Child sexual abuse: 88% doctors feel inadequately educated

Report emphas­ises need for expand­ed curric­ulum, organi­sing traini­ng progra­mmes.


Express December 01, 2010

An overwhelming majority (88 per cent) of doctors that participated in a research felt that they were inadequately trained to deal with cases of child sexual abuse (CSA). Also, 94 per cent of the participants believed there was a need for training programmes to prepare medical professionals to deal with cases of CSA.

These findings were shared in a report “Qualitative Research on Child Sexual Abuse: Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices Amongst Doctors”, which was released in Islamabad on Tuesday. Dr Anita Aijaz, a psychiatrist working with Rozan, presented the report’s findings.

The report was prepared by Aangan, which is Rozan’s children programme working on the emotional and mental health of children in general, and on child sexual abuse in particular. Rozan, according to its website, “is an Islamabad-based NGO working on issues related to emotional and psychological health, gender, violence against women and children, and the psychological and reproductive health of adolescents”.

Aangan conducted a small-scale study with doctors in Islamabad and Rawalpindi between September 2009 and December 2009 to explore their attitudes towards child sexual abuse. The objective of this research was to assess the ability of doctors in the twin cities in managing CSA cases within a clinical setting, and to gauge the capacity-building needs of doctors in dealing with such cases.

For this purpose, both quantitative and qualitative methods were employed to collect data. The NGO conducted in-depth interviews with doctors in the twin cities. They organised focus-group discussions and prepared questionnaires for participating doctors to fill.

Aangan, in its report, recommends that the existing component on CSA in the curriculum for medical students needs to be expanded.

The report also recommends that there is a need for training programmes where doctors can learn to deal with child sexual abuse. The training sessions will teach doctors the dynamics of CSA and how to detect the signs and symptoms of sexual abuse.

The doctors will also learn the basics of examination, privacy and communication with the child and family.

Findings of the questionnaire

The questionnaire prepared by Aangan was filled by 50 doctors. Of these, 58 per cent said that they had never come across any cases of child sexual abuse. Rozan’s analysis of the respondents’ answers in the survey concluded:

38 per cent felt that the topic of child sexual abuse (CSA) was not covered at all in the medical curriculum, while the remaining 62 per cent felt that the curriculum needed to be expanded.

84 per cent of doctors who responded had never attended any professional training session, seminar or workshop on CSA.

Majority of respondents associated CSA only with its most severe form: rape.

Most common cause of child sexual abuse identified by the respondents was sexual frustration. Other causes identified were lack of sexual awareness and education, easy access, poverty, parental neglect, sexual and mental abnormality, drug abuse, revenge and commercial exploitation.

The participants demonstrated a good understanding of the range of possible effects victims of sexual abuse might experience.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 1st, 2010.

COMMENTS (2)

adnan khan | 13 years ago | Reply we won't solve anything until we start taking on maulvis who allow marriage & sleeping with 9 year old children.we have to raise awareness of paedophilia in our society where our men proudly have sex with underage girls & society accepts this behaviour as in our society the girl has to fulfill her wifely duties to her "majazi khuda"
arif chandio | 13 years ago | Reply there's no concept in our society that child abuse is a crime against the child.the only thing the victim's family is outraged over is that their honour has been besmirched,that their "naak kat gai" ,there's no acknowledgement of the crime against the child,only the grief over the ghairat that has been lost.
Replying to X

Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.

For more information, please see our Comments FAQ