CHARLOTTE, N.C. — North Carolina Child Protective Services says reports of child abuse dropped 40% at the beginning of the pandemic, a result of under-reporting. But child advocates across the state are expanding their outreach to make sure more children don’t fall through the cracks.

At Pat’s Place Child Advocacy Center in Charlotte, a team of health professionals, law enforcement officers and mental health providers work together to prevent child abuse.

Pediatrician, Dr. Patricia Morgan is the second face a child sees after reports of abuse. Morgan checks the children from head to toe for signs of abuse.

Those details are then passed to Pat’s Place CEO Andrew Oliver who works with law enforcement to help put abusers behind bars. And lately, the severity of the cases advocates see is increasing.

"When we started to see more kids, we saw increased severity of the cases and with kids being home we saw a lot more sexual abuse," Morgan explained.

The organization said unemployment and financial insecurity further strained families already in crisis and increased the likelihood of abuse. Those circumstances worsened when schools closed and trained safety nets, like teachers and coaches, no longer had eyes on the kids.

North Carolina CPS said the number of reported child abuse cases dropped by 26% in 2020 compared to 2019.

Now, Morgan and the team at Pat’s Place are working with 14 elementary schools in Mecklenburg County to train teachers and children to spot the warning signs.

"That gives them vocabulary and teaches them how to identify safe people in their life to turn to if they don’t feel something is right," Oliver said.