By David Mitchell

Most professionals in child protection are 'reluctant or unprepared' to discuss the risk of HIV infection, a conference was told this week.

Jacqueline Mok, consultant paediatrician at Edinburgh Sick Children's NHS Trust, said HIV counselling and testing were an integral part of the support provided to adult victims of sexual assault.

'This contrasts with that offered to children, where the question of HIV is in the minds of child sex abuse victims, but they either don't say it or are fobbed off by workers,' she told the British Association for the Study and Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect national conference in Edinburgh.

'When a child discloses sexual abuse, some families and young people want to be tested.

'But if the child protection worker is unfamiliar with HIV, it is easy not to mention it because they don't really know what to do.'

Mok, who specialises in HIV and child protection, claimed many problems arise because of ignorance or lack of awareness between the two specialisms.

'It appears that training for HIV and child protection is disparate and separate. Child protection workers tend to be social workers in child care, while HIV co-ordinators are mainly in adult services, and have no interest or knowledge of child protection,' she said.

Mok added that those working with child abuse survivors should, at the very least, know about routes of HIV transmission, tests available, clinical developments - including therapies - and support services.