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In the United States, one of the most educated
and affluent countries in the world, in 2006, an estimated
905,000 children were determined to be victims of child abuse
or neglect, an increase of over 6,000 children from 2005.
These abused and/or neglected children were identified based
on 3.6 million referrals alleging child abuse or neglect that
were accepted by state and local child protective services
(CPS) agencies for investigation. That means about 12 out
of every 1,000 children up to age 18 in the United States
were found to be victims of maltreatment in 2006 (USDHHS,
2008). Nationally, 1,530 children died as a result of this
victimization, also an increase from 2005, when there were
1,460 child fatalities (USDHHS-ACF, 2008).
In New York State, in 2006, the child population
was 4,514,342. Of those children, 80,077 were determined to
have been abused or neglected. In 2006, 73 children died in
New York State as a result of abuse or neglect, a slight decrease
from 2005 when there were 75 child fatalities (USDHHS-ACF,
2008).
Although New York State was a leader in the
prevention of child cruelty, going back to the 1800s, it was
Chapter 544 of the laws of 1988 that required select professionals
to complete 2 hours of coursework regarding the identification
and reporting of child abuse and maltreatment/neglect, utilizing
the curriculum developed by the New York State Education Department.
In 2005, the responsibility for approval of the content of
the course was transferred to the New York State Office of
Children and Family Services.
The laws regarding the reporting of child
abuse have been revised since 1988. Some of these revisions
have included adding to the list of professionals who are
mandated reporters who must meet this educational requirement,
changes in procedure, etc. The most recent changes occurred
July 3, 2007. This course has been revised to include the
changes.
Ken Hammond, USDA.
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