Doctors need to watch for false illness reporting by parents

A psychiatrist at McMaster Children’s Hospital in Hamilton says doctors need to be alert for signs of a form of abuse, where parents make up an illness in a child.

A research paper published by the American Academy of Pediatrics says caregiver-fabricated illness in a child is often unrecognized by health professionals. Mac associate professor Anna Marie Pietrantonio, a colleague of the article’s co-author, says to watch for signs that could indicate this abuse.

“It’s really something that healthcare providers should be alerted for. I think family members, friends noticing discrepancies in what the parent is reporting and what they’re observing in a child — then that would be something to be alerted to and to potentially report to or if family members or friends actually witness a parent or caregiver actually giving a child, for instance, medications that aren’t prescribed for that child, then those would be concerning behaviours that would potentially be reportable to child protective services.”

It’s still unclear why a parent would fabricate an illness in a child. Researchers say it could be a desire for attention, or a sign of an over-anxious parent.