Critical care nursing quarterly
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Review
Munchausen by proxy syndrome: the forensic challenge of recognition, diagnosis, and reporting.
Munchausen by Proxy Syndrome (MBPS) is a rare form of abuse in which a caregiver fabricates or produces symptoms of an illness in a child, elder, or disabled person. The deception is usually repeated on numerous occasions, resulting in many hospitalizations, considerable morbidity, and sometimes death. MBPS is a factitious disorder in which caregivers injure their victims in order to gain sympathy or attention for themselves. ⋯ Unwillingness or the inability to recognize this abuse deprives the victim of the opportunity to be shielded from future harm. There is a need for strategic protocols and a multidisciplinary approach to this baffling problem. Discussing the clinical profile of the perpetrator, the victim, and the family may help nurses distinguish medical fact from fiction.