Pubdate: Sun, 30 Jan 2005
Source: Queensland Sunday Mail (Australia)
Copyright: 2005 News Limited
Contact:  http://www.thesundaymail.com.au/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/435
Author: Paul Weston

DRUGS FUELLING CHILD ABUSE

THE Gold Coast is the child abuse capital of Queensland, with senior
doctors blaming the violence on increasing drug use by parents.

A fightback has begun against the tide of complaints on the tourist
strip, with Queensland Health creating a child protection unit and the
Abused Child Trust planning to expand its charity service.

The latest research obtained by The Sunday Mail confirms the Gold
Coast is the leading Queensland region for child abuse cases, followed
by Ipswich, Logan and Brisbane City.

Of the 3631 allegations on the Coast investigated by Department of
Child Safety officers in 2003-04, 2689 cases were substantiated.

Almost 24,000 child abuse cases were investigated in Queensland during
2003-04, with almost 17,500 substantiated.

Pediatrician Kerry Sullivan, who will head the Gold Coast child
protection unit, said the region had a "huge" drug problem.

"Parents are on speed," Dr Sullivan said.

"It makes them more violent, and the opiates make them more
neglectful."

The Coast's transient population was also a factor, with parents
arriving without extended family support.

A key role of the unit is to enable doctors working in private
practice to contact Dr Sullivan for advice and support.

For nurses, it will be compulsory to report suspected child abuse from
August this year, when new State Government laws on notification come
into effect.

Abused Child Trust chairman David Wood predicts more cases will be
investigated once the new laws are in place.

"There's been a 10 per cent increase in notifications each year," Dr
Wood said. "It averages out at one-third being substantiated, but that
doesn't mean the other two-thirds aren't (legitimate cases)."
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake