By Jarrod Mills
Staff Writer Apr 16, 2021
4 hrs ago
With Kentucky continuing to lead the nation in child abuse rates, the Whitley County Health Department will bring back an annual tradition in combating those numbers when it hosts its Stand Up for Children walks later this month.
Health Educator Kathy Lay says the health department had hosted the walks for four years before having to cancel last yearâs walk due to the pandemic.
âWe use the walks to raise awareness about reporting child abuse,â Lay explained. âGetting people to standup for kids and report.â
According to data from the Kids Count Data Center compiled from Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, Department for Community Based Services (DCBS), in 2018, the Tri-County area had some of the highest rates of of reports to DCBS meeting criteria for child abuse/neglect in Kentucky.
Blue pinwheels placed outside the Big Sandy Child Advocacy Center, also known as Judiâs Place for Kids, are intended to help raise awareness of child abuse issues during April, National Child Abuse Prevention Month. Officials said that, despite strides made on the problem of child abuse in recent years, work must be done to increase awareness and reporting of child abuse. News-Express photo by Nicole Ziege
For a third consecutive year, Kentuckyâs child abuse rate has outranked the rest of the nation, and local child advocates continue to urge the public to raise awareness on the issue.
This year, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Childrenâs Bureau released its âChild Maltreatment 2019â report, which stated that Kentucky had more than 20,000 abuse and neglect cases in 2019. That equated to about 20 out of every 1,000 children in the state who experienced some type of child maltreatment. In comparison, West Vi
Kentucky has the highest child abuse rate in the country for the third year in a row. The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Children’s Bureau “Child Maltreatment 2019” report released this year shows Kentucky had more than 20,000 abuse and neglect cases, meaning approximately 20 out of every 1,000 children in the commonwealth experienced some type of child maltreatment. By comparison, the second-highest state (West Virginia) had a rate of 18.7 per 1,000 kids. The U.S. average is 8.9. COVID-19 could lead to more abuse Experts are concerned the COVID-19 pandemic could lead to a spike in child abuse numbers for 2020. The pandemic left families faced with financial, emotional and other stresses combined with spending long periods of time isolated at home with a lack of structure and support. These stressors can lead to potentially dangerous situations.
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