Child Deaths from Abuse and Neglect

[calamity]

Reliable statistics on deaths and near-deaths from abuse and neglect can help shape better policies to protect children. A new report shows the breadth of government failures to collect and report this information.

Startling information revealed in the article below.

The Price of America’s Inability to Track Child Deaths from Abuse and Neglect? Sometimes, More Lives. — ProPublica

Experts have long suspected that the United States badly undercounts the number of children who die from abuse and neglect. The voluntary reporting system relied on for decades may be off by at least 200%, they say, missing thousands of fatalities.

In 2012, Congress moved to make information about the deaths more accessible to the public by requiring states to release detailed reports on child fatalities and near-fatalities. But when The Boston Globe and ProPublica set out to collect these reports, it turned into a frustrating, three-year slog through child welfare offices from Maine to Hawaii.

The article goes on to show several states do not comply with the federal law at all and several more putting up barriers, making the information far from "accessible." This is troubling.

Without reliable information on child abuse, officials are unable to craft fact-driven policies and prevention efforts, said Vincent Palusci, a professor of pediatrics at NYU School of Medicine and a nationally regarded expert in child abuse. Instead, they are left to react to the most extreme, headline-grabbing cases with little notion of broader, systemic patterns or warning signs within individual families.

It's rather odd, IMO, that states are not required to put proven cases of neglect and abuse into a database. In this, the information age, the one thing social service providers lack is accurate information on child abuse.

If there were stronger mechanisms for collecting and disclosing data, Indiana officials might have been able to do more to save Micahyah Crockett.

Micahyah was just one of many...many thousands across the country, unfortunately.

 

[3leftsdoo]

Privacy.

It's a thing.

 

[calamity]

Privacy.

It's a thing.

Not when an abusive parent puts their kid in the hospital, it isn't. But, for some reason, it is.

 

[HumblePi]

Startling information revealed in the article below.

The Price of America’s Inability to Track Child Deaths from Abuse and Neglect? Sometimes, More Lives. — ProPublica



The article goes on to show several states do not comply with the federal law at all and several more putting up barriers, making the information far from "accessible." This is troubling.



It's rather odd, IMO, that states are not required to put proven cases of neglect and abuse into a database. In this, the information age, the one thing social service providers lack is accurate information on child abuse.



Micahyah was just one of many...many thousands across the country, unfortunately.

Right now, in my state, there's a manhunt out for a guy that murdered his girlfriend. The police have him in custody but her 1 year old daughter is missing.

 

[calamity]

Right now, in my state, there's a manhunt out for a guy that murdered his girlfriend. The police have him in custody but her 1 year old daughter is missing.

not going to have a happy ending.

 

[Lisa]

Privacy.

It's a thing.

How is this a privacy issue?

 

[HumblePi]

not going to have a happy ending.

No it surely is not. It's very sad. The police have the father, but he denies murdering this woman. I don't think he's been arrested.

 

[calamity]

No it surely is not. It's very sad. The police have the father, but he denies murdering this woman. I don't think he's been arrested.

He probably used the baby to force the mother to comply. I know of a case where that happened, but thankfully no one died. And the asshole was sentenced to 40 years, served 22 or so.

 

[calamity]

Well, at least some good came of the article.

We told you Arizona is the only state to ignore our CAPTA survey and local reporters have taken that seriously. I spoke with @kjzzphoenix this morning about how Arizona measures up with the country's primary child abuse prevention law.

Emily Palmer