Protocol for a Systematic Review: Child Protection Training for Professionals to Improve Reporting of Child Abuse and Neglect

Abstract

Other effects include: physical injuries; failure to thrive; impaired social, emotional and behavioural development; reduced reading ability and perceptual reasoning; depression; anxiety; post-traumatic stress disorder; low self-image; alcohol and drug use; aggression; delinquency; long-term deficits in educational achievement; and adverse effects on employment and economic status ( Egeland 2009; Gilbert 2009; Hildyard 2002; Landsford 2002; Norman 2012; Paolucci 2001). Description of the intervention This Cochrane review focuses on child protection training that takes place after initial qualification (i.e. post-qualification), also referred to in the literature as “continuing professional education”, “continuing professional development”, and “professional development”. By raising awareness, providing information and resources, developing skills and strategies, and fostering dispositions, training may change professionals' ability and willingness to engage in decision-making processes that lead to improved reporting. METHODOLOGY Criteria for including and excluding studies Types of studies Randomised controlled trials (RCTs), quasi-RCTs (i.e. studies in which participants were assigned to intervention or comparison or control groups by a quasi-randomised method such as allocation by date of birth, or similar methods) and controlled before-and-after studies (i.e. studies where participants were allocated to intervention and control groups by means other than randomisation, but take into account baseline measurements of main outcomes; contemporaneous data collection for pre- and post-test intervention periods).