3/4/2020 4 Child Abuse Nursing Care Plans - Nurseslabs - Page 4

4 Child Abuse Nursing Care Plans

By Paul Martin, BSN, R.N. - Updated on April 10, 2019

The term child abuse is used to describe any neglect or mistreatment of infants or
children including in iction of emotional pain, physical injury, or sexual exploitation.
Neglect or abuse is most often in icted by the child’s biological parents. Others who
have been implicated include foster parents, babysitters, boyfriends, friends, and
daycare workers. Nurses are legally and morally responsible to identify children who
may be maltreated and to report ndings to protect the child from further abuse.

Neglect is the most common form of abuse and may include deprivation of basic
physical or emotional needs: food, clothing, shelter, healthcare, education, a ection,
love, and nurturing. Emotional abuse stems from rejection, isolation, and/or
terrorizing the child.

Physical abuse may result in burns, bruises, fractures, lacerations, or poisoning.

Infants may su er from “shaken baby syndrome” with severe or fatal neurologic
injuries caused
by violent shaking of the infant. Signs of shaken baby syndrome include retinal and
subarachnoid hemorrhage. Signs of sexual abuse include bruising or bleeding of the
anus or genitals, genital discharge, odor, severe itching or pain, and sexually
transmitted diseases. A discrepancy between the nature of the child’s injuries and the
reported cause of injury is a frequent clue that abuse has occurred.

Nursing Care Plans

The major nursing care planning goals for the child experiencing abuse includes
ensuring adequate nutrition, safety of the abused child, relief from anxiety, improving
parenting skills and building parental con dence.

Here are four (4) nursing care plans (NCP) and nursing diagnosis (NDx) for child
abuse:

1. Imbalanced Nutrition: Less Than Body Requirements

2. Anxiety

3. Impaired Parenting

4. Risk for Trauma

 4 - Risk for Trauma 

Risk for Trauma

Risk for Trauma: The state in which an individual is at risk of accidental tissue injury
(e.g., wound, burns, fracture).

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May be related to

Characteristics of child, caregivers, environment.

Possibly evidenced by

Sexual assault of child

Evidence of physical abuse of child

History of abuse of abuser

Social isolation of family

Low self-esteem of caretaker

Inadequate support systems

Violence against other members of the family

Desired Outcomes

Child will not experience maltreatment or abuse by parents or other o enders.

Nursing Interventions Rationale

Assess the abuser for violent behavior
or
Provides information to determine
other abusive patterns, use of alcohol
warning signs of child abuse.
or drugs, or other psychosocial
problems.
Assess behavior of parents toward the
child, including responses to the child’s
behavior, ability to comfort the child, Reveals characteristics that may indicate
feelings, and perceptions toward the risk for abuse.
child, expectations for the child,over-
protective or concern for the child.
Maintain factual and objective
documentation of all observations, 
including child’s physical condition,
child’s behavioral response to parents, Provides information that may be used
health care workers, other visitors, in legal action regarding abuse.
parent’s response to child, and
interviews
with family members.
Communicate information and needs of
the child to those on the abuse team (or Provides care plan for the child
to new caretakers if the child based on the court decision to
being placed with a foster parent caretakers working with the family
or someone other than parents); based on the court decision for child’s
provide written instruction for care and care.
child’s needs.
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Instruct parents in identifying events Prevents further abusive behavior

that
lead to child abuse and in methods to
deal with behavior without harming the
child.
Inform parents of follow-up care and
needs of the child, need to
evaluate child’s progress.
Inform parents of child’s placement in
a foster home, allow them to meet and
speak to a new caretaker.
Inform of Parents Anonymous and
other child protective groups to
contact for assistance.
Initiate referral to a social worker,
public health nurse, psychological
counselor before discharge to home.
directed at the child.
Promotes emphasis on child’s care and
prevention of recurrence of abuse.
Prepares parents for court order of
alternate placement to ensure a safe
environment.
Provides self-help group activities,
information, and support based on the
type of abuse and parental needs.
Provides support to child and family,
and monitors behaviors following
discharge.

 4 - Risk for Trauma 

See Also
You may also like the following posts and care plans:

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Paul Martin, BSN, R.N.

Paul Martin is a registered nurse with a bachelor of science in nursing since 2007. Having worked as a medical-
surgical nurse for ve years, he handled di erent kinds of patients and learned how to provide individualized
care to them. Now, his experiences working in the hospital is carried over to his writings to help aspiring students
achieve their goals. He is currently working as a nursing instructor and have a particular interest in nursing
management, emergency care, critical care, infection control, and public health. As a writer at Nurseslabs, his
goal is to impart his clinical knowledge and skills to students and nurses helping them become the best version of
themselves and ultimately make an impact in uplifting the nursing profession.

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