Do county mental health, physical health, and care provider availability predict child maltreatment report rates?

ABSTRACT:

Background

Research on community-level relationships between mental/physical health and child maltreatment is sparse.

Objective

We examined how rates of mental distress, physical distress, mental health professionals, and primary care physicians were related to child maltreatment report rates at the county level.

Participants and setting

U.S. counties from 2014 to 2017.

Methods

Within-between random effects models estimated both within-effects (i.e., longitudinal changes) and between-effects (i.e., inter-county differences) of mental distress rates, physical distress rates, mental health professional rates, and primary care physician rates and their associations with overall and age-specific maltreatment report rates, while adjusting for potential confounders.<

SUBMITTER: Kim H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10158764 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature