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Reported Cases of Child Abuse Increasing in Kentucky, Fatalities Remain Steady

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  Fewer Kentucky children are dying at the hands of an abuser, but the number of cases of child abuse is drastically rising.

  The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Children’s Bureau releases an annual report on child abuse and fatalities. The most recent report uses data from 2016. The study found that 15 Kentucky children died that year from abuse.

 

Fatalities have been declining or have remained flat in the past several years, but in 2016, the commonwealth had the second-highest abuse rate in the nation. Dr. Erin Frazier is medical director for prevention and wellness at Norton Children’s Hospital in Louisville. She said she hopes more education has led to earlier interventions.

 

"And I'm very hopeful that we're starting to learn to recognize signs of abuse and make reports early so that children are being protected before they actually have a fatal event,"Frazier said.

 

She said the opioid epidemic is contributing to the spike in child abuse.

 

"When you have babies born to mothers in recovery from the opioid epidemic, those babies also tend to be a lot more fussy and cry more, so they are at higher risk of abuse," Frazier said.

 

Dr. Frazier said shaken baby syndrome is one of the most common forms of abuse that typically occurs in the first year of a child’s life.

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. Kentucky has a mandatory reporting law that requires any member of the public to report suspected child abuse or neglect.

 

Lisa is a Scottsville native and WKU alum. She has worked in radio as a news reporter and anchor for 18 years. Prior to joining WKU Public Radio, she most recently worked at WHAS in Louisville and WLAC in Nashville. She has received numerous awards from the Associated Press, including Best Reporter in Kentucky. Many of her stories have been heard on NPR.
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