Child sexual exploitation. An analysis of serious case reviews in England: poor communication, incorrect assumptions and adolescent neglect.

BACKGROUND: Child sexual exploitation (CSE) has evolved from being a largely concealed and unrecognised form of child abuse to being the subject of substantial political and public attention. The purpose of this research was to explore health professionals' role in detection and prevention. METHODS: A systematic thematic analysis and synthesis of serious case review (SCR) reports of CSE in England using a socioecological theoretical framework was undertaken. RESULTS: Themes identified included health professionals' lack of understanding of CSE, limited knowledge of the UK law, reluctance to apply relevant policies, and lack of appropriate action. Suboptimal communication with the child, between agencies and with families, lack of understanding of the young person's context, their vulnerabilities and their continued needs for care and protection were also important. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first time, to our knowledge, that an analysis and synthesis of all SCRs related to CSE in England has been conducted. The potential to recognise young people vulnerable to CSE is essential for public health prevention and intervention. Acknowledging that the SCRs represent the worst case scenario; nevertheless, this research highlighted the multi-factorial and complex nature of CSE and identified factors that require system-level awareness, training and intervention.

Acculturation, resilience, and the mental health of migrant youth: a cross-country comparative study.

OBJECTIVES: Using data from an international collaborative research project on youth resilience in the context of migration, this study aims to investigate how different acculturation patterns (i.e. integration, assimilation, separation and marginalization) influence the mental health of migrant youth, and whether resilience might function as a mediator in the association between acculturation and mental health. STUDY DESIGN: A cross-sectional pilot study conducted in six countries employing a common survey questionnaire. METHODS: The study sample was 194 youths aged 10-17 years (median = 13.6) from six countries (Australia, Canada, China, New Zealand, South Africa, and United Kingdom) and included cross-border and internal migrants. Mental health and well-being was measured by the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale (WEMWBS). Resilience was measured by the Child and Youth Resilience Measure-28 (CYRM-28). Acculturation was assessed using the Acculturation, Habits, and Interests Multicultural Scale for Adolescents (AHIMSA). Multivariate regression and path analysis were performed to examine the hypothesized mediation model. RESULTS: Resilience scores correlated strongly with mental health and well-being. Acculturation exerted no significant direct effects on the mental health of migrant youths. Nevertheless, compared to youths who were integration-oriented, assimilation-oriented youths tended to exhibit lower levels of resilience, resulting in poorer mental health. Compared to youths from other countries, migrant youths from China also reported lower levels of resilience, which led to poorer mental health outcome. CONCLUSION: Acculturation plays a significant role in the mental health of migrant youth, with different acculturative orientations exhibiting different influences through the mediation effect of resilience. Fostering resilience and facilitating integration-oriented acculturation are recommended public health strategies for migrant youth.

Structural violence and marginalisation. The sexual and reproductive health experiences of separated young people on the move. A rapid review with relevance to the European humanitarian crisis.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the main sexual and reproductive health (SRH) issues for separated young migrants. STUDY DESIGN: We conducted a rapid review. METHODS: The search for articles published between 2000 and June 2017 including peer-reviewed and 'grey' published literature from a range of databases including MEDLINE, AMED, Embase, ASSIA, Scopus, Web of Science and websites of international organisations (Missing Children Alliance, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), Human Rights Watch, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and FBX Centre for Health and Human Rights) took place over 4 months. Themes emerging from the included studies and articles were synthesised. RESULTS: We found 44 articles from a range of countries of which 64% were peer-reviewed and 36% were from 'grey' literature. Structural violence and marginalisation were the key analytical themes that emerged and included young people's vulnerability to violence, unmet knowledge and service needs, barriers and stigma and poor SRH outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first known review to summarise the key SRH issues for separated young migrants. As Europe hosts the greatest number of separated young people in recent history, their unique SRH concerns risk being overlooked. Public health practitioners and policy makers are encouraged to challenge the gaps that exist in their services.

Intimate partner violence in early adolescence:the role of gender; socioeconomic factors and the school

BACKGROUND:Intimate partner violence (IPV) among adolescents is common worldwide; but our understanding of perpetration; gender differences and the role of social-ecological factors remains limited.OBJECTIVES:To explore the prevalence of physical and sexual IPV perpetration and victimisation by gender; and associated risk and protective factors.METHODS:Young adolescents (N=2 839) from 41 randomly selected public high schools in the Western Cape region of South Africa (SA); participating in the PREPARE study; completed a self-administered questionnaire. RESULTS:The participants' mean age was 13.65 years (standard deviation 1.01); with 19.1% (541/2 839) reporting being victims/survivors of IPV and 13.0% (370/2 839) reporting perpetrating IPV. Girls were less likely to report being a victim/survivor of physical IPV (odds ratio (OR) 0.72; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.57 - 0.92) and less likely to be a perpetrator of sexual IPV than boys (OR 0.33; 95% CI 0.21 - 0.52). Factors associated with perpetration of physical and sexual IPV were similar and included being a victim/survivor (physical IPV: OR 12.42; 95% CI 8.89 - 17.36; sexual IPV: OR 20.76; 95% CI 11.67 - 36.93); being older (physical IPV: OR 1.26; 95% CI 1.08 - 1.47; sexual IPV: OR 1.36; 95% CI 1.14 - 1.62 ); having lower scores on school connectedness (physical IPV: OR 0.59; 95% CI 0.46 - 0.75; sexual IPV: OR 0.56; 95% CI 0.42 - 0.76) and scoring lower on feelings of school safety (physical IPV: OR 0.66; 95% CI 0.57 - 0.77; sexual IPV: OR 0.50; 95% CI 0.40 - 0.62).CONCLUSIONS:Physical and sexual IPV was commonly reported among young adolescents in SA. Further qualitative exploration of the role of reciprocal violence by gender is needed; and the role of 'school climate'-related factors should be taken into account when developing preventive interventions

Herpes simplex virus type 2 infection as a biomarker for sexual debut among young people in sub-Saharan Africa: a literature review.

Biological markers are needed in order to provide objective measures to validate self-reported sexual behaviour and interpret prevention trial data. In this review, we evaluated herpes simplex type 2 virus (HSV-2), one of the most prevalent sexually transmitted infections in sub-Saharan Africa as a biological marker of sexual debut. Based on our findings, we do not recommend using HSV-2 as a biomarker for sexual debut due to its low transmission probabilities and the fact that HSV-2 prevalence is not 100% among potential sexual partners. We recommend that the validation of alternative biological measures should be prioritized, and included in future studies and trials of interventions to reduce sexual health risk.