Book Review
Child Abuse and Child Protection: A guide for Health Education and Welfare Workers
Chris Goddard
ISBN: 978-0-443-05431-0; 1996; 204 pages; Churchill Livingstone, Melbourne;
Robyn Nayda
Senior Lecturer and Child Protection Consultant, Division of Health Sciences, School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of South Australia, City East Campus, Adelaide SA
In current times where the issue of child abuse is consistently raised it is essential that those involved with children and child welfare are well-informed, and that their actions and practice are guided by experts with 'a child and family focus.
The previous lack of child protection guidelines for professionals has often resulted in confusion, non-reporting or inappropriate handling of child abuse and child protection issues. Australian health, education and welfare workers have long needed a text that provides, from an Australian perspective, information about child abuse, child protection and its processes.
The book begins by providing an historical perspective of child abuse. The reader is then led through a logical sequence of valuable chapters. The first few chapters allow the reader to become familiar with or confirm the definitions of abuse and to identify with child abuse as a significant problem with causes and effects.
The following chapters discuss the processes of suspecting and identifying child abuse, responding to the abuse, and the steps taken in child protection practice once abuse has been reported. The last few chapters deal with effective practice issues; the child's position in relation to abuse; and the need for child health, education and welfare workers to beware of their role in preventing child abuse.
Goddard has recognised that where child protection issues are concerned, professionals in different states of Australia have various roles. He uses a comparison of South Australia (mandatory reporting) to Western Australia (without mandatory reporting) to illustrate these differences and highlights the difficulties in establishing clear boundaries around child protection issues. A definite strength of the book is that it explores the issues from a broad yet comprehensive perspective and in doing this confirms that there are few black and white areas, but many shades of grey in child protection.
The book is very readable, easy to understand and interesting. It provides both relevant and current information for health, education and welfare workers who have involvement with children and child protection, and in this meets its aim. The value of the book is enhanced by the frequent inclusion of case studies and in particular an extensive coverage of the case of Daniel Varlerio. Goddard uses the case studies effectively to ground his discussion of the issues in reality. Suggested further sources of information have also been provided at the end of each chapter.
This book is not only an excellent reference source for those professionals whose work brings them into contact with children, and in particular abused children, it is also an excellent recommended reading for students of these professions.
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