What is fabricated illness safeguarding?
Fabricated or induced illness (FII) is a rare form of child abuse. It happens when a parent or carer exaggerates or deliberately causes symptoms of illness in the child. The parent or carer tries to convince doctors that the child is ill, or that their condition is worse than it really is.
What are the factors to consider before admitting a child for assessment of FII?
The parent or carer has good medical knowledge or a health background; One parent (commonly the father) has little or no involvement in the care of the child; The parent or carer expresses concerns that they are under suspicion for FII, or a relative raises concerns about FII.
What are the 4 R’s of child protection?
The 4Rs of Safeguarding Children is professional practice for how you can recognise, record, report and refer in the situation of child abuse.
What are the signs of fabricated illness?
infecting their child’s wounds or injecting the child with dirt or poo. inducing unconsciousness by suffocating their child. not treating or mistreating genuine conditions so they get worse. withholding food, resulting in the child failing to develop physically and mentally at the expected rate.
What does an initial child protection conference do?
The Initial Child Protection Conference brings together family members, the child (where appropriate – see Section 8, Enabling Children’s Participation, supporters/advocates and those professionals most involved with the child and family to share information, assess risks and to formulate an agreed plan of management …
Why might a mother fabricate illness in their child?
Fabricated or induced illness (FII) is a rare form of child abuse. It occurs when a parent or carer exaggerates or deliberately causes symptoms of illness in a child, and can cause significant harm both physically and emotionally.
What questions should I ask at a child protection conference?
Ask your social worker to provide you with a copy of their written report about your child, well before the conference. Ask the social worker questions about the report if you need to. You can also ask them to include your views in the report and ask for any factual mistakes in the report to be corrected.
What are the 3 R’s in child protection?
The “Three R’s” of Youth Protection convey a simple message to youth members: Recognize situations that place you at risk of being molested, how child molesters operate, and that anyone could be a molester. This prevents further abuse and helps to protect other children.
Who carries out a child’s fabricated illness?
Clinical evidence indicates that fabricated or induced illness is usually carried out by the child’s mother or a female carer, ( Safeguarding children in whom illness is fabricated or induced, DCSF 2008 ).
What should I do in a case of fabricated or induced illness?
In working with cases of suspected fabricated or induced illness, the focus must be on the child’s physical and emotional health and welfare in the long and short term, and the likelihood of the child suffering significant harm.
Can a parent/carer fabricate or induce illness in a child?
A parent/carer or professional fabricating or inducing illness in a child may do so in a variety of ways: claiming a child has symptoms which result in unnecessary investigations/ treatment/ use of unnecessary equipment (e.g. crutches, wheelchairs).
Is fabrication of illness harmful to children?
Fabrication of illness may not necessarily result in a child experiencing physical harm, but there may be concerns about the child suffering emotional harm. They may suffer emotional harm as a result of an abnormal relationship with their parent and/or disturbed family relationships.