The results of this review prove that children with disabilities are disproportionately vulnerable to violence, and their needs have been neglected for far too long.” Director of WHO’s Department of Violence, Injury Prevention and Disability Dr Etienne KrugA new study has demonstrated that children with disabilities tend to be four times more likely to become victims of violence than those without disabilities. The research conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO) reveals that the factors such as stigma, discrimination, and ignorance about disability, as well as a lack of social support for those who care for kids lead the children with disabilities at higher risk of violence. According to the paper published in the medical journal The Lancet, it is estimated that one in four children with disabilities experience violence during their lifetime. Mark Bellis from Liverpool's John Moores University in the UK and his team through a systematic search and data quantified the prevalence and magnitude of the risk of violence against disabled children that were conducted in the last two decades. They reviewed 17 eligible studies on more than 18,000 children between the ages of 2 to 18 years from the research conducted in the USA, UK, Sweden, Finland and several other countries.
The team’s meta-analysis uncovered that over a quarter (26.7%) of children with disabilities have been exposed to some form of violence such as physical, sexual and emotional abuse.“The results of this review prove that children with disabilities are disproportionately vulnerable to violence, and their needs have been neglected for far too long,” said Director of WHO’s Department of Violence, Injury Prevention and Disability Dr Etienne Krug. “We know that specific strategies exist to prevent violence and mitigate its consequences. We now need to determine if these also work for children with disabilities. An agenda needs to be set for action,” Krug stressed. FGP/GHN