BOSTON (MA)
PrimeZone
BOSTON, Dec. 29, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- The Catholic Medical Association has formed a Task Force in response to concerns expressed by parents, educators, physicians, priests and Bishops about the appropriateness and effectiveness of child abuse programs. This panel of experts specializing in varying fields of medicine will apply medical science to study the programs for children. This review will be grounded in the developmental, emotional, and moral needs of children, and research on the content and effectiveness of sexual abuse education programs. The Task Force goal is to offer recommendations to the Church, families and educators to aid in the protection of the children and adolescents.
The focus of the study is the impact of such programs on the attitudes, behaviors and development of children. It is the intention to consider the impact these programs have on the self concept of children (particularly during the latency period of development), their attitude toward sexual values, their relationship with parents and other trusted authority figures and their personal sense of 'safety'.
The CMA acknowledges that the intention of those producing, providing, utilizing and participating in these programs are undoubtedly good. It is hoped to provide a service to all those good intentioned persons by pointing out strengths and weaknesses of such programs so that children can truly be kept safe and so that parents who choose to send or allow their children to participate in these programs can do so with a greater appreciation of the moral, spiritual and developmental factors involved.