Knowledge of Mandatory Reporting Laws and Recording of Clients' Abuse Data: Effects of a Sexual Health Curriculum Training for Health Students in Tanzania.
Stella Emmanuel Mushy, Gift Gadiel Lukumay, Agnes F Massae, Dickson Ally Mkoka, Corissa T Rohloff, Nidhi Kohli, Lucy R Mgopa, Dorkasi L Mwakawanga, Ever Mkonyi, Michael W Ross, Maria Trent, B R Simon Rosser
Author Information
Stella Emmanuel Mushy: Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. ORCID
Gift Gadiel Lukumay: Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. ORCID
Agnes F Massae: Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. ORCID
Dickson Ally Mkoka: Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. ORCID
Corissa T Rohloff: University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA. ORCID
Nidhi Kohli: University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA. ORCID
Lucy R Mgopa: Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. ORCID
Dorkasi L Mwakawanga: Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. ORCID
Ever Mkonyi: Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. ORCID
Michael W Ross: University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA. ORCID
Maria Trent: Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA. ORCID
B R Simon Rosser: University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA. ORCID
Tanzania mandated reporting laws aim to identify and address child abuse, yet healthcare students' awareness and reporting are limited. This study assessed training's impact on their knowledge of reporting laws and handling confidential child abuse data. The study involved 412 medical and nursing students in a randomized controlled trial (RCT), with 206 participants receiving sexual health training and a waitlist control group of equal size receiving no intervention. Baseline and 3-month follow-up assessments evaluated knowledge of mandatory reporting laws and recording practices. At the 3-month follow-up, the control group showed minimal knowledge improvement (+7.5% for item 1, -6% for item 2), whereas the intervention group showed significant gains (23.7% for item 1, 0.7% for item 2). Additionally, notable disparity in total scores for reporting and recording between the groups emerged from baseline to follow-up (���=���-3.682, ���<���.001, Cohen's d���=���0.365). The intervention group (���=���0.527, SD���=���1.630) had a larger mean difference score than the control group (���=���-0.044, SD���=���1.499). Therefore, the training significantly improved students' knowledge of mandatory reporting laws and the recording of clients' confidential information.
