Affiliations: Department of Pediatrics and Child Neurology, Silesian
Medical University, Katowice, Poland
Note: [] Correspondence: Dr. Monika Kaluzna-Czyz, M.D., PhD, Silesian
Medical University, Faculty of Medicine, Katowice, Poland. Tel.: +48 694519177;
E-mail: monikakaluzna@autograf.pl
Abstract: Child abuse is an act of doing something or failing to do something
that result in harm to a child or puts a child at risk of harm. Although the
occurrence of child abuse in our society is a serious problem, the statistics
often remain unreliable. The purpose of our research was an assessment of the
knowledge, attitudes and experiences among physicians, medical students and
teachers of reporting child abuse and neglect. The questionnaire containing
questions about the demographic data of our respondents and questions regarding
the analysed subject was created. The results were statistically analyzed using
the Chi-square Test. The investigated group consisted of 139 teachers, 131
medical students and 53 physicians. Among the physicians, specialists with more
than 10 yr of experience constituted 83% with a predomination of
pediatricians. Among the teachers, those with more than 10 yr of experience
constituted 67%. Medical journals and professional trainings were the main
source of knowledge for the physicians, while television and radio were the
source of knowledge for teachers significantly more often than with others
groups. The majority of respondents encountered cases of child abuse
(physicians 74%, students 29%, and teachers 58%). In spite of their
declared knowledge about child abuse the majority of physicians and medical
students claim that low social status and uneducated families are the risk
factors of child maltreatment, while the majority of teachers are aware there
is no difference (P< 0.000001). The majority of respondents encountered
cases of child abuse but their knowledge of child maltreatment still remains
insufficient. It is considered reasonable to extend the range of obligatory
professional trainings.
