title: Child abuse: clinical findings and management.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To provide an overview of the role of the nurse practitioner (NP) in identifying, reporting, and managing child abuse in primary care.
  
  
  METHODS
  Selected research, national guidelines, and the author's experience.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Child abuse is a complex phenomenon characterized by maladaptive behaviors between children and their parents.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The role of the NP includes identification of families at risk, recognition of clinical findings of abuse, diagnosis of abuse, education for families identified at risk, and management of children diagnosed with abuse. The ultimate goal is the safe return of the child to a loving family.
authors.affiliation: FNP Program, Texas Woman's University, USA. schaney@twu.edu
authors.forename: S E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Chaney
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005195:Family Relations; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008487:Medical History Taking; D009722:Nurse Practitioners; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D010808:Physical Examination; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D012307:Risk Factors; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed