Understanding the Role of Forensic Nurses in Child Abuse and Neglect: A Comprehensive Overview

In this assessment we will discuss about forensic nurses and below are the summaries point:- Forensic nurses play a vital role in assessing and providing support to child abuse and neglect victims, requiring strong assessment skills and knowledge of legal obligations. Forensic nurses are responsible for documenting findings, performing physical assessments, collecting specimens, and conducting health promotion programs. Forensic nurses work in the community setting and are involved in prompt identification of harm, reporting to authorities, counseling young patients, and educating parents about child abuse and neglect indicators. They also intervene to prevent abuse through home visits and connecting families with community services.

Running head: ROLE OF THE FORENSIC NURSES
ROLE OF THE FORENSIC NURSES
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ROLE OF THE FORENSIC NURSES
Challenges faced by the forensic nurses in child abuse and neglect
Nurses working in the forensic department plays a crucial role in the detailed assessment of
children who had been the victims of neglect and child abuse. In order to impart justice to the
victims, the forensic nurses should not only possess excellent assessment skills but should also
be knowledgeable to the legal obligations of the nurses related to child abuse (Alsaif et al.,
2015). It the foremost responsibility of the forensic nurses to provide both physical as well as
emotional support to the victims, who had been suffering from both physical and emotional
trauma. A forensic nurse is entitled for the documentation of the findings, perform the physical
assessment, collection of the specimens like blood, skin or urine or other sample from the site of
the crime or the body of the patient. Conduction of the health promotion program is also another
role played by the forensic nurses.
Community setting
The vulnerable group of population are the children, the elderly people, women and those wwith
disability. They are susceptible to any kind of breaching of the rights.
Prompt identification of the harms and mandatory reporting to the authorities is one of
the prime tasks performed by the forensic nurses. It should be mentioned that children who had
been the victims of child abuse might suffer from both physical and emotional turmoil, hence
forensic nurse also provides psychosocial support or counsel the young patients (Lane ,2014).

ROLE OF THE FORENSIC NURSES
Parent education has been found to be one of the important part in health promotion
programs related to child abuse and neglect. Forensic nurses are entitled to educate the parents
about the identifiers of child abuse and neglect. Again nurses are liable to take a through
assessment of the history of the patient and should be able to concentrate on the several facets of
child abuse and neglect like the assessment of the appearance and the behaviour of the child,
interaction with other children (Lane, 2014).
Health promotion nursing intervention
Nurses consist of that groups of people who often have to work in close contact with
children who had suffered from violence and trauma. There is both legal and ethical obligation of
the nurses to intervene. As stated by Lane (2014), several strategies are taken up by the nurses in
response to child abuse. Nurses often make home visits for preventing abuse in the post natal
period, especially in those families, where there had been previous reports of child abuse and
violence. They are also likely to families associated with maternal age and poverty. Hence one of
the health advancement intervention is to inform the parents and the child, who is being abused,
regarding the symptoms of abuse and also inform them about any community services that has
to be contacted in case of any incidence of child abuse (Hornor et al., 2012). Child maltreatment
by the family members and often by the educational instructors are also common in certain
households. The occurrence of the child maltreatment will be controlled to a greater extent by the
health promotion interventions. The structural educational interventions has aimed to reduce the
risk of the child maltreatment by educating the new parents. According to (), parents play an
important role in preventing child sexual abuse. It is necessary to educate the parents that about
the 95 % of the child sexual abuse are done by the close family members and in many of the

