Parental Substance Use Disorders and Child Maltreatment: Overlap, Gaps, and Opportunities

Abstract

There are relatively few empirically sound studies or nationally representative data on the number of children in Child Welfare Services (CWS) who are affected by their parents' substance abuse or dependence. The two systems that could systematically monitor this population, CWS and substance abuse treatment, are not required to capture the data elements that would identify families in both systems. The studies that are based on CWS populations or parents in treatment indicate that there is a substantial overlap in client populations. This review provides a summary of the available data; provides estimates of the overlap between populations, including the number of infants born each year with prenatal substance exposure; and suggests important opportunities to close the data gap between the systems. The findings underscore both the need for obtaining accurate data within the systems and the opportunities for states to improve their cross-system data efforts as part of their outcome monitoring.

“It's hard enough to deal with all the abuse issues”: Child welfare workers' experiences with intimate partner violence on their caseloads

“…Parental substance abuse has been identified as a primary contributor to child maltreatment (Dong et al, 2004) and has been indicated or suspected in more than two-thirds of all substantiated cases (Jones, 2005). Children of parents who abuse substances are much more likely to be placed in foster care (U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1999;Young, Boles, & Otero, 2007) and are in out-of-home placements longer than youth removed for other reasons (Vanderploeg et al, 2007). Moreover, substance abuse often co-occurs with IPV, and has been documented in both victims (El-Bassel, Gilbert, Wu, Go, & Hill, 2005) and perpetrators (Fals-Stewart, Golden, & Schumacher, 2003).…”

Vulnerability and protective factors for child abuse and maltreatment.

“…Research also indicates links between parental substance abuse and child maltreatment (see Young, Boles, & Otero, 2007). An estimate by the National Committee for Prevention of Child Abuse suggests that one in 13.3 children living with a substance-abusing parent experiences severe maltreatment each year (as cited in Besinger, Garland, Litrownik, & Landsverk, 1999).…”

Outcomes of the Main dans la main initiative on substance-abusing expectant and new mothers in the perinatal period

“…Les programmes destinés aux femmes enceintes qui ont une consommation problématique de substances sont plus présents qu'avant, mais leur nombre est loin de suffire aux besoins 15 . La plupart des programmes sont encore destinés à une clientèle hétérogène et ne tiennent pas compte des besoins multiples et complexes de ces femmes, comme ceux reliés à la pauvreté et au soutien en matière de parentalité et de développement des enfants 16,17 .…”