Malawi One Stop Centre Curriculum
Participant Manual
Authors and Acknowledgements ................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 3
Scope of the Curriculum ................................................................................................................. 3
Goals of the Curriculum .................................................................................................................. 3
Outline of Learning Modules .......................................................................................................... 4
Appendix: Complete List of Learning Objectives .......................................................................................... 6
I. One Stop Centre Best Practices.............................................................................................................. 6
II. Malawi’s Laws & Definitions ................................................................................................................. 6
III. Becoming a Trainer ................................................................................................................................. 6
IV. Sexual Abuse .............................................................................................................................................. 6
V. Ministry of Gender, Children, Disabilities, and Social Welfare................................................. 6
VI. Interviewing Survivors .......................................................................................................................... 7
VII. Domestic Violence and Emotional Abuse ...................................................................................... 7
VIII. Psychosocial Support........................................................................................................................... 7
IX. Physical Injuries in Child Abuse and Domestic Violence .......................................................... 7
X. Testifying in Court ..................................................................................................................................... 7
XI. Compassion Fatigue ................................................................................................................................ 7
Editors and Contributing Authors
Co-Editors
Aaron J. Miller, MD, MPA, FAAP
Executive Director,
BRANCH – Building Regional Alliances
to Nurture Child Health
Neil Kennedy MRCPH, MMedSci, DTMH
Head of Department, Pediatrics
Malawi College of Medicine
Blantyre, Malawi
Contributing Authors
Stephen C. Boos, MD, FAAP
Child Abuse Pediatrics
Medical Director,
Baystate Family Advocacy Center
Associate Professor of Pediatrics
Tufts University School of Medicine
Springfield, Massachusetts, USA
David L. Corwin, MD, FAAP
Professor of Pediatrics
University of Utah School of Medicine
Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
Justin Hamela
Director of Gender
Ministry of Gender, Children,
Disabilities & Social Welfare
Lilongwe, Malawi
Marilyn Kaufhold, MD, FAAP
Child Abuse Pediatrics
Chadwick Center for Children & Families
Rady Children’s Hospital
San Diego, California, USA
Sandra Murray, MD, FAAP
Child Abuse Pediatrics
HS Associate Clinical Professor
Department of Pediatrics
UCI Medical Center
Orange, California, USA
John Stirling, Jr., MD, FAAP
Child Abuse Pediatrics
Director, Center for Child Protection,
Santa Clara Valley Medical Center
Clinical Professor (Affiliated) in
Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics
Stanford University School of
Medicine
San Jose, California, USA
Tandu Zimba
Head Counselor,
Blantyre One Stop Centre
Co-Director, Fountain of Life
Blantyre, Malawi
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Acknowledgments
This curriculum was developed by Dr. Aaron J. Miller, Executive Director of Building
Regional Alliances to Nurture Child Health (BRANCH) in collaboration with the
Malawi Ministry of Health; Ministry of Gender, Children, Disabilities and Social
Welfare; Ministry of Home Affairs and Internal Security; Ministry of Justice and
Constitutional Affairs, UNICEF Malawi, the International Society for the Prevention
of Child Abuse and Neglect (ISPCAN), and contributing authors from the Ray E.
Helfer Society.
Introduction
Scope of the Curriculum
This curriculum has been developed for medical, legal and social welfare
professionals who are on the front lines of providing care to survivors of violence.
Through 3 days of didactics and case discussions, the curriculum provides an indepth introduction to skills professionals need in order to evaluate, treat, protect,
advocate and provide follow-up for children and adults who have been sexually
abuse or physically abused, including domestic violence.
The greatest level of detail in the curriculum is in the medical and psychosocial
aspects of violence, all of which are pertinent to law enforcement and social welfare
roles. The law enforcement and social welfare roles are presented and discussed
throughout the training and case discussions, but the training does not address the
full range of skills and responsibilities needed by law enforcement and social
welfare in their roles of protecting and helping families.
This curriculum is designed in a level of detail and in a style that requires that it be
delivered in-person by people who have completed the One Stop Centre Training of
Trainers . To only read the modules, or to have them taught by someone who has not
completed the TOT is not sufficient and could lead to a false sense of comfort and
possible under- or over-diagnosis of abuse.
