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Case Western Reserve University researchers have uncovered a startling statistic in their research on domestic violence in Ohio -- one in four Buckeye State children will experience domestic violence before reaching adulthood. Worse, only about half of those children receive any kind of help.
"Domestic violence carries lifetime consequences for children that have enormous costs on our society and public resources," Megan Holmes, lead researcher of the report and an assistant professor at CWRU, said.
In fact, the researchers estimated a lifetime cost of $2.2 billion in the form of increased health care, crime and productivity loss. Keep in mind, experience with or exposure to domestic violence can mean simply witnessing a physically, sexually or psychologically violent act. The damage is still done.
Some of the recommendations to come from the study involve more funding, of course: for training, for communications/data processing equipment, for workers. But a lot of it involves simply doing a better job for Ohio's kids.
Judges can have a greater understanding of domestic violence and make better decisions. Law enforcement, teachers, guardians and health care professionals can do a better job of understanding what is happening to kids and talking to each other -- communication is essential. Schools can incorporate age-appropriate discussions about dating violence prevention.
Everyone can keep fighting the other evils that are fueling this awful trend; the substance abuse epidemic being at the top of the list.
Authors of the report emphasize there is a combination of services and strategies at play here. And while the money for more services may be difficult to come by, the great minds dedicated to helping Ohio's children can certainly come up with better and more refined strategies. With one in four kids struggling to deal with the aftermath of such trauma, we cannot afford not to.