Preventing Child Maltreatment: Multiple Windows of Opportunity in the Health Care System

Abstract

In this article I describe representative programs that have been developed to prevent the physical and sexual abuse and neglect of children. Prevention efforts germane to the prenatal, perinatal, and postnatal periods, as well as to preschoolers, school-age children, and adolescents are reviewed. Health care providers' contact with individuals across the life span provides unique opportunities to reduce the risk of child maltreatment. Their role in such efforts are explored and suggestions are offered to clarify how health care professionals may assume a broader role in preventing child maltreatment.