Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2016 Sep 22;16(1):1006.
doi: 10.1186/s12889-016-3562-3.

Violence against children in Latin America and Caribbean countries: a comprehensive review of national health sector efforts in prevention and response

Andrea L Wirtz  1 , Carmen Alvarez  2 , Alessandra C Guedes  3 , Luisa Brumana  4 , Cecilie Modvar  4 , Nancy Glass  2
Affiliations

Violence against children in Latin America and Caribbean countries: a comprehensive review of national health sector efforts in prevention and response

Andrea L Wirtz et al. BMC Public Health. .

Abstract

Background: Violence against children (VAC) remains a global problem. The health sector has an opportunity and responsibility to be part of the multi-sector collaboration to prevent and respond to VAC. This review aimed to assess the health sector's response to VAC among Latin American & Caribbean (LAC) countries, particularly as it relates to physical violence, sexual violence, and neglect.

Method: National protocols for the identification and provision of health care to child survivors of violence, abuse and neglect were solicited in partnership with UNICEF and PAHO/WHO country offices within the LAC region. A parallel systematic review was undertaken in January 2015 to review studies published in the last 10 years that describe the regional health sector response to VAC.

Results: We obtained health sectors guidelines/protocols related to VAC from 22 of 43 (51 %) countries and reviewed 97 published articles/reports that met the review inclusion criteria. Country protocols were presented in Spanish (n = 12), Portuguese (n = 1), and English (n = 9). Thematic areas of country protocols included: 1) identifying signs and symptoms of VAC, 2) providing patient-centered care to the victim, and 3) immediate treatment of injuries related to VAC. The systematic review revealed that health professionals are often unaware of national protocols and lack training, resources, and support to respond to cases of VAC. Further, there is limited coordination between health and social protection services.

Conclusions: VAC remains an international, public health priority. Health professionals are well-positioned to identify, treat and refer cases of VAC to appropriate institutions and community-based partners. However, poor protocol dissemination and training, limited infrastructure, and inadequate human resources challenge adherence to VAC guidelines.

Keywords: Caribbean; Health system; Latin America; Violence against children.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
PRISMA flow diagram
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Krug EG, Mercy JA, Dahlberg LL, Zwi AB. The world report on violence and health. Lancet. 2002;360(9339):1083–1088. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(02)11133-0. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Leeb RT, Lewis T, Zolotor AJ. A review of physical and mental health consequences of child abuse and neglect and implications for practice. Am J Lifestyle Med. 2011;5(5):454–468. doi: 10.1177/1559827611410266. - DOI
    1. United Nations Children's Fund . Hidden in Plain Sight: A statistical analysis of violence against children. New York: UNICEF; 2014.
    1. Campbell JC, Lewandowski LA. Mental and physical health effects of intimate partner violence on women and children. Psychiatr Clin N Am. 1997;20(2):353–374. doi: 10.1016/S0193-953X(05)70317-8. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Heinemann A, Verner D. Crime and violence in development: A literature review of Latin America and the Caribbean. World Bank Policy Research Working Paper 2006 (4041). http://elibrary.worldbank.org/doi/abs/10.1596/1813-9450-4041. - DOI

LinkOut - more resources