Abstract

Healthcare professionals and particularly paediatricians have a significant responsibility to diagnose and report child maltreatment. In situations where there is a suspicion of maltreatment, the professionals have to report the case to the authorities. Even though reporting is mandatory, previous research indicates that health professionals tend to report only a few of their suspected cases. The aims of the current study are to: ( 1) examine paediatricians' attitudes and experiences concerning the identification and reporting of suspected child abuse and neglect cases; ( 2) assess paediatricians' training needs; and ( 3) examine the associations between paediatricians' attitudes and years of experience with suspected maltreatment handling and their training needs. A sample of 200 Israeli paediatricians, all members of the Israeli Paediatric Association, completed telephone interviews regarding their attitudes, experiences and training needs. The findings indicate high rates of reporting and a need for additional training. Paediatricians who had less experience with such cases or those with minimal training were more likely to ask for training. There was no significant correlation between the paediatricians' attitudes and years of experience. The authors suggest the development of specialised training programmes that will provide paediatricians with theoretical knowledge and practical skills related to child abuse and neglect. Copyright (C) 2017 John Wiley Sons, Ltd.