The training is a joint project by the NSPCC, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) and the Advanced Life Support Group, with a grant from the Department of Health.
The NSPCC said there was 'uneven' training in child protection across the country and hopes that the course will become a nationwide training standard and a mandatory requirement for trainee paediatricians.
The one-day course, with interactive DVD and training pack, is designed for both training and qualified paediatricians. The resource materials will also be available to GPs and doctors in casualty departments.
NSPCC director of training and consultancy Enid Hendry said, 'Deciding to report possible child abuse can be a very difficult judgement call, but it could be the child's only chance of intervention. Paediatricians are often the best-placed professionals to notice signs such as old fractures and unusual bruising.'
RCPCH president-elect Dr Patricia Hamilton said, 'Doctors are a crucial link in the child protection chain and we want to do everything possible to enable them to recognise and respond to possible cases of abuse.'
Last week a former president of the RCPCH said many doctors were afraid of raising concerns about suspected child abuse, following a series of high-profile court cases such as that of Sir Roy Meadow, the paediatrician found guilty of professional misconduct over evidence given in the trial of Sally Clark, accused of murdering her sons.
Writing in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, Professor Sir David Hall said that such cases had undermined doctors' confidence in the regulatory authorities.
'I fear that increasingly doctors will hesitate until the signs of abuse are all too obvious,' he said.
