Adverse childhood experiences, sentinel injuries, and effective clinical responses: Can we do better? – A Canadian perspective

Medically minor abusive injuries, known as sentinel injuries, are often missed in clinical settings. Child physical abuse, which frequently presents with medically minor or no visible injury, is a common adverse childhood experience (ACE). Practitioners are not typically trained to consider the incr...

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Main Authors: Megan Cooney, Suzanne Kathleen Robinson
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2024-12-01
Series:Child Protection and Practice
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950193824000524
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author Megan Cooney
Suzanne Kathleen Robinson
author_facet Megan Cooney
Suzanne Kathleen Robinson
author_sort Megan Cooney
collection DOAJ
description Medically minor abusive injuries, known as sentinel injuries, are often missed in clinical settings. Child physical abuse, which frequently presents with medically minor or no visible injury, is a common adverse childhood experience (ACE). Practitioners are not typically trained to consider the increased risk of detrimental outcomes described with ACE exposures when young children present with sentinel injuries. However, these injuries may be the only visible signs that a young child is at increased risk of detrimental health, social, and behavioral concerns both imminently and over the lifespan. This Practice Perspective aims to describe common sentinel injuries, discuss why they are underrecognized by practitioners, and describe the clinical approach to assessing these injuries from a Canadian perspective. It will also discuss how improving recognition could decrease subsequent severe presentations with child maltreatment while also identifying children at risk for the detrimental outcomes described in adults with exposures to ACEs.
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spelling doaj-art-b2a53ea84e1641ffb3a86226b31fe1412025-08-20T01:54:54ZengElsevierChild Protection and Practice2950-19382024-12-01310005210.1016/j.chipro.2024.100052Adverse childhood experiences, sentinel injuries, and effective clinical responses: Can we do better? – A Canadian perspectiveMegan Cooney0Suzanne Kathleen Robinson1Corresponding author.; University of Manitoba, CanadaUniversity of Manitoba, CanadaMedically minor abusive injuries, known as sentinel injuries, are often missed in clinical settings. Child physical abuse, which frequently presents with medically minor or no visible injury, is a common adverse childhood experience (ACE). Practitioners are not typically trained to consider the increased risk of detrimental outcomes described with ACE exposures when young children present with sentinel injuries. However, these injuries may be the only visible signs that a young child is at increased risk of detrimental health, social, and behavioral concerns both imminently and over the lifespan. This Practice Perspective aims to describe common sentinel injuries, discuss why they are underrecognized by practitioners, and describe the clinical approach to assessing these injuries from a Canadian perspective. It will also discuss how improving recognition could decrease subsequent severe presentations with child maltreatment while also identifying children at risk for the detrimental outcomes described in adults with exposures to ACEs.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950193824000524
spellingShingle Megan Cooney
Suzanne Kathleen Robinson
Adverse childhood experiences, sentinel injuries, and effective clinical responses: Can we do better? – A Canadian perspective
Child Protection and Practice
title Adverse childhood experiences, sentinel injuries, and effective clinical responses: Can we do better? – A Canadian perspective
title_full Adverse childhood experiences, sentinel injuries, and effective clinical responses: Can we do better? – A Canadian perspective
title_fullStr Adverse childhood experiences, sentinel injuries, and effective clinical responses: Can we do better? – A Canadian perspective
title_full_unstemmed Adverse childhood experiences, sentinel injuries, and effective clinical responses: Can we do better? – A Canadian perspective
title_short Adverse childhood experiences, sentinel injuries, and effective clinical responses: Can we do better? – A Canadian perspective
title_sort adverse childhood experiences sentinel injuries and effective clinical responses can we do better a canadian perspective
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950193824000524
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