Maltreatment among children with disabilities

This overview of maltreatment of children with disabilities seeks to provid e the reader which definitions of maltreatment, the incidence of its occurr ence among children, and highlight the fact that children with disabilities are at higher risk for being maltreated than are typical children. Factors are identified that contribute to maltreatment, independent of disability, that should lead the clinician to be alert to the potential for injury to the child. Finally, an ecological perspective is considered as an approach to prevention of maltreatment among children with disabilities. This approa ch addresses the need for comprehensive medical care. Using the strategies of the home visitor program, this approach uses the medical home model and links it with ongoing monitoring and support for families with disabled chi ldren.