The role of a rural team in preventing sexual abuse of children.

Sexual abuse of children has become a major concern in recent years. Interdisciplinary teams have been established to deal with this and other forms of child abuse. Unfortunately, information is scarce about methods of preventing sexual abuse, particularly in a rural setting. A team in rural Manitoba has identified 22 cases of sexual abuse in the last 30 months. Methods of preventing such cases include educating adults and children about normal and abnormal sexual behavior. Early detection and intervention can be effected by establishing a registry of those at high risk for abusing their children, and listening to children carefully to detect signs of abuse early. When sexual abuse has already occurred, its effects may be minimized with family therapy sessions involving the victim and offender. Community awareness, education and an interdisciplinary team have been shown to be effective in stopping abuse and appear to have significant potential in preventing sexual abuse.