Search

Aim: To determine the attitudes and responses of Victorian paediatric intensive care doctors to the detection and reporting of child maltreatment. Methods: A prospective study conducted in a 30‐bed paediatric intensive care unit of a university teaching hospital using data collected from a questionnaire completed by paediatric intensive care consultants and registrars. The questionnaire covered the following domains – doctors' knowledge of Victorian mandatory reporting legislation, doctors' history of reporting and doctors' current role in the detection and reporting of child maltreatment. Results: The questionnaire was completed by 37 doctors. All but one doctor considered their role in the detection and reporting of all six forms of maltreatment (physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, neglect, exposure to domestic violence and grooming to facilitate later sexual activity with a child) very important or somewhat important. Thirty‐two percent of doctors did not feel adequately trained to detect child maltreatment while 51% did not feel adequately trained to report maltreatment. If a doctor wanted to make a report to Child Protection about the physical or sexual abuse of a child, only one would likely make Child Protection their first point of contact. Conclusions: Paediatric intensive care doctors show a strong intent to detect and report child maltreatment across a broad range of maltreatment types. Doctors are likely to contact one or more members of a child's care team and/or one or more relevant hospital/community services before making a report to Child Protection about the physical or sexual abuse of a child. Opportunities exist for the further education of doctors in regards to the detection and reporting of child maltreatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The adoption of children from out-of-home care is uncommon in Australia and rarely occurs in the state of Victoria. This paper reports on how professionals involved in making decisions about the permanent placement of children explain the current rates of adoption from out-of-home care in Victoria. Interviews were conducted with eight child welfare specialists, eight adoption and permanent care specialists and five judicial officers. The current low rates of adoption were attributed to the effect of current legislation, the impact of past adoption practices and the establishment of a culture in Victoria in which adoption is now rarely considered an option for children in out-of-home care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]