Goals of the Curriculum
 Improve the identification and medical treatment of children and adults who
have experienced physical, sexual, and emotional violence.
 Increase communication, information exchange and networking among
multidisciplinary professionals in local private and public agencies and
organizations
 Build and strengthen multi-disciplinary teams
 Strengthen and expand existing services through more qualified professionals
The specific objectives for each learning module are listed in two places: the
Appendix in this document, and at the beginning of each module.
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The Learning Modules
In this curriculum, each of the 11 main topics is described as a module, and each
module may have one or more sections. For each module that is presented during
the training, the facilitator will give you a printed handout of the slides on which you
can take notes during the presentation.
Outline of Learning Modules
I.
II.
One Stop Centre Best Practices
Malawi’s Laws & Definitions
III.
Becoming a Trainer
IV.
Sexual Abuse
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
IX.
X.
XI.
Ministry of Gender, Children, Disabilities, and Social Welfare
Interviewing Survivors
Domestic Violence and Emotional Abuse
Psychosocial Support
Physical Injuries in Child Abuse and Domestic Violence
Testifying in Court
Compassion Fatigue
Complete List of Learning Objectives
I. One Stop Centre Best Practices
The participant will be able to:
1. Explain the different roles and responsibilities of medical and other health
professionals, social services, law enforcement, education/schools, NGOs and
other key agencies.
2. Discuss the medical, psychosocial and safety benefits of interagency
coordination.
3. List common barriers to interagency coordination and consider effective steps
to create lasting improvements in coordination.
II. Malawi’s Laws & Definitions
The participant will be able to:
1. Distinguish between different types of abuse as defined by Malawi law.
2. Understand how these different definitions impact the types of information
and preservation of evidence needed from medical providers.
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III. Becoming a Trainer
The participant will be able to:
•
Understand important aspects of how adults learn.
•
Incorporate strategies for engaging your participants.
•
Identify methods to improve knowledge and to change practices.
IV. Sexual Abuse
The participant will be able to:
1. Recognize signs and symptoms of abuse and understand why survivors do not
disclose abuse easily or consistently.
2. Explain why genital injuries may not be found when sexually abused survivors
are examined.
3. List the various aspects of treatment.
V. Role of Ministry of Gender, Children, Disabilities and Social Welfare
The participant will be able to:
1. Understand the national and international laws that serve as the basis for the
Ministry of Gender’s role in addressing child abuse and gender-based
violence.
2. Explain the role of social welfare workers in assessing families and providing
case management.
3. Understand the role of social welfare workers within the one stop centre
multidisciplinary team.
VI. Interviewing Survivors of Abuse
The participant will be able to:
1. Discuss important logistical issues in speaking with survivors.
2. Integrate psychosocial history into medical history when interviewing
survivors.
3. Incorporate evidence-based best practices when asking survivors about
maltreatment.
VII. Domestic Violence
The participant will be able to:
1. Explain the various types of domestic violence and emotional abuse.
2. Understand how domestic violence between adults affects children.
3. Incorporate into daily practice several questions to screen for domestic
violence.
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VIII. Psychosocial Support
The participant will be able to:
1. Explain the important role played by family members in providing support to
survivors.
2. Understand the different types of psychological support provided to survivors
of abuse.
IX. Physical Injuries in Child Abuse and Domestic Violence
The participant will be able to:
1. Discuss common forms of punishment, and give examples for when it crosses
the line to abuse.
2. Recognize historical and physical exam findings that raise a concern of child
abuse and domestic violence.
3. Structure an appropriate evaluation for abuse when it is suspected.
4. Initiate management of abuse within the systems of the host country.
X. Compassion Fatigue
The participant will be able to:
1. Understand the concepts of compassion fatigue and vicarious trauma.
2. Recognize the signs and symptoms of compassion fatigue.
3. Appreciate the importance of checking in on oneself and colleagues to assess
for compassion fatigue.
XI. Testifying in Court
The participant will be able to:
1. List important legal elements of medical documentation in child abuse.
2. Explain the steps in working with attorneys to prepare for court.
3. Describe how to testify in court.
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