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. 2024 Jun 7:11:2333794X241245274.
doi: 10.1177/2333794X241245274. eCollection 2024.

Screening for Child Abuse in the Emergency Department of Academic Hospital Paramaribo in Suriname

Eeftinck Schattenkerk Ld  1   2 , Loos Mhj  1 , Schouten McM  2 , Cheuk-Alam I  2 , Bakx R  1 , Lissone Npa  2
Affiliations

Screening for Child Abuse in the Emergency Department of Academic Hospital Paramaribo in Suriname

Eeftinck Schattenkerk Ld et al. Glob Pediatr Health. .

Abstract

Background. Child abuse in Suriname has a prevalence between 58.2% and 68.8%. This prospective observational study evaluates the implementation of screening for child abuse at the Emergency Department (ED) of the Academic Hospital Paramaribo (AZP). Methods. Children (0-16 years) presenting with injury from 01-02-2018 until 31-08-2018 were eligible. Case-record-forms were completed. Multidisciplinary meetings were used to evaluate positive screened and admitted patients. Diagnostic accuracy was calculated and results were compared to retrospective data from 2016. Results. 3253 Children attended the ED. In 1190 (36.6%) children, the screening was completed. The screening was positive in 148 (12%); in 71 (6%) cases child abuse was confirmed. The sensitivity and specificity were 0.88 and 0.92 respectively, PPV 0.43, NPV 0.99. There was a significant increase of detected child abuse cases; 4.4% in 2016 versus 6% in 2018 (P = .04). Conclusion. Implementation of screening at the ED in the AZP increased detection of child abuse. To improve screening's accuracy, more education for healthcare professionals is pivotal.

Keywords: Suriname; child abuse; emergency department; screening.

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Conflict of interest statement

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Study procedure flow diagram after completion of the screening.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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