Year of publication / 2023

Child maltreatment and health disparity: A call to action

In this invited op-ed for Medical Journal of Australia’s Insight+ Dr Hannah Thomas, Dr Divna Haslam and Associate Professor Holly Erskine summarise the association between child maltreatment and mental health disorders and health risk behaviours.

They suggest these data require response on two fronts.

1. Enhanced trauma focused support for survivors of maltreatment across all levels of health care.
2. Significant investment in prevention and early intervention for all five types of maltreatment including integration of health and child protection systems, the provision of population-based parenting support, and the provision of targeted support for families at high risk

These recommendations are in addition to other social policy and economic changes.