한국치위생학회

Perception of child abuse and attitudes towards mandatory reporting among dental hygienist

Seon-Yeong Kim1,*   

Department of Dental Hygiene, Kwangju Women’s University

Abstract

This study aimed to enhance the role of dental hygienists by identifying perceptions of child abuse, attitude towards reporting obligations, and awareness of the reporting system, and providing basic data for early detection and reporting of child abuse reporting obligations. From 2021-06-20 to 2021-09-09, 156 dental hygienists working at dental clinics and hospitals in Gwangju and Jeollanam-do were surveyed. Statistical analyses were performed using t-tests, ANOVA, and Pearson’s correlation analysis. The points for awareness of child abuse, obligatory reporting attitude, and awareness of mandatory reporting system were found to be 3.52, 3.01, and 2.30, respectively. A significant positive correlation was observed between the negative attitude to report child abuse (r=0.332, p<0.01) and the perception of the mandatory reporting system (r=0.343, p< 0.01). Conclusions: This study confirmed that various educational programs and research are needed for the early detection and reporting of child abuse by dental hygienists.

Figures & Tables

Table 1. Dental hygienists’ awareness of child abuse, attitude to report, and awareness of mandatory reporting system