Open AccessThe Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Child Protection System Referrals and Responses in Colorado, USA
Author(s) -
Samantha M. Brown,
Rebecca Orsi,
Pang Ching Bobby Chen,
Courtney Everson,
John Fluke
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
child maltreatment
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.185
H-Index - 83
eISSN - 1552-6119
pISSN - 1077-5595
DOI - 10.1177/10775595211012476
Subject(s) - pandemic , covid-19 , neglect , social distance , medicine , child abuse , poison control , vulnerability (computing) , referral , injury prevention , suicide prevention , environmental health , psychology , psychiatry , family medicine , disease , infectious disease (medical specialty) , computer security , pathology , computer science
Although the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has amplified risk factors known to increase children's vulnerability to abuse and neglect, emerging evidence suggests declines in maltreatment reporting and responding following COVID-19 social distancing protocols in the United States. Using statewide administrative data, this study builds on the current state of knowledge to better understand the volume of child protection system (CPS) referrals and responses in Colorado, USA before and during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic and to determine whether there were differences in referral and response rates by case characteristics. Results indicated an overall decline in referrals and responses during COVID-19 when compared to the previous year. Declines were specific to case characteristics, such as reporter and maltreatment type. Implications regarding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on child maltreatment reporting and CPS response are discussed.
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