Physician Assistants and Child Abuse: An Analysis of Attitudes, Beliefs, Training, and Professional Roles Among Physician Assistant Students

Abstract

Purpose: To determine the attitudes, beliefs, and perceptions about child abuse among preclinical and clinical-year physician assistant (PA) students. Method: A survey was administered voluntarily to a convenience sample of 2 classes of PA students, one clinical and one preclinical, to assess participants' understanding of different types of abuse, including child maltreatment, neglect, and sexual and emotional abuse. In addition, the survey assessed the participants' knowledge of childhood development and its relationship to childhood injury. Results: The 2 classes were similar with respect to demographic characteristics, but there were subtle differences in the attitudes, beliefs, and understanding about child abuse. There was no demonstrable increase in knowledge from the preclinical to the clinical year of training among the participants in the study. Conclusions: PA students who care for children because of a professional interest in pediatrics or because of the setting in which they practice may benefit from additional training in child abuse recognition and identification.