Providing the Right Team

Every day children in our community are physically or sexually abused, often by a trusted adult. Many more children struggle daily to deal with the effects of neglect.

At Dayton Children’s we know that children need the right team when they are in a difficult situation, for that reason we partnered with the Dayton Police Department, Montgomery County Department of Jobs and Family Services – Division of Children’s Services, Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office, and Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office to provide CARE House.

CARE House is the community’s advocacy center for child victims of abuse and neglect. Its mission is to provide a multidisciplinary team response to child abuse for the purpose of protecting and supporting children and their non-offending family members, holding offenders accountable, and educating the community.

These collaborative partners work together to ensure children are kept from further harm, provide an immediate comprehensive response to child abuse victims, and educate the community to better recognize, respond to, and prevent child abuse. Necessary medical, emotional, legal, investigative and victim advocacy services exist in one child-friendly location, ensuring that children are not further victimized by the systems intended to protect them.

In addition to the meeting the needs of children who walk through the door, CARE House provides community education to prevent child and sexual abuse in our community.

During the 2010-2011 fiscal year, CARE House:

Saw 568 children who were physically or sexually abused.
Facilitated 56 child sexual abuse prevention trainings in Montgomery County.
Presented the Stewards of Children, a child sexual abuse prevention curriculum, to 782 staff and volunteers of Montgomery County child-serving agencies and organizations as well parents and caregivers residing in this county.
Provided 13 shaken baby syndrome prevention trainings in Montgomery County.
Provided 294 adolescent and adult participants the I Have a Plan curriculum, developed by CARE House. The curriculum includes risk factors and triggers associated with inflicted head trauma, the dangers of shaking an infant, ways to sooths an infant and a three-part plan that parents and caregivers may implement when an infant cannot stop crying.
511 forensic interviews were conducted at CARE house.

CARE House is recognized for its prevention efforts. It is responsible for the implementation of the Stewards of Children throughout the State of Ohio. To date, more than 30 facilitators, representing 15 of Ohio’s children’s advocacy centers, provide Stewards of Children trainings.