Doctors have warned that a royal commission on child abuse of minors in detention could be inevitable, as a report shows 80 per cent of paediatricians believe offshore processing of children constitutes abuse.

The research paper, Australia's treatment of refugee and asylum seeker children: the views of Australian paediatricians, published in the Medical Journal of Australia, also found gaps in paediatricians' knowledge of asylum seeker health.

Christmas Island: A report has shown 80 per cent of paediatricians believe offshore processing of children constitutes abuse. Credit:James Brickwood

Of the 139 doctors interviewed, 60 per cent knew that the Minister for Immigration, Scott Morrison, was the legal guardian of detained unaccompanied minors, while one-third of the GPs studied had used a professional interpreter service while managing refugees.

Co-author of the research paper, Professor David Isaacs, said mandatory detention of children was "traumatising" and "abhorrent".