Workshop debates national approach to handling child abuse cases

Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) and Sidra Medical and Research Center (Sidra) organised a three-day workshop to discuss the protection of children against abuse and violence in homes and within the community.Titled: “Protect us Young, We will Protect You Old”, the workshop discussed the formulation of a national and co-ordinated approach for handling child abuse cases in Qatar. The national process will apply to HMC, Sidra as well as medical services and healthcare institutions across the country.Dr Khalid Mohamed al-Ansari, director, Paediatric Emergency Services, HMC, and division chief, Emergency Medicine, Sidra, said, “It is imperative to protect our children from violence in society. As healthcare providers, we have a very important role to play in developing and expanding the framework to prevent and eliminate child abuse and neglect.”The workshop included discussions about putting in place a national process to address all kinds of child abuse such as physical, sexual, and psychological abuse and child neglect and the various government and support services required to handle cases. There were sessions that reviewed child abuse incidences in the country and how to improve services offered in the case of abuse.Officials from HMC, Sidra, Primary Health Care Corporation, Ministry of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs, Mental Health Friends Association, Human Rights Department, Police Department and Medical Service Department at the Ministry of Interior, Supreme Judiciary Council, Community Policing, National Human Rights Committee, Family Prosecution, Ministry of Education and Higher Education, Qatar Foundation for the Protection of Women and Children, Social Rehabilitation Centre, Qatar Petroleum and Al Ahli Hospital attended the workshop.“The Judiciary Supreme Council is always keen to participate in initiatives aimed at promoting justice and equality in the society. We have learned from other participants in the workshop, especially by sharing experience from existing cases of child abuse. We have also taken lessons as a whole group and filled the gaps in the process as we go on,” said Mohamad Ahmad al-Malki, judge assistant at the Supreme Judiciary Council. HMC staff across Paediatric Emergency Centres have been trained to spot child abuse cases. If someone is concerned about a child being abused, parents or guardians can bring them to the Paediatric Emergency Centre where a qualified team of child care specialists will diagnose the child and conduct medical checks. They will also ensure that the child and their family are directed to the right authorities so that the case is handled in the most humane and sensitive manner, without impacting on their rights or privacy.