Berks County Medical Society Medical Record Fall 2021 - 23

comprehended until 2070.
Figure 9. reveals survey participants' answers of which type of child
maltreatment has had the highest incidence during the pandemic.
Another point of further research is the role of Childline
in child abuse reporting. Mandated reporters are trained to
report any suspicion of child abuse to Childline, where reports
are redirected to the necessary agencies. The difficulty with this
process is that, in many cases, by the time Childline reports
are redirected to law enforcement agencies, crucial evidence
or testimonies may have been tainted. Thus, the Assistant
District Attorney stresses if someone strongly suspects abuse,
they call both law enforcement and Childline right away. It was
discovered that many people, including field leaders who are
mandated reporters, do not always report suspicions of abuse
to Childline due to the concern of causing families unnecessary
trouble or feeling the step is unnecessary once a report has been
made to law officials. However, this is problematic as Childline
ensures that alleged perpetrators are unable to receive clearances
to work with children until an investigation is concluded. More
importantly, even if no abuse occurred, families can be directed
to helpful parenting resources, benefitting both parents and
children alike and potentially preventing future abuse. While
mandated reporters are essential to the protection of Berks
County children, it is possible that changes could be made to
improve the efficiency of Childline and inter-departmental
communication.
Finally, it is also possible that social welfare protection
Figure 10. shows the percentages of survey participants who either
answered " yes, " no, " or " unsure " as to whether the severity of child
maltreatment being reported has changed during the pandemic.
DISCUSSION
During the course of this study, questions arose around
the process of reporting child abuse in general and during the
COVID-19 pandemic. The Assistant District Attorney, who
specializes in child abuse cases, theorized that COVID-19 safety
protocols and social distancing contributed to a decrease in
child abuse reporting. For example, at the Reading courthouse,
victims were only allowed to be accompanied by one parent.
Her hypothesis is that in addition to the lack of reporting of
recent abuse, victims of past abuse who were finally ready to
come forward were delayed. Therefore, she expects the child
abuse which occurred during the early months of the pandemic
will be reflected in the reports made in coming years. This is a
concern shared by members of The Center for Children's Justice,
with members comparing the 2020 reporting decrease to the
calm before a storm. In fact, some members of the Center have
already experienced an increase in abuse consultations during
the spring of 2021. While the criminal statute of limitations
in Pennsylvania varies for other forms of child abuse, victims
of sexual abuse have until roughly the age of 50 to file a
criminal complaint.27
This suggests that the true indirect and
direct impacts of COVID-19 on child abuse may not be fully
programs, such as unemployment benefits, Medicaid, and federal
stimulus programs, could have potentially staved off negative
economic stressors. If this is true, the Tower Health data may be
statistically representative of the abuse which occurred during
the pandemic. This would then logically dictate that an increase
in abuse will transpire as unemployment programs expire, which
supports further research on the issue. Regardless, continued
research is necessary to discern the statistical significance of the
trends observed within this preliminary study.
CONCLUSION
It is clear that the COVID-19 pandemic has increased the
risk of child abuse while decreasing the chance of prevention,
resulting in a temporary decrease of reporting within legal and
medical settings. What is unclear is the extent of this impact,
including the true number of child abuse cases which occurred,
and their lifetime costs to each individual and to society as
a whole. However, the final chapter of this research was to
examine how Berks County has come together to protect its
children. When speaking with the Director of the Children's
Alliance Center, she discussed the CAC's partnerships with
Safe Berks and Empowerment. She also shared that the CAC
has worked with several organizations to offer the presence
of therapy dogs at each victim interview, which has been an
extremely successful initiative. In fact, the CAC is attempting to
obtain a resident therapy dog for the courthouse. At the Berks
County Detective Office, officials are proud partners with the
Tower Health Reading Hospital, the Department of Child and
Youth Services (CYS), the Reading School District, and most
recently, the Hispanic Center of Reading and Berks County. The
Director of Student Support Services at Reading School District
also announced the district is ahead on their state
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Berks County Medical Society Medical Record Fall 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Berks County Medical Society Medical Record Fall 2021
