Past medical history: A comparison between children at the point of entry into the care system and children at home

Abstract

We conducted a one-center, case-controlled study to determine which medical disorders portend entry into out-of-home care. A total of 137 children aged 4 to 14 in local authority care and 126 controls (at home children) matched by health area, age, and sex were studied. The pediatric Primary Care registry was reviewed for the period from May to September 2017. Compared with children at home, those at entry into the care system were significantly more likely to: experience a poisoning; present with bruising; and suffer from tooth decay, psychiatric, or neurological conditions. Conversely, they were significantly less likely to suffer from asthma, abdominal pain, insect stings, or limb injuries. Analysis of medical history helped to identify children at risk of out-of-home placement.

Keywords:

• Child abuse
• sentinel health events
• child custody
• foster children
• medical records

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Antonia Roca, from la Vileta Surgery, for initiating a primary care clinic focused on looked-after teens. We would also like to thank the staff of the Majorcan Department of Child Protection for their assistance searching medical databases.

Disclosure statement

The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.