Trends in documenting and coding of child physical abuse in hospitalised children and adolescents in Germany: a nationwide administrative data analysis.

This year, the National Academy of Social Prescribing was designated a WHO Collaborating Centre for Social Prescribing Policy and Development, signalling growing policy and research traction worldwide. Social prescribing (SP) involves systematically linking individuals, often via a ‘link worker’, to the health, social and education services that they require. For CYP with disability, SP can address social barriers that undermine therapy effectiveness and shift practice from fractured episodic intervention towards proportionate, needs-responsive support. Disability follows a steep social gradient. Children conceived and raised in adversity are more likely to have a disability, and those with disabilities are more likely to experience chronic disease, unemployment, premature mortality and intergenerational disadvantage. For CYP with disabilities, inequity is compounded by the systems designed to support them. Many experience difficulties accessing therapy: its effectiveness is reduced by social strain and fragmented delivery. Health, disability, education and social services in many settings operate in silos that compound disadvantage rather than mitigate it. Parents describe being overwhelmed by complex paperwork and service pathways. There are adverse consequences for parent/carer mental health, careers and financial situations.