Infant and pre-birth involvement with child protection across Australia

Melissa O’Donnell; Fernando Lima; Miriam Maclean; Rhonda Marriott; Stephanie Taplin

doi:10.1177/10775595231186647

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Infant and pre-birth involvement with child protection across Australia

Journal article

Open access

Peer reviewed

Infant and pre-birth involvement with child protection across Australia

Melissa O’Donnell, Fernando Lima, Miriam Maclean, Rhonda Marriott and Stephanie Taplin

Child Maltreatment, Vol.28(4), pp.608-620

2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/10775595231186647

PMID: 37386757

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Abstract

infant

child maltreatment

child protective services

longitudinal research

path analysis

quantitative research

Infants (<1 year old) are the age group in Australia with the highest rate of involvement with child protection. Many jurisdictions across Australia and internationally are implementing policies focused on prenatal planning and targeted support. This study investigates Australian trends in prenatal and infant child protection notifications, substantiations and out-of-home care; and the extent of over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander infants. Data was provided by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare for the period 1 July 2012-30 June 2019. Univariate Poisson regression analysis was conducted, reporting the percentage change in the incidence rate ratios. All Australian jurisdictions who collect and approved release of prenatal notification data experienced increases in the rates of children with prenatal notifications, with a 4% (IRR: 1.04(1.04–1.05)) overall increase per year across Australia. Approximately 33% of children had substantiated prenatal notifications. Rates of infant notifications and entry to care in Australia increased overall by 3% (IRR:1.03(1.03–1.04)) and 2% per year (IRR:1.02(1.01–1.03)), respectively. With rising numbers of families reported prenatally and during infancy, greater evidence of the effectiveness of policies, interventions and outcomes for children and families is required.

Details

Title: Infant and pre-birth involvement with child protection across Australia
Authors/Creators: Melissa O’Donnell - Australian Centre for Child Protection, University of South Australia, Perth, WA, Australia, Telethon Kids Institute, Nedlands, WA, Australia
Fernando Lima - University of South Australia
Miriam Maclean - University of South Australia
Rhonda Marriott - Murdoch University, Ngangk Yira Institute for Change
Stephanie Taplin - University of Technology Sydney
Publication Details: Child Maltreatment, Vol.28(4), pp.608-620
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Number of pages: 13
Grant note: DP170101441 / Australian Research Council Discovery Grant; Australian Research Council Stan Perron Foundation Health Research Grant
Identifiers: 991005591967707891
Murdoch Affiliation: Ngangk Yira Institute for Change
Language: English
Resource Type: Journal article

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Collaboration types: Domestic collaboration
Citation topics: 6 Social Sciences; 6.24 Psychiatry & Psychology; 6.24.856 Child Welfare
Web Of Science research areas: Family Studies; Social Work
ESI research areas: Social Sciences, general