A new review shows that 'children with disabilities experience a high burden of all forms of violence, despite advances in awareness and policy in the past 10 years'.
CITATION: Global estimates of violence against children with disabilities: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis
Zuyi Fang et al.
Lancet Child and Adolescent Health, Articles| volume 6, issue 5, p313-323, may 01, 2022
Published:March 17, 2022. DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/S2352-4642(22)00033-5
SUMMARY
Background: Previous meta-analysis evidence shows that children (aged 0–18 years) with disabilities experience high amounts of violence...
Methods: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched 18 English-language international databases for observational studies published in English or Chinese between Aug 17, 2010, and Sept 16, 2020, and three Chinese databases for studies published from database inception to Sept 16, 2020....
Findings: We assessed 386 full text articles and finally included 98 studies (with 16 831 324 children) in our analysis. Our results showed that the overall prevalence of violence against children with disabilities was 31·7% (95% CI 27·1–36·8; I2=99·15%; 16 807 154 children, 92 studies) and the overall odds ratio of children with versus without disabilities experiencing violence was 2·08 (1·81–2·38; I2=91·5%; 16 811 074 children, 60 studies)... Children in economically disadvantaged contexts were especially vulnerable to experiencing violence.
Interpretation: This review shows that children with disabilities experience a high burden of all forms of violence, despite advances in awareness and policy in the past 10 years. Our results indicate a need for increased partnerships across disciplines and sectors to protect children with disabilities from violence. Additional well designed research is also needed, especially in under-represented and economically disadvantaged populations.
Neil Pakenham-Walsh, Global Coordinator HIFA, www.hifa.org neil@hifa.org
