Kentucky again has worst child abuse rates in nation; locals continue to battle scourge of child abuse floydct.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from floydct.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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Sharen Ford, director of foster care and adoption for Focus on the Family, emphasized the importance of reporting any sign of suspected abuse and neglect, especially as some children are returning to school for the first time since the pandemic lockdowns began.
“Our Prevention with Purpose campaign is about helping everyone to know that their eyes and ears matter in the life of a child,” Ford told CP in an interview Wednesday. “If you see something that is suspicious, please call and report it. If you hear something that concerns you, a conversation that young children are having or older children and it sounds suspicious, please pick up the phone and report it.
April is Child Abuse Prevention Month and, in a couple of weeks, our friends at GRADD will once again be hosting the annual Stand Against Child Abuse. This year s Stand, due to ongoing concerns about COVID-19, will be a drive-thru event at Towne Square Mall. And, for the third year in a row, when the Stand is held, Kentucky will have the highest rate of child abuse in the entire country.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Children s Bureau Child Maltreatment 2019 report was just released and Kentucky had more than 20,000 reported abuse and child neglect cases in that calendar year. If you break down those statistics based on population, that s 20 cases out of every 1,000 children in the commonwealth. According to the report, we re well above the U.S. average of 8.9 children per every 1,000. That s startling and horrifying.