ROLE OF THE FORENSIC NURSES
cases the parents do not pay heed to the grievances of the child or in some cases children become
hesitant to report such incident the parents partially due to shame or fear. Families require proper
education in order to identify the predisposing factors of the child abuse and the protective
factors that can stop the occurrence of child abuse (Chen and Chan, 2016). Anticipatory
guidelines has to be provided for the challenging behaviour and the several developmental
issues, increasing the occurrence of child maltreatment. It is also necessary to educate the parents
about the discipline and help them in stopping the corporal punishment with child friendly
strategies, advocate for the execution and the sustainability of the resources available in the local
community, encourage the families regarding the different community services that can be
referred to in times of need.
Several stakeholders needs to be approached for the health promotion intervention. The
interdisciplinary team that needs to be collaborated for the conduction of the health promotion
activities are- . A social worker, some other community nurses, a child psychiatrist and doctors
has to be included in the interdisciplinary team. Funding consists of an important part of any
health promotion program (Alsaif et al., 2014). Grants can be asked from the government or the
problems can be channelized to the government for grants by lobbying via influential leaders.
The programs can be held in schools or educational organisations or NGOs working against the
issue of child abuse and neglect.
Professional Nursing Organization
One of the organisation that can be helpful in this context is- Academy of forensic
nurses that helps in linking research to practice by the dissemination of educational and the
scholarship services to those affected by abuse (Academic of Forensic nursing, 2018). The

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nurses in this organisation are educated to provide appropriate care to the vulnerable population
of the society who are subjected to child abuse. They help in giving a voice to those children
who had faced injustice and fight for their justice. The nurses working in this organisation are
the torch bearers for improving and enhancing the forensic service. This academy aims to train
the nurses for the elevation of the care standards as well as to apply forensic science in global
nursing.
Recently, the organisation has conducted an international conference in Las Vegas, where
emphasis has been given on the topics like laws of health care, child rights and violence,
qualities and accreditation of the nursing standards.
Summary
Forensic nursing is evolving as a new discipline. With the increasing rates of crimes, the
accountabilities and the obligations of the forensic nurses are gradually increasing. Many settings
the forensic nurses plays a vital role in the promotion of the health program regarding child
abuse. Educators should be able to provide education to the parents regarding the assessment or
the physical examination of the child after the incidence of reported abuse, aiding the parents to
comprehend the behavioural difficulties of the child, who had been the victim of abuse, assisting
the family members in the identification of the triggering factors or the protective factor.
However the paper has also provided information about the nursing organisations like American
nursing Association and Academy of forensic nurses that help to provide advocacy to the
victims for improving their quality of life.

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References
Academic of Forensic nursing., (2018).About us. Access date: 2.2.2019. Retrieved from:
https://www.academyofforensicnursing.org
Alsaif, D. M., Alfaraidy, M., Alsowayigh, K., Alhusain, A., & Almadani, O. M. (2014). Forensic
experience of Saudi nurses; an emerging need for forensic qualifications. Journal of
forensic and legal medicine, 27, 13-16.
Chen, M., & Chan, K. L. (2016). Effects of parenting programs on child maltreatment
prevention: A meta-analysis. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 17(1), 88-104.
Hornor, G., Thackeray, J., Scribano, P., Curran, S., & Benzinger, E. (2012). Pediatric sexual
assault nurse examiner care: Trace forensic evidence, ano‐genital injury, and judicial
outcomes. Journal of forensic nursing, 8(3), 105-111.
Lane W. G. (2014). Prevention of child maltreatment. Pediatric clinics of North America, 61(5),
873-88.

ROLE OF THE FORENSIC NURSES
.
References
Academic of Forensic nursing., (2018).About us. Access date: 2.2.2019. Retrieved from:
https://www.academyofforensicnursing.org
Alsaif, D. M., Alfaraidy, M., Alsowayigh, K., Alhusain, A., & Almadani, O. M. (2014). Forensic
experience of Saudi nurses; an emerging need for forensic qualifications. Journal of
forensic and legal medicine, 27, 13-16.
Chen, M., & Chan, K. L. (2016). Effects of parenting programs on child maltreatment
prevention: A meta-analysis. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 17(1), 88-104.
Hornor, G., Thackeray, J., Scribano, P., Curran, S., & Benzinger, E. (2012). Pediatric sexual
assault nurse examiner care: Trace forensic evidence, ano‐genital injury, and judicial
outcomes. Journal of forensic nursing, 8(3), 105-111.

ROLE OF THE FORENSIC NURSES
Lane W. G. (2014). Prevention of child maltreatment. Pediatric clinics of North America, 61(5),
873-88.