Norton Children's Hospital in Louisville receives state funding to combat child abuse

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Kentucky will have its first Child Protection Center of Excellence thanks to $6 million in funding from the Kentucky legislature.

Norton Children's Hospital will use the funds to hire additional doctors and nurses as well as other experts trained in identifying, preventing and treating child abuse.

"We will also be able to open an outpatient clinic," Dr. Melissa L. Currie said. "This clinic will allow us to serve patients statewide who need follow-up after their maltreatment has been identified or who need evaluation initially but don't need that in a hospital setting."

The team at Norton Children's will continue to assess thousands of children every year while working with the courts to document abuse.

The federal government recently reported that Kentucky's child abuse numbers are twice the national average. According to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Children’s Bureau "Child Maltreatment 2020" report released this year about 17 out of every 1,000 children in the commonwealth experienced some type of child maltreatment.