Knowledge and Attitude Regarding Child Abuse Among Primary Healthcare Physicians and Interns in Al Qassim, Saudi Arabia

Introduction Child abuse can include physical abuse, psychological abuse, sexual assault, neglect, or failure to meet the child's basic needs. It can lead to major psychosocial problems resulting in long-lasting consequences for the child. Objective This study aimed to assess the knowledge and attitude (KA) of primary healthcare physicians and interns regarding child abuse in Al Qassim, Saudi Arabia. Materials and methods This multicenter, cross-sectional study was conducted among primary healthcare physicians and interns in the Qassim region, Saudi Arabia, from July to October 2020. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed among the targeted physicians using either an online platform or face-to-face interviews. The questionnaire was devised from the pre-tested literature and formal discussions with experts. A total of 292 primary healthcare physicians and interns participated in our study. A consent form and brief details of the study were given ahead of the recruitment. Data were tabulated in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet (Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, WA); a separate codebook was prepared with a description of the variables and corresponding codes, and all statistical analyses were performed using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 21.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY). Results A total of 292 respondents were involved in the study. Among them, 45% (n=131) were medical interns, 39.4% (n=115) were residents, and the rest were either specialists (n=34; 11.6%) or consultants (n=12; 4.1%). Among the respondents, the KA level was found to be moderate, high, and low in 68.8%, 28.4%, and 2.7%, respectively. The overall mean KA score was 81.1 [standard deviation (SD): 9.56] out of a possible 115 points. Factors associated with high KA were age (>30 years), non-Saudi nationality, having children, and having studied outside Saudi Arabia; The only factor significantly associated with low levels of KA was being a pediatrician (p<0.001). Conclusion Overall, the participants displayed adequate levels of KA regarding child abuse. Better KA was observed among expatriate physicians who were parents themselves and had earned their degrees outside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. However, pediatricians demonstrated poor knowledge with regard to child abuse.