ABSTRACT
Background: child abuse is a worldwide problem that affects seriously the health and welfare of children. Parents have a key role to avoid or prevent the exposure of their children to abuse
Objectives: this study was conducted to assess the awareness about child rights and the most important ways to detect child abuse among the parents and to investigate the risk and protective factors associated with prevalence rates and impact and the parent's role in cases of abuse in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Methods: a questionnaire was distributed among the general public in Riyadh City. The questionnaire consisted of questions about socio-demographic data of the respondents, as well as other questions that explored the awareness and knowledge about child abuse. The respondents were assorted into two groups according to total knowledge score
Results: respondents showed good knowledge of physical neglect, educational neglect, and physical abuse. According to the respondents, the most common types of abuse in the community were emotional and physical abuse; the most common risk factors were psychiatric illnesses and low educational level; the most common perpetrators were strangers, drivers, house servants, classmates, teachers, fathers and mothers. A high percentage of respondents did not know places that can help in dealing with abuse cases
Conclusion: the respondents displayed a fair level of knowledge about the types of abuse, the most common risk factors and the effective methods to protect the children against abuse. However, defects in their knowledge were detected as regards what constitutes physical child abuse and where to seek aid if abuse is suspected
ABSTRACT
Background: Public surveys have shown that the general population has limited knowledge about mental illness and holds unfavorable attitudes towards the people who suffer from it in various, culturally diverse, countries
Aims: The aim of the present study was to explore medical students' beliefs and attitudes towards people with schizophrenia [PwS] prior to receiving any training in psychiatry and to assess the impact of the psychiatric placement on changing them
Methods: A questionnaire addressing beliefs, attitudes and desired social distance from PwS was distributed to all final year medical students before the beginning of their 4-week undergraduate psychiatric placement and upon its completion
Results: Students did not endorse stereotypes commonly attached to PwS, such as being dangerous, lazy or of lower intelligence, but they held the view that PwS are unpredictable and suffer from split personality. Furthermore, the baseline level of desired social distance was found to increase as the intimacy of the interaction increased, and the only variable associated with it was personal experience of serious mental illness. Moreover, the placement was found to have either no influence at all or in a negative direction. Upon its completion more students were found to believe that PwS couldn't recover, have no insight into their condition, cannot make reasonable decisions, cannot work in regular jobs and are dangerous to the public. No difference was recorded in social distance scores
Conclusions: A close and critical examination of the various elements of the undergraduate placement in psychiatry is needed in order to develop an evidence based, fully rounded education with an anti-stigma orientation