FGM e-learning resource launched by the RCPSG

By Hollie Ewers on 21 November 2018 FGM - Female Genital Mutilation Learning Healthcare Professionals

Healthcare professionals who carry out pre-travel consultations will be better equipped to deal with issues around FGM, following the launch of a free online course by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow (RCPSG).

The accredited online learning package has been produced by subject experts in the college's Travel Medicine Faculty and is freely available to healthcare professionals. 

The course aims to assist professionals in overcoming the potential barriers there may be to raising the topic in a travel medicine consultation, and provides practical support for this situation.

It consists of a programme of videos, presentations and other information, which takes around one hour to complete, and is CPD accredited. 

Dean of the Faculty of Travel Medicine and the course’s author Jane Chiodini said: ‘FGM is child abuse. It is illegal to take girls under the age of 18 who are British nationals or permanent residents of the UK abroad for FGM, whether or not the practice is lawful in that country. 

‘In addition, if a practitioner suspects a child is at risk, we're obliged to take action to support them. 

‘But as a nurse who is a specialist in this area, I know that many of my colleagues who deliver travel health services don't always have experience of identifying or dealing with this situation effectively. 

‘They may also lack the confidence to raise the topic of FGM in a travel consultation, especially when this takes place in a time-limited appointment. When this happens, the opportunity to prevent this horrific practice is tragically missed.’

The course looks at some of the perceived barriers to raising the topic, and explores the solutions, which could be used to make practitioners more confident in dealing with this situation.  

The course is free to access from the RCPSG website.