Reported contact with child protection services among those reporting child physical and sexual abuse: results from a community survey.
OBJECTIVE
This study uses results from a large community survey to examine the relationship between a history of child maltreatment and self-reports of contact with Child Protection Services (CPS).


METHODS
The Ontario Health Supplement was a province-wide, probability-based survey of household dwellings in the province of Ontario, Canada. A random sample of residents aged 15 and older participated in the Ontario Health Supplement (N=9953). A face-to-face interview included a question about contact with Child Protection Services (CPS), and the Child Maltreatment History Self-Report, a self-administered questionnaire, was used to assess history of child physical and sexual abuse.


RESULTS
Only a very small percentage of respondents with a history of child abuse reported contact with CPS; 5.1% of those with a history of physical abuse, and 8.7% of those with a history of sexual abuse. Contact with CPS was associated with younger age of respondent for both types of abuse and female gender for physical abuse. In the case of sexual abuse, younger respondents whose parental employment classification was in the lower socioeconomic group were more likely to have contact with CPS.


CONCLUSIONS
Interventions that target only those who come in contact with CPS will not reach most persons exposed to child abuse.
MacMillan
Harriet L
HL
Canadian Centre for Studies of Children at Risk, Faculty of Health Sciences and Hamilton Health Sciences Corporation, McMaster University, Patterson Building, Chedoke Division, Box 2000, Hamilton, Ont., Canada, L8N 3Z5.
Jamieson
Ellen
E
Walsh
Christine A
CA
D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse; D002650:Child Abuse, Sexual; D002651:Child Advocacy / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D002669:Child Welfare / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005191:Family Characteristics; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006801:Humans; D019221:Mandatory Reporting; D009864:Ontario; D011336:Probability; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012650:Self Disclosure; D012947:Social Work / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*