Preventing child abuse begins with a healthy start in life

As our community works together to raise awareness of the heartbreaking results of child abuse during Prevent Child Abuse Month in April, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser is bringing to light how important it is to be vigilant and persistent in reporting suspected abuse and neglect.

As a recent editorial stated ("Don’t turn away from child abuse," Star- Advertiser, Our View, March 31), keeping Hawaii’s children safe is a community responsibility, not just this month, but always.

Also, many of us were horrified to read the details of child abuse that have been described recently in the newspaper’s coverage of a court case. This is why I believe there is nothing more important we can do as a society than to prevent child abuse.

Providing a nurturing home environment and a support network for families is also a vital part of our collective efforts to prevent abuse and neglect, and the results do provide encouraging news for Hawaii families.

Child & Family Service is one of the largest nonprofits in the state, and one of our signature programs is Healthy Start, which is a child abuse prevention home visiting program funded by Hawaii’s Department of Health.

Hawaii was the state that invented Healthy Start, which has now been replicated in nearly 40 other states under the Healthy Families America name. Parents of newborns are offered assessments and information while they are still in the hospital. Parents whose assessment indicates a risk for child abuse are offered voluntary home visiting services that build an environment of nurturing and care for their loved ones.

Since the mid 1980s, over 99 percent of parents who stay 12 months or longer in our Healthy Start program have no report of child abuse, and these are families at high risk of abuse. Early identification is a key to success. This program screens and assesses parents prenatally or within two weeks after birth of the baby.

Screening is also provided to families who are referred by community service providers. Supportive services prior to and at the time of birth effectively reduce the impact of pervasive life stressors and parental stress, and increase attentive and consistent care giving to newborns.

Program staff partner with parents to address individual needs, set and support goals, build a home environment around the baby, and connect parents with helpful services and information that supports learning, safety and developmental stimulation. Each family is asked to develop, in partnership with their home visitor, an Individual Family Support Plan which describes their goals, and to participate in regularly scheduled home visits in order to work toward those family goals.

The importance of Healthy Start programs in Hawaii is that we intervene before there is ever a report of child abuse to Child Welfare Services. Healthy Start is in the process of being accredited under Healthy Families America, which is recognized by the federal government as an evidence-based model, which means it has been researched to prove effectiveness.

Healthy Start funding was severely curtailed by government cutbacks five years ago. Support from Hawaii’s Legislature and Gov. Neil Abercrombie in recent years to restore some of that funding has been vital to our state’s efforts to prevent child abuse.

It is this kind of public and private collaboration coupled with the continued vigilance of all citizens doing their part to stay alert to signs of abuse and neglect of our keiki that can help us to collectively strengthen families and build a stronger community in our state.