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Our job at CAPC is to make sure our community has the skills, support, resources, and education vital to the prevention of child abuse. Prevention means CAPC must reach families in every part of our community with education, resources, and basic needs support before child abuse can occur. Early prevention efforts protect children, strengthen families, and prevent family separations. CAPC is the essential safety net for families in Contra Costa County.
While we can see first-hand that child abuse morally devastates our community, it also significantly impacts our economy in the process. Each incident of child abuse
causes medical costs to soar and criminal justice expenses to rise. The price
tag for child welfare services and special education services increases. The Cost
of Child Abuse Report shows the enormous financial burden and long-term
consequences of child abuse across the lifetime of an abused child. (Click here to read the report)
So, how do we do this work? Today’s best practices for the prevention of child abuse rest in the five protective factors:
· Parental resilience
· Social Connections
· Concrete support in times of need
· Knowledge of parenting and child development
· Social and emotional competence of children
These protective factors form the foundation of our work. Research shows that when the protective factors exist in a family, the risk of child abuse decreases, and the family is stronger. Child abuse prevention research has long understood the severe impact on families when basic needs are not met. The risk of abuse and neglect are greater for families struggling to meet basic family needs.
Our Sue Fleischner Special Needs Fund provides necessary concrete support to avert a potential crisis in the home that can easily spin out of control and put children at risk.
At CAPC, we have a north star. Our north star always leads us to the same place - Where families are safe and stable, where children are free from abuse and neglect and can thrive.
Happy spring!
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