Stories similar to the boy taken away from his family and shuffled around in foster care for a false accusation of child abuse and neglect, and the story of a child kept in a cage for a week, show that these states need serious reform. Looking at all three states, there appears to be more similarities than differences with respect to how they handle child abuse and neglect. First and foremost, each state has a government run department that deals with abuse and neglect. All of the departments receive reports, investigate cases, evaluate whether the family is safe for that child and place kids in foster care if necessary. In addition to these departments, each state has laws about mandatory reporting. Connecticut, Alabama and Wyoming all require
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In every state more then sixty percent of children were a victim of neglect. I think the states need to do a better job educating parents and communities. The problem with parental neglect is usually that parents cannot financially support their children or they have a drug or alcohol problem. According to The National Center on Addition and Substance Abuse, adults with substance abuse disorders are 2.7 times more likely to report abusive behavior and 4.2 more likely to report neglectful behavior toward their children (Child Abuse and Neglect Statistics: americanhumane.org). I believe the state departments dealing with families need to take this statistic into consideration and act on treating substance abuse and probably the mental health needs of parents. These state services need to provide thorough and extensive child protective supervision. All of the state’s departments that I studied offer short term services to the families. They offer short term drug treatment programs to address addiction. However, it is likely that drug abuse needs to be addressed on a long-term basis. The states need to supervise and monitor these children with parents that have drug …show more content…
Connecticut did a better job than Alabama and Wyoming because they have a list with descriptions of what kind of behaviors that are considered to be abuse and neglect. I think these states need to clarify child abuse reporting laws. This can be accomplished without making a huge change to present laws or practices. The key is to explain reportable situations in relation to certain parental behaviors or circumstances that show possible harm to children.
After looking at these states, one can agree that reform needs to happen when dealing with child abuse and neglect. I believe the underlying problem is the parents in these child abuse or neglect cases. The state is trying to make their policies better which can help but it will not solve the root of the problem. When looking at these cases of child abuse I saw one common theme, families living in poverty or mental illness. I think that the state needs to change and modify certain policies, as well as, focus on the primary
In every state more then sixty percent of children were a victim of neglect. I think the states need to do a better job educating parents and communities. The problem with parental neglect is usually that parents cannot financially support their children or they have a drug or alcohol problem. According to The National Center on Addition and Substance Abuse, adults with substance abuse disorders are 2.7 times more likely to report abusive behavior and 4.2 more likely to report neglectful behavior toward their children (Child Abuse and Neglect Statistics: americanhumane.org). I believe the state departments dealing with families need to take this statistic into consideration and act on treating substance abuse and probably the mental health needs of parents. These state services need to provide thorough and extensive child protective supervision. All of the state’s departments that I studied offer short term services to the families. They offer short term drug treatment programs to address addiction. However, it is likely that drug abuse needs to be addressed on a long-term basis. The states need to supervise and monitor these children with parents that have drug …show more content…
Connecticut did a better job than Alabama and Wyoming because they have a list with descriptions of what kind of behaviors that are considered to be abuse and neglect. I think these states need to clarify child abuse reporting laws. This can be accomplished without making a huge change to present laws or practices. The key is to explain reportable situations in relation to certain parental behaviors or circumstances that show possible harm to children.
After looking at these states, one can agree that reform needs to happen when dealing with child abuse and neglect. I believe the underlying problem is the parents in these child abuse or neglect cases. The state is trying to make their policies better which can help but it will not solve the root of the problem. When looking at these cases of child abuse I saw one common theme, families living in poverty or mental illness. I think that the state needs to change and modify certain policies, as well as, focus on the primary