asked the Minister for Health if he will state in regard to the statistics available in his Department on the incidence of non-accidental injury to children in each of the last 5 years: (a) the type or description of the injuries sustained; (b) the ages of the children involved; (c) the formal nature of the relationship between the abused children and the perpetrators of their injuries; (d) the professional status of the people who first suspected the injuries prior to the official contacting of the relevant Director of Community Care or officer designated by him; (e) the number of reports about and confirmations of injury victims that (i) were hospitalised and (ii) were subject to out-patient hospital treatment and (f) the subsequent outcome in respect of those children who were confirmed as victims of non-accidental injuries.
Written Answers. - Injuries To Children.
The only statistics in this regard available to my Department relate to the period from 1 April 1977 to 31 December 1979 and are confined to the number of suspected and confirmed cases in that period. The following are the figures:
|
Health Board |
Period 1 April 1977 to 31 December 1978 |
Period 1 January 1979 to 31 December 1979 |
||
|
No. of suspected cases reported |
No. of cases confirmed |
No. of suspected cases reported |
No. of cases confirmed |
|
|
Eastern |
86 |
28 |
48 |
38 |
|
Midland |
17 |
17 |
11 |
2 |
|
Mid-Western |
62 |
10 |
10 |
3 |
|
North-Eastern |
8 |
2 |
18 |
8 |
|
North-Western |
— |
— |
7 |
2 |
|
South-Eastern |
37 |
12 |
17 |
6 |
|
Southern |
23 |
23 |
16 |
12 |
|
Western |
10 |
6 |
9 |
4 |
|
Total |
243 |
98 |
136 |
75 |
These cases were referred to the boards mainly by doctors, public health nurses and social workers.
Looked at in the light of the total number of children in the country under the age of 10 years, (693, 615), the figure of 173 confirmed cases over a period of almost 3 years represents an exceedingly small percentage (i.e. .00014%).