BMJ  2006;332:140 (21 January), doi:10.1136/bmj.332.7534.140

News

Hanging doctors out to dry

London

The press pillories professionals who make mistakes in child protection. Rebecca Coombes says that a new course should improve doctors' competence and confidence

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

The first UK-wide training for doctors working in child protection was warmly welcomed last week, but senior paediatricians have warned that it is just the first step in restoring the confidence of a profession left in tatters by high profile failures.

Safeguarding Children: Recognition and Response in Child Protection for Doctors in Training, a one day course in detecting and responding to possible child abuse, will become a mandatory part of paediatric training. Until now, preparation for coping with child protection work has been patchy and the quality has varied.

The training was devised by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, in a joint venture with the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children and the Advanced Life Support Group, a medical education charity delivering training in lifesaving techniques. The training will also be offered to GPs and doctors working in emergency departments.

The pillorying . . . [Full text of this article]

 

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