Child Abuse Prevention Month Focuses on Neglect

Our prevention poster...click it to enlarge!

How can we prevent child abuse and neglect? Every April is Child Abuse Prevention Month, when we help communities answer that question by sharing activities and information to build awareness and knowledge. 

In Santa Barbara County, Child Abuse Prevention Month activities are coordinated by the Child Abuse Prevention Council (a network of 20 public and private human services agencies and parents), with leadership from the Santa Barbara County’s Department of Social Services.

This April’s campaign focused on child neglect.

Why neglect?

Neglect is the most common form of child maltreatment nationwide—and locally too. Over 52% of the 7,654 reports to our County’s Child Abuse Hotline last year involved general neglect: the failure to provide the supervision needed to keep a child safe; and/or to meet a child’s physical, emotional, medical or educational needs.

Neglect is stubborn: even as other forms of child maltreatment have declined over the years, rates of neglect have remained high. It’s also the most difficult form of child maltreatment to identify, prevent and treat effectively.

Neglect is much more serious than most people realize. Neglect can actually change the way a child’s brain develops, limiting his/her chances for success in school and in life. 

But there’s good news: Experts have developed a “Strengthening Families Framework” that shows how people can reduce the risk of child abuse and neglect, by taking simple yet effective steps to support parents, the community, and children.

How to Prevent Neglect

Here are some things you can do to prevent neglect, derived from the Framework:

• Support parents. Listen to parents, without judgment. Offer encouragement, and help them find their strengths. Share what you know: refer families to community organizations and family resource centers where they can be connected with helpful services and support. 

• Support community. Donate your time, skills or money to organizations that help children or families in need. Meet your neighbors (and their kids), have them over for a meal, and help them out when they need a hand.

• Support kids. Listen to children’s ideas, and support their dreams. Be a good role model, surround them with good influences, and create a safe environment. Families need to make kids feel safe and loved.

Finally—if you’re a parent, don’t forget to take care of yourself. Strengthen your relationships, and ask for help when you need it. Enjoy learning about your children—talk to your child to see what’s on their mind, and talk to their teacher and doctor to clarify reasonable expectations for their age.

Together, we can prevent child abuse and neglect!

Double-sided campaign

During Child Abuse Prevention Month, we reached out to both to the general public, and to professionals in the field.

To help Child Abuse Prevention Council (CAPC) member agencies take the message to the public, we developed and mass-produced a colorful poster (available in English and Spanish) that explains what neglect is, why it matters, and how to prevent it. Agencies use the posters in their lobbies, at public events, and in digital form on their websites. We also developed matching talking points that agencies can use when explaining the issues to the public or the press. Press coverage included Santa Barbara Latino magazine's lengthy Spanish-language feature on preventing child abuse and neglect—featuring our own Barbara Finch, along with Cecilia Herrera and Brenda Lopez from the parent group Parents Forever (Padres para Siempre), which helps people put the Framework into action. County leaders spread the word as well, with the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors passing a resolution recognizing Child Abuse Prevention Month.

To provide human services professionals with continuing education on how to keep kids safe, we held a Maternal Mental Health and Child Safety conference on April 25 in Santa Barbara. Attendees—including about 100 nurses, social workers, therapists and other professionals—learned about maternal mental health issues and how they relate to neglect; and then formed moderated breakout groups to develop local solutions. The conference was made possible by CAPC, First 5, PEP (Postpartum Education for Parents), CALM (Child Abuse Listening Mediation), and MACH (the Maternal, Child & Adolescent Health arm of the Santa Barbara County Public Health Department).

Santa Barbara Latino Magazine's cover story

County Supervisor Janet Wolf offers closing remarks at Maternal Mental Health & Child Safety conference