[Changes in the child protection work of doctors, health visitors and health professionals, recommendations for the further work].

Introduction: From 13 June 1915, when the National Stefania Association was founded, for almost a century, the health visitors, alongside the doctors, were the health-social-child protection carers of children and families with children, the coordinators of this work. Objective: (1) To review the changes in the last decades that have changed the work of doctors, health visitors and health professionals in child protection; (2) to describe their place and responsibilities in the child protection system; (3) to make suggestions based on our professional experience on how they can work more effectively to better represent the interests of children in need. Method: We studied the legislation, professional regulations and literature related to the topic, and we also carried out systematic and analytical work based on our own professional experience. Results: Act III of 1993 on social welfare, Act XXXI of 1997 on child protection, and the creation of the family and child welfare services and centres in 2016, brought radical changes. Health professionals play a key role in the child protection signalling system and work together with other child protection actors. Our own health-child protection DDTT (Detection–Diagnosis–Treatment–Therapy) model and checklist, which have proved successful in our own work, can be used to help health professionals in their health-child protection work. Discussion: The place and responsibilities of doctors, health visitors and health professionals in the child protection system have become clearer. The role of all health professionals is very important in this work. Conclusion: More attention should be focused on cases within their own competence, on primary prevention in the field of health and child protection. Teamwork, traditionally important in the health sector, is also important in the health and child protection field. Also to follow the changes, participation in training courses is recommended. For more effective work, we recommend the use of the DDTT model and checklist, which have been well proven in our own work in health and child protection. Orv Hetil. 2025; 166(35): 1391–1400.