Child abuse is an act of omission or commission to a child under 18years by caregiver or parent resulting in potential or actual harm

Child abuse is an act of omission or commission to a child under 18years by caregiver or parent resulting in potential or actual harm. (CDC,2016). There are types of child abuse, these are, physical, emotional, sexual, neglect and exploitation.Preschool are children between the ages of 3-4years, this is the age that they start with school, they come into contact with teachers, caregivers and other kids. They are vulnerable, some adults turn to take advantage of them. The form of abuse common with this age are sexual and physical abuse. Physical Abuse is when a parent or care giver physically causes non accident injury to the child by kicking, biting, whipping, striking, hair pulling etc. Sexual abuse is when an adult uses a child for sexual purposes by making a child view a sex act, show sex organs, Inappropriate sexual talk, Fondling, oral sex, penetration.(Child help, n.d.)
Some warning signs that may indicate child abuse are,
Visible and sever injury at different healing stage
Nightmares
Fear, withdrawn, depression
Afraid of parent and other adults
Difficulty sitting, walking
Torn bloody undergarments.
Some cultural variations of health practices that can be misidentified as child abuse are, parents refusing to send sick child to the hospital in the name of cultural believes, some cultures believe sickness are caused by evil spirit for that matter they pray when sick than seeking medical help, this can be identified as neglect which is a form of child abuse, in some cultures scarifications are made on the body and they apply herbal preparations, the trauma that they put the kids into through the process can be describe as child abuse.
In Illinois when one suspect child abuses of any kind you report it to the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) and they will conduct investigation. Nurses are considered to be mandatory reporters when you suspect any abuse you are mandated by law to report to the DCFS.
References:
CDC, (2016). Child Abuse and Neglect: Definitions. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/childmaltreatment/definitions.html.
Child help, (n.d.) What is Child Abuse. Retrieved from https://www.childhelp.org/child-abuse/
Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, (2017).Reporting Child Abuse and Neglect. Retrieved from https://www.illinois.gov/dcfs/safekids/reporting/Pages/index.aspx.