It is the most vulnerable, children and adolescents, who pay the price for the more than two years of the pandemic. The new explains it Regional index on child maltreatment in Italy edited by the Cesvi Foundation and edited by the researchers Giovanna Badalassi and Federica Gentile, who dedicated a focus precisely on the safety of the little ones during this critical phase.
«The pandemic has dramatically increased all risk factors which are the basis of childhood maltreatment “, explained Gloria Zavatta, president of the Foundation,” acting in many cases as a detonator in situations of previous hardship: poverty and unemployment, deterioration of mental health, isolation and contraction of social relations “.
The index analyzes the vulnerability of children in each of the Italian regions, through the analysis of the risk factors present in the area and the ability of local administrations to prevent and combat the phenomenon through the services they offer. The result is a ranking based on 64 indicators classified with respect to six different capacities: ability to care for oneself and others, to live a healthy life, to live a safe life, to acquire knowledge and knowledge, to work and to access resources. and services.
Child maltreatment is a particularly serious problem, producing cdramatic consequences on the health of the abused in the short and long term, on their psycho-physical balance and, more generally, on the whole community. “Abused ex-children become adults living with a heavy burden of pain that they often place on their own children, generating a vicious circuit of intergenerational transmission, which only an external intervention can interrupt ”, explains Cesvi. “Violence against minors is therefore a systemic phenomenon that cannot be traced back exclusively to family relational dynamics but which represents a serious public health problem before, during and after the pandemic and which requires a global approach”.
In the first year of the pandemic, a boom in accesses to emergency rooms for neuropsychiatric disorders: the Italian Society of Pediatrics recorded an increase in admissions of over 80%, due to suicidal ideation, depression and eating disorders (anorexia and bulimia). Istat has also certified a deterioration of the state of healthespecially among adolescents: in the second year of the pandemic, the mental health index dropped significantly in the 14-19 age group while the number of adolescents who declare themselves dissatisfied doubled
Crimes involving children and adolescents are also increasing: according to data from the criminal police, i maltreatment of family members and minor cohabitants increased by 11% in 2020. In the first year of the lockdown, crimes of child pornography and online solicitation also grew exponentially (+ 77%).
According to the data collected by the anti-violence and stalking number 1522, violence against women has also increased dramatically, which in most cases is consumed right at the victim’s home. But the police forces have registered a sharp decline in complaints: it is the direct consequence of confinement in the home and therefore of the greater control exercised by the cohabiting partner. Violence in the home often translates into violence witnessed by minors: according to Istat, about 50% of children witness violence, while 10% suffer it.
The greatest criticality is reported in Southern Italy: the last four positions of the Index are occupied by Campania, Sicily, Calabria and Puglia, which present important overall systemic problems.
Emilia-Romagna is the region with the best ability to deal with child maltreatment, in a final synthesis between risk factors and services (in 2021 it was Trentino-Alto Adige). Followed by Trentino-Alto Adige, Veneto, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Tuscany and Liguria. The “highly critical” regions, with high risk factors, are Campania, Sicily, Calabria, Puglia, Molise, Basilicata, Abruzzo and Marche.
Source: Vanity Fair
