Child Abuse Prevention and Awareness Month 2009

The week of April 27, 2009, will officially mark the end of a heightened month of activities geared towards the prevention of Child Abuse in the territory of the Virgin Islands (UK).  As the Department closes the month, we unite with other secondary social service agencies and other non- governmental organizations in the fight against child abuse.  The Department was given a mandate and one which we take seriously, simply because it involves children.  The Department has pledged its commitment and will continue our work throughout the coming months and years to mobilize the territory’s citizens to fight systemic challenges in our policies and practices, specifically as it pertains to issues relevant to child maltreatment, protection and building resiliency in families. 

As a territory and as a people, we must commit to working feverishly to strengthen families and communities by providing the necessary community support programs. In so doing we realize that our communities can only be strong when our families are secure and strong.  In an effort to accomplish this, we must then redouble our efforts by ensuring that the necessary conduits for building broad based partnerships with are in place, in an effort to change how communities think and react to issues of prevention and support for families.  The necessary protective factors to increase the health and well-being of children and families must serve as a buffer to help families cope with multiple life stressors, which can have a tendency to reduce a parent’s capacity to cope effectively with raising children.

Families benefit greatly from early intervention, when the daily demands of life seem too burdensome.  However, these services must not come at the end of a crisis, but should be readily available for families to circumvent a crisis from occurring.  A move in this direction can only augur well for the prevention of child maltreatment and protection in the long run.   In our effort to prevent child maltreatment remember that prevention is: 

Strong public awareness campaigns which places the responsibility for protecting children on adults and communities.

Increasing the knowledge of parents on relevant issues of child development.

An effective method for reducing the need for intervention and treatment of child maltreatment.

Responding to the issue of child maltreatment with the same urgency as we do with other public health issues and matters, in an effort to prevention.

Making available resources available to families prior to pregnancy, during pregnancy and building on that foundation to create nurturing environments for children.