Previous and current somatic- and psychological health problems amongst children at the Government’s Barnehus (Children’s advocacy center)

Main objective

This study will investigate health problems in children at the Government’s Barnehus. What type of contact these children have had with medical- and other welfare services prior to when the violence and abuse was disclosed will also be investigated. We will also see if there were any missed opportunities where the violence could have been disclosed at an earlier time point.  

Investigate current or previous somatic and psychological health problems in children that are at the Government’s barnehus for forensic interviewing and/or medical examination due to suspected child maltreatment or sexual abuse, and to identify differences in health issues amongst these children compared to other children. 

Subsidiary objectives

Investigate what type of contact the children at the Barnehus have had with medical- and welfare services before the suspicion of abuse and violence was raised.
Look into if the abuse and violence could have been discovered at an earlier date.
 

Method

Case-control study will be conducted where health problems in children who come to at the Government’s barnehus for medical examination and forensic interviewing will be compare with health problems in children where violence and sexual abuse is not suspected.

Qualitative interviews with a thematic analysis will be used to get a more comprehensive picture of prior contact with healthcare and welfare services and the disclosure process.

Publications

Augusti, E. M., & Myhre, M. C. (2021). The Barriers and Facilitators to Abuse Disclosure and Psychosocial Support Needs in Children and Adolescents Around the Time of Disclosure. Child Care in Practice. doi:10.1080/13575279.2021.1902279

Rueness, J., Augusti, E. M., Strøm, I. F., Wentzel-Larsen, T., & Myhre, M. C. (2020). Adolescent abuse victims displayed physical health complaints and trauma symptoms during post disclosure interviews. Acta Paediatrica, 109(11), 2409-2415. doi:10.1111/apa.15244

Myhre, M. C., Syringen, F., & Augusti, E. M. (2019). Helse hos barn som kommer til Statens Barnehus. In K. Skjørten, E. Bakketeig, M. Bjørnholt & S. Mossige (Red.) Vold i nære relasjoner: Forståelser, konsekvenser og tiltak (pp. 270-286). Universitetsforlaget. doi:10.18261/9788215032320-2019-15

Syringen, F. (2018). Skammens tause tyngde: Traumerelaterte vansker hos barn og unge i etterkant av tilrettelagt avhør som fornærmede i vold- og overgrepssaker.

Langballe, Å., & Davik, T. (2017). Sequential interviews with preschool children in Norwegian Barnahus. In J. Susanna, K. Stefansen, E. Bakketeig & A. Kaldal (Eds.) Collaborating against child abuse: Exploring the Nordic Barnahus model (pp. 165-183). Palgrave Macmillan. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-58388-4_8

Myhre, M. C. (2016). Helsepersonell i møte med barn og unge som har opplevd omsorgssvikt, vold og seksuelle overgrep. In C. Øverlien, M. I. Hauge & J. H. Schultz (Red.) Barn, vold og traumer. Møter med unge i utsatte livssituasjoner. (pp. 169-182). Universitetsforlaget.