Guidelines for support to mothers of sexually abused children in North-West province

Background: South Africa is reported to have the highest rate of sexual assault in the world with over 40% of cases occurring among children. Children who are sexually abused have support programmes and policies to assist them in coping, but there are no support programmes for mothers or caretakers. Caretakers need support for themselves and assisting them will incrementally benefit children under their care. Often mothers of these children experience shock, anger, disbelief and suffer secondary trauma such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following their children’s sexual abuse disclosure and yet there are no guidelines for support to these mothers within North-West province (NWP)Objectives: The study seeks to develop guidelines for support to mothers of sexually abused children in NWP.Methods: Concurrent convergence triangulation mixed method design was employed in this study. The population consisted of mothers of sexually abused children (SAC) (n = 17 participants for the qualitative component and n = 180 participants for the quantitative component). A sample of mothers of SAC was purposely selected.Results: The participants indicated significant levels of depression because of lack of support by stakeholders. Guidelines for support to assist mothers cope with their secondary trauma were developed based on the literature review, study findings as well as an ecological model of the impact of sexual assault on women’s mental health. The results also showed extreme PTSD (47.8%), little support (38.8%), not coping (76.1%) and depression (36.1%).Conclusion: The stakeholders should consider a positive approach to support mothers whose children are sexually abused.

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Experiences of mothers of sexually abused children in North-West province, post disclosure

Curationis ◽

10.4102/curationis.v39i1.1659 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 39 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Gaboipolelwe M. Masilo ◽

Mashudu Davhana-Maselesele

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Sexually Abused ◽

Secondary Trauma ◽

Emotional Pain ◽

Abused Children ◽

North West ◽

South African Police Service ◽

The North ◽

North West Province ◽

Sexually Abused Children

Background: Sexual violence against children is increasing at an alarming rate in South Africa. In 2010 the South African Police Service (SAPS) reported 21 538 rape cases of children under 18 years. In the North-West province (NWP) 5039 incidents of rape cases were reported in 2009. Mothers often experience emotional pain following child sexual abuse disclosure. It is seldom acknowledged that these mothers experience trauma and need support, post disclosure. The researcher has no known evidence of research conducted on the experiences of these mothers in NWP. Objective: The objective of the study was to explore and describe the experiences of mothers of sexually abused children post disclosure of the abuse. Method: The research design was qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and contextual. Purposive sampling was used to select mothers of sexually abused children aged 23 to 59 years whose children ranged from 0 to 16 years. Permission to conduct the study was sought from the Provincial Department of Health and informed consent was obtained from the mothers. Interviews were conducted with a sample of n = 17 until data saturation. Data were collected through in-depth interviews using a voice recorder and field notes to enhance triangulation. Tesch’s method of open coding was used to analyse data. Results: Findings indicated that mothers experienced emotional pain post sexual abuse. They expressed shock, anger and guilt for not noticing the abuse. They showed significant depression as a result of lack of support by stakeholders. Conclusion: Mothers experienced secondary trauma that poses social and psychological challenges with far-reaching implications.

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