In-home treatment of child abuse: Healing at home can be effective and cost-effective

Child abuse is an enormous and complex problem, affecting almost 3 million children in the United States. Research has shown that abused children often become abusive parents. It is therefore imperative that we treat both the abused and the abuser, to stop the cycle before it repeats itself. It is ideal to keep the child in the family, if his or her safety can be assured. But this is not always possible. This research focuses on efforts to use intensive in-home therapy in an effort to treat both the child and the abusing family, and so prevent placement in foster care, usually the next step in abusive situations.