Early Childhood: Health and Safety

Neglect

________: the failure to provide for the basic physical, emotional, medical, or educational needs of a child or failure to protect the child from harm or potential harm.

Homeless children suffer more health problems than

________ children from low- income families who have homes.

Unintentional injuries are the leading cause of

________ childhood mortality in industrialized nations.

Respiratory infection increases the risk of

________otitis media, or middle ear infection, which causes hearing loss.

Chronic illnesses

________: illnesses that are long lasting, do not resolve themselves spontaneously, and in most cases can not be completely cured.

Child maltreatment

any act committed by a parent or caregiver that results in harm or potential harm to a child

Child abuse

deliberate and intentional actions and words that cause harm or potential harm to a child, whether the abuse is physical, sexual, or psychological

Child Protective Services (CPS)

often toll-free hotline, agency will investigate claims and determine whether there is enough evidence to support the allegation that a child has been maltreated or abused

Effects of maltreatment

• Mental disorders, drug use, suicide attempts, and so on

• Cognitive development

Children can be removed from the family if they are considered in imminent danger, or

services can be provided to the family to prevent further maltreatment if the child is not at imminent risk.

Homeless children spend their early years in

unstable, insecure, and unsanitary environments.

Factors that contribute to homelessness include

lack of employment opportunities, declines in public assistance funds, lack of affordable health care, domestic violence, mental illness, and addiction.

Government runs medical
programs to help

low-income groups including Medicaid and State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), for those who do not qualify for medicaid.

Reasons for socioeconomic disparities include

language and cultural barriers, and the need for more diversified education and multilingual providers

Poorer children are more likely than other children to have

chronic conditions and activity limitations, to lack health insurance, and to have unmet medical and dental needs. Issues can also stem prenatally

The lower a family’s
socioeconomic status,

the greater a child’s risks of illness, injury, and

death.

Parents often overestimate

children’s knowledge of safety rules

About 28% of U.S. infants and toddlers—32% of poverty-stricken children—

are not fully immunized

Some parents believe discredited media reports of

a link between vaccination and autism

Physicians recommend that young children receive a

series of immunizations to provide protection against 14 common diseases including measles, mumps, whooping cough, polio, and rubella (German measles)

Some chronic illnesses can be detected via

prenatally or through genetic counseling

27% of children in the United States live with

at least one chronic illness

Some chronic illnesses can appear

at any time in life

Because children are still growing, they are even more
vulnerable than adults to

environmental toxins

Some environmental hazards include

asbestos, household chemicals, lead, mercury, molds, pesticides, and secondhand smoke.

These chemicals are associated with

impaired brain development, lower IQs, behavior problems, infertility, birth defects, obesity and diabetes.