The role of mental health nursing in the prevention of child sexual abuse and the therapeutic care of survivors.
This paper is primarily designed to stimulate discussion and debate on the role of the mental health nurse dealing with survivors of sexual abuse. The authors contend that, in reality, all nurses should be prepared through education and training to treat the sufferers of emotional and spiritual pain, regardless of from where the hurting stems. The need for nurses to open their eyes and acknowledge the agony and distress caused to children as a result of abuse by adults is highlighted. So too is the necessity for nurses to enhance their own unique and specific practice. Nurses (and particularly mental health nurses) have a role in promoting a healthy generation of children--children who are looked after and protected by caregivers and not by caretakers. As the result of nurses advocating healthy caregiving and healthy relationships children may never need to suffer from inhumane and denigrating acts against their very beings. Nurses have no excuse for being unable to imagine child sexual abuse. Therefore they have no excuse for not being prepared to deal with the resulting, excruciating pain. It is both uncaring and inhumane for nurses not to be prepared to accept the sharing of such emotionally painful and disturbing experiences. Mental health nurses have a genuine role in offering therapeutic care to victims and survivors. This paper concludes by exploring and examining the nurse's role in counselling survivors of child sexual abuse.
Long
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School of Health Sciences, University of Ulster, Jordanstown, Newtownabbey, County Antrim, UK.
Smyth
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D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002650:Child Abuse, Sexual / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000523:psychology*; D002651:Child Advocacy; D002665:Child Psychiatry; D003376:Counseling / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007587:Job Description; D011568:Psychiatric Nursing / Q000379:methods*; D011615:Psychotherapy, Group; D012752:Shame; D017741:Survivors / Q000523:psychology*