselves and their children, including believing the abuse was not the offender’s fault. The adults maintain their efforts to protect their children irrespective of the abuse inflicted, causing significant moral decay and challenges in getting justice for the victims.(Child and Elder Abuse Reporting Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)

Lippy, C., Jumarali, S. N., Nnawulezi, N. A., Williams, E. P., & Burk, C. (2020). The impact of mandatory reporting laws on survivors of intimate partner violence: intersectionality, help-seeking and the need for change. Journal of family violence, 35, 255-267(Child and Elder Abuse Reporting Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-019-00103-w

The study by Lippy et al. (2020) examined the influence of mandatory reporting laws on the victims’ behaviors to seek justice. The study was based on a convergent mixed method approach involving 2462 survivors of elder abuse. The study results indicate that the mandatory reporting laws hinder the victim’s efforts to seek or receive help, with the situation worsening when the victims are forced to report the abuse. As a result, rigorous measures should be introduced to facilitate beneficial outcomes among adult abuse victims affected by the mandatory reporting laws.(Child and Elder Abuse Reporting Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)

Basically, the ethical and legal considerations highlighted in the summarized studies affect PMNHP roles by raising awareness among the nurses about the importance of reporting child and elder abuse cases. PMHNPs deal with many victims of abuse, hence should be aware of the moral and ethical obligations to report such incidences. For example, according to the Department of Children and Families (2022), Connecticut has established the Connecticut Statutes like C.G.A. § 53-21(a)(1) and C.G.A. § 53-21(a)(2) to protect minors from sexual and non-sexual abuse. Based on the statutes, PMHNPs should coordinate with C.P.S. and the community to facilitate reporting and protection of children from abuse. C.P.S. has the authority to put children to foster care or congregated care if they get abused or are at risk of abuse (Fong, 2020). Thus, child and adult abuse cases can significantly reduce through collaborations between the community, C.P.S., A.P.S., and PMHNPs.(Child and Elder Abuse Reporting Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)

References

Department of Children and Families (2022). Reporting Child Abuse. Connecticut State. (Child and Elder Abuse Reporting Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)https://portal.ct.gov/DCF/Mandated-Reporter-Training/Model-Policy-For-Reporting-Child-Abuse-and-Neglect

Dow, B., Gahan, L., Gaffy, E., Joosten, M., Vrantsidis, F., & Jarred, M. (2020). Barriers to disclosing elder abuse and taking action in Australia. Journal of Family Violence, 35, 853-861(Child and Elder Abuse Reporting Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example).https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-019-00084-w

Fong, K. (2020). Getting eyes in the home: Child protective services investigations and state surveillance of family life. American Sociological Review, 85(4), 610-638(Child and Elder Abuse Reporting Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example). https://doi.org/10.1177/0003122420938460

Hupe, T. M., & Stevenson, M. C. (2019). Teachers’ intentions to report suspected child abuse: The influence of compassion fatigue. Journal of Child Custody, 16(4), 364-386. (Child and Elder Abuse Reporting Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)https://doi.org/10.1080/15379418.2019.1663334

Lippy, C., Jumarali, S. N., Nnawulezi, N. A., Williams, E. P., & Burk, C. (2020). The impact of mandatory reporting laws on survivors of intimate partner violence: intersectionality, help-seeking and the need for change. Journal of family violence, 35, 255-267(Child and Elder Abuse Reporting Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-019-00103-w

Mathews, B. (2019). A taxonomy of duties to report child sexual abuse: Legal developments offer new ways to facilitate disclosure. Child Abuse & Neglect, 88, 337-347(Child and Elder Abuse Reporting Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example).https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2018.12.003

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/