Dental professionals' experience with and handling of suspicion of child maltreatment in a small‐scale society, the Faroe Islands

Abstract

The aims of the present study were to describe how frequently dental professionals in a small‐scale society like the Faroese Islands, experience suspicion on child maltreatment, and how they handle their suspicion. Furthermore, we wanted to investigate the hypothesis that the special interpersonal characteristics of small‐scale societies like the Faroese, influence how dental professionals handle suspicion of child maltreatment compared to how their colleagues in larger societies handled such suspicion. The design of our study was cross‐sectional using a non‐probability purposive sampling method. A translated and slightly modified version of the Danish questionnaire regarding suspicion on child maltreatment was sent to all 71 dental professionals (44 dentists and 27 dental hygienists) in the Faroe Islands. 51 (72%) returned a valid questionnaire. Of these, 61% experienced suspicion of child maltreatment at some point in their career, 33% within the last 6 months, and 10% percent were certain of child maltreatment during the last six months. Of those respondents who had experienced suspicion at some point of their career, 39% had reported their suspicion. The main reasons for withholding a suspicion were: uncertainty as to whether the suspicion was reliable, fear of the consequences for the child, and lack of procedural knowledge. Faroese dental professionals suspected child maltreatment much more frequently (61%) than their Danish (38%), Scottish (29%), and Croatian colleagues (26%) did. Child maltreatment raises concern among the Faroese dental professionals more frequently than among their colleagues in larger societies. They also seem to report their concern more frequently than their Scottish colleagues do. Thus, the present study indicates that the social structure in small‐scale societies may affect dental professionals' suspicions, and handling of child maltreatment.

Conhecimentos e atitudes de cirurgiões-dentistas da rede pública de Pelotas-RS frente aos maus-tratos infantis

“…Estudos demonstram que há uma parcela de profissionais que recebe essa informação durante o curso de graduação e na pósgraduação, mas destacam que apenas o ato de receber essas informações não parece ser suficiente para resultar em boa conduta frente aos casos suspeitos de MTI. Demonstra-se assim, a necessidade de incluir o tema nas ações de Educação Permanente em Saúde para profissionais da Odontologia, dando-lhes suporte na sua atuação profissional [26][27][28][29] . Entretanto, podese constatar que essa não é uma prática no serviço, uma vez que apenas um CD afirmou ter recebido capacitação sobre MTI.…”

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices of Dental Practitioners Regarding Domestic Violence in Pakistan

“…Surveys in India, Faroe Islands, Scotland, Croatia, various regions of Saudi Arabia, and Jordan have reported similar reasons, including lack of knowledge and fear of anger from victims’ families as the topmost barriers. 17,22,24,27,29,32 Other reported barriers toward reporting of physical abuse cases include self-perceived values and attitudes, inability to screen in the presence of a relative, lack of training, and uncertainty about diagnosis. 11,33,34 Upgradation of curricula and strict implementation of existing laws can help the dentists overcome these barriers.…”

“…14,17,18,27,[29][30][31] In contrast, a survey among dentists of Faroe Islands showed relatively higher percentages, where 61% of dentists had suspected a case of physical abuse at some time in their careers and 39% of them had reported these cases to legal authorities. 32 The researchers have attributed this behavior among dentists toward the social structure of their small-scale society.…”

Violencia Contra Niños, Niñas y Adolescentes. Actuación del Odontólogo y Nivel de Conocimiento Para la Detección y Atención de Casos

“…Un aspecto que complejiza el abordaje y tratamiento de este flagelo, radica en la carencia de denuncias, hecho que limita sobremanera contar con registros reales y fidedignos de la real dimensión del problema (Gubbels et al, 2021). Existen reportes que afirman que entre el 3% y el 30% de los niños han sufrido algún tipo de abuso (Jakobsen et al, 2019) patadas, sacudidas, quemaduras, estrangulamiento, entre otros actos de fuerza que puedan causar daño físico o incluso la muerte. Muchas veces, dichas lesiones se combinan con diferentes formas de actividad sexual forzada o no consensuada, que incluye actos de explotación sexual como manoseo, abuso sexual, explotación sexual a través de la pornografía, prostitución infantil y tráfico de menores con fines sexuales (UNICEF, 2016; OMS, 2022a; 2022b).…”