SUNBURY – Changes in child protection laws could account for the sharp increase in substantiated child abuse cases in Pennsylvania. In the last year, the number of abuse cases grew to 4,200 from 863 the year before. Dr. Pat Bruno, founder of the Child Advocacy Center says the numbers are not surprising, “I’m not surprised because we always lagged behind in terms of the reporting and the statistics. Our definitions of what constituted child abuse were so narrow, that we were missing cases.”
Bruno says changes to legislation following the Jerry Sandusky trial, broadened the definition of child abuse, “Physical abuse was defined in 2010-2011 as something that occurred that was very severe and caused pain and limited mobility, or something like that.” Under that definition, Pennsylvania reported 1.4 children in 1,000 were victims of child abuse as compared to the national average of 9.3 in 1,000.
Bruno says having more accurate numbers means more children are getting the help they need and legislators can respond appropriately, “So now those children are being counted and that helps our legislators know what’s going on within our state so they can give the adequate amount of funds that need to do with children and youth services, etcetera.”
Bruno said the Child Advocacy Center, a division the Janet Weis Children’s Hospital at Geisinger Medical Center now sees about 500 abuse victims every year. Pennsylvania reported 47 percent of victims were sexually abused compared to the national average of 10 to 15 percent.
