Children's Needs – Parenting Capacity - Digital Education Resource ...

Child development and parents’ responses – children under 5 years 117Children of this age are curious and will have a natural desire to explore theirimmediate surroundings. To prevent accidents from occurring parents must ensurethat the home is suitable for the infant and offers adequate safety and protection.Possible impact on healthInfants of this age are vulnerable to injuries, inadvertently eating or drinkingharmful substances, having illnesses or injuries which are not attended to promptlyand being given an inadequate or inappropriate diet.Parental mental illness, learning disability, the effects of domestic violence andexcessive alcohol intake or drug misuse can affect parents’ concentration and resultin parents being less attentive to their infants. Children of this age are very mobileand curious, and parents must be vigilant to ensure bath times are safely supervised,that harmful substances, including alcohol and drugs, are stored securely, that stovesand fires do not present a danger and in general that the home provides a safeenvironment. Children of substance misusers are in more danger of inadvertentlyingesting drugs because these substances are present in the home; methadone andcocaine are extremely dangerous to children. Newly mobile babies may be exposedto injecting equipment if insufficient care has not been taken. If infants are difficultto soothe, parents who use drugs may give the drug to their children to quietenthem or make them sleep (Alison 2000).Parents with a learning disability may not be fully aware of the potential dangersfacing their mobile infants or how to put in place the necessary safety measures.The effects of mental illness, domestic violence and substance misuse may result inperiods of unconsciousness, feelings of deep despair, or a preoccupation with drugsor alcohol.Charles (father) had been drinking and the home conditions weren’t improvingat all. Adam (aged 2 years) looked dirty and poorly. I asked Charles to pick upthe dog excrement from the garden as the children were playing in it. Again askedthem to start making some improvements to the children’s rooms.(Information contained on the initial assessment: both parents had learningdisabilities and the father had an alcohol problem, quoted in Cleaver andNicholson 2007, p.32)Infants need a well-balanced diet and may not be given adequate nutrition becausemothers with learning disabilities may not know what appropriate food for a baby isand mental illness and substance misuse may result in parents neglecting their ownand their children’s need for a nourishing diet.See as long as your wean’s got something to eat, you think that’s the thing, whetherit be a Mars bar or cereal or something, like, ‘they’re all right.’(Mother with a drug problem, quoted in Barnard 2007, p.64)