Officials reflect on child abuse stats
By Jennifer Colton - Argus Observer
Friday, April 20, 2007 1:02 PM PDT
Ontario - In February alone, 10 Malheur County children were removed from their homes because of abuse or neglect. Child abuse and neglect are key themes in April as part of National Child Abuse Awareness Month.
The impact from child abuse and neglect hampers every community, Malheur County Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) Program Director Myrna Andersen said.
“Ninety-five percent of the (child abuse) cases we see are drug or alcohol related, (child) neglect,” Andersen said. “Child abuse or neglect is getting worse and worse.”
In 2004, 872,000 children were declared victims of child abuse and neglect nationwide, and 1,490 children died from abuse or neglect, according to statistics from the United States Department of Health and Human Services. When Anderson began working with CASA — a nationwide organization of volunteers appointed by a judge to speak in court on behalf of abused and neglected children —10 years ago, she said the group averaged 31 new incoming cases, but in 2006, CASA accepted 67 incoming cases.
“Most of these are children we have not seen before,” Andersen said. “We see a lot of babies. So many of these mothers don’t think about it, but if they’re nursing their baby and they have drugs in their system, that baby is getting that drug. That is a form of child abuse.”
While bruises come from every day activity for many children, Andersen said to watch for constant bruises or marks in unusual places like the back of the leg, the inside of the arm or the back of the head.
“Those are the things you need to report,” Andersen said. “Everybody that sees child abuse must be aware, and they need to report it.”
If possible, Andersen said it is important to write down the child’s name, where the abuse was observed, what the child looks like and what occurred.
“You get whatever information you can and call the police or DHS,” she said, adding that she once wrote down the license plate of an individual she saw pull a child out of a shopping cart by one arm.
Child abuse is also denying children medical care, Andersen said.
“What the general public doesn’t realize is that anything they can do to educate themselves will help,” Tammy Burt, CASA volunteer coordinator, said. “To recognize the symptoms and the programs that are available to help. I think a lot of the time, people don’t know what to do, so they do nothing.”
Andersen, Burt and Helen Plaza, Oregon Department of Human Services Child Welfare Programs, Social Services Specialist, each recommended reporting suspected abuse.
“Even if you just suspect it, call,” Plaza said. “It can be anonymous. If anyone ever sees anything, call our office at (541) 889-9194 during regular business hours or 911 after hours. Call the police and ask for an on-call worker. We have a 24-hour, 7-day-a-week on-call worker.”
Plaza also asked that people be especially alert during the summer months when children are not monitored daily by teachers.
“The No. 1 thing the public can do to help prevent child abuse is to be educated about it,” Burt said. “That’s the only way it’s ever going to be stopped.”
Burt and Andersen are trying to involve the public not only through reporting child abuse, but also in keeping the doors to CASA open.
“What we’re trying to do is find community partners,” Burt said. “If people did that, if they made a commitment to $60 a year, it would keep this much needed program in our community. That’s only $5 a month, one fancy coffee a month. Sixty bucks isn’t a lot for anyone. I don’t think people realize that $5 really could make the difference.”
Andersen said they are hoping for 200 people to pledge $60 a year as CASA spends an average of $500 per child in the program. The group is also looking for more volunteers.
“We could use 10 more volunteers right now and have cases for all of them,” she said. “No matter what, a child does so much better when they have one person saying ‘I believe in you.’”
