CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES (DHS)
Child Abuse: Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy MSBP
In 1951, Richard Asher used for the first time the term of "Munchausen syndrome" to describe a psychological disorder in which the patient fabricates or induces an illness to play the sick role. The choice of "Munchausen" was made after a German man, the Baron Von Munchausen who used to tell fake and exaggerated stories to everybody who would listen to him.
About twenty years later, in 1977, Roy Meadow talked of another form of this disease: "Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy" (MSBP). This psychological disorder can be defined as following:
"The intentional production or feigning signs and/or symptoms in another person who is under the individual's care for the purpose of assuming the sick role by proxy".
The aim of the perpetrator is to be looked at with sympathy by others as a very devoted and brave person since he/she also undergoes all these sufferings as a caregiver. In more than 98 % of the cases, the perpetrator is a female and in about 95% of the cases, it's the mother.
MSBP has become a trendy diagnosis in cases where children have become ill without medical explanation and the doctor is unable to diagnose the cause - such as when a child has an immune disorder like CVID. At that point, the parent is accused of intentionally making his or her child sick in order to supposedly obtain attention that is otherwise lacking in the parent's life. That brings the criminal justice system into play, with the parent being charged with serious criminal offenses and risk termination of parental rights.
While there certainly have been some rare cases of individuals who appear to have been legitimately suffering from this disorder, there unfortunately have been many cases where a parent has been falsely accused of this crime. Only later, is it discovered that the child had indeed been suffering from a legitimate medical condition after all, and that the parent was blameless.
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