Child Abuse and Prevention

Child abuse is epidemic in many countries as well as the United States. It is estimated that every thirteen seconds a child is abused in some manner: physically, sexually, emotionally or by neglect (Friedman). Each year, there are over 3 million reports of child abuse in the United States involving more than 6 million children. Child abuse can be reduced with proper education of the parents and with greater public awareness.

Child abuse is when a parent or caregiver, through action or failure to act, causes injury, death, emotional harm or risk of serious harm to a child. According to The Federal Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, as amended by the CAPTA Reauthorization Act of 2010, at a minimum, child abuse and neglect is defined as, "Any recent act or failure to act on the part of a parent or caretaker which results in death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse or exploitation"; or "An act or failure to act which presents an imminent risk of serious harm (Children 's Bureau, 2010)." The law recognizes a child as being any person who is under the age of 18. The law is broken into 2 sections, and each section treats the idea of child maltreatment in different ways. Criminally, those who abuse children are able to be arrested and prosecuted in court. Civil statutes say that people who suspect a child of being abused are mandated to identify and report it.

The National Children 's Alliance reported that the number of unique cases of abused and neglected children in the United States stands at an annual rate of 700,000 and rising (as cited in ?U.S. Department of Health & Human Services,? 2016, p. ii). Sadly, this means that more than 1,900 new children become victims of abuse and neglect with each passing day. Neglect was the type of

Westat found that professionals failed to report many of the children they saw who had signs of child abuse and neglect. It found that in 1986, 56 percent of apparently abused or neglected children, or about 500,000 children, were not reported to the authorities. This figure, however, seems more alarming than it is: Basically, the more serious the case, the more likely the report. For example, the surveyed professionals reported over 85 percent of the fatal or serious physical abuse cases they saw, 72 percent of the sexual abuse cases, and 60 percent of the moderate physical abuse cases. They only reported 15 percent of the educational neglect cases they saw, 24 percent of the emotional neglect cases, and 25 percent of the moderate physical neglect cases.

Child abuse is a very sensitive issue that needs to by carefully handled. Child abuse is defined as a no accidental injury or pattern of injures to a child for which there is no reasonable explanation.

The United States has one of the worst records among nations. On the average between four and seven children are lost every day to child abuse and neglect. Three million reports of child abuse have been made in the United States. In 2012, state agencies found an estimated 686,000 victims of child mistreatment. Ischemic heart disease (IHD), chronic obstruct pulmonary disease

Now in recent history, data statistics provided online by the National Statistics on Child Abuse, recorded that in 2015, 1670 children died from abuse in neglect across the country (2017). Almost 700,000 children are abused annually throughout the United States. In California, roughly 75,000 abuse cases were found to be true. Specifically in California and in 2015, 26.9% of children who were abused were in between the ages of six and ten. Children who are between the ages of eleven and fifteen made up 20% of abuse cases in California.

According to statistics 12.4 per 1000 children under the age of 17 have been a victim of child abuse. More than 6 million children are reported as abused in the last year. Sadly the fate of many of these children that live in abusive homes is death. 1.84 per 100,000 was reported to be abused in 2012. The number continued to rise to 1.96 in 2014. In the reported cases both or one parent was the cause of the death 79% of the time. In 16% of the cases a non-parent guardian was the cause of death. 5% of the deaths were caused by an unknown person.

children are confirmed each year as victims of child abuse and neglect by state child

U.S. Centers for Disease Control did a study that examined nearly 600,000 confirmed child maltreatment cases over the course of a year. Of the cases there were 1,740 of the cases that resulted in the death of a child.

Child abuse in the United States is a growing epidemic. Every year the number of reported cases, and missing children go up. This is caused mostly by lack of education about the different types of child abuse, and the signs that go along with it. Communities need to provide more resources to better educate the public about the types of abuse, and the signs that go along with it. Child abuse and neglect can be lessened by more resources, more education and to reach out to others.

According to Pecora, Sanders, Wilson, English, Puckett & Rudlang-Perman (2014), “Every year in the USA, about 695,000 unique children are confirmed as victims of child maltreatment (US Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Children’s Bureau 2011) (p. 321). Such startling statistics suggest that child abuse is not just a public health issue; it is an epidemic. However, research reveals that prevention is possible through a collaborative effort made by parents, schools, the government, social services, and the

Investigators substantiated abuse or neglect for nearly 1 million of the children reported. Among substantiated cases, 56 percent involved physical or emotional neglect, 25 percent involved physical abuse, 13 percent involved sexual abuse, 6 percent involved emotional abuse, and 13 percent involved other abuse, such as educational neglect or abandonment. Some children experienced multiple forms of abuse.

     In 2012, an estimated 1,642 children died due to child abuse and neglect, which is 4.5 children every day (Fromm). Approximately 4 out of every 5 are under 5-years-old and children under 1 account for 2 out of 5 of all fatalities. Children under 5 are more likely to die from child abuse due to lack of ability to cope with abuse. Children’s bodies are more fragile and it is easier for an individual to physically harm a small child rather than older children who can somewhat fight back.

Every year more than 3 million reports of child abuse are made in the United States involving more than 6 million children(Child Abuse Statistics & Facts). Child abuse doesn’t necessarily have to be physical, it can be mental, emotional, or sexual, it can even be neglect. Abuse doesn’t only effect the child being abused but it also affects the people witnessing the abuse. Child abuse can affect the child in many different ways. There can be many effects of abuse on the child (Kraizer). The worst way the child can be affected is suicide.