Vital Statistics supervises, directs and is responsible for the Local Registrars who are also a critical component to a successful paternity program because of their significant established relationships with the hospitals and birthing facilities in New Jersey. Local Registrars are the birth certificate experts. They too have already established relationships with hospitals and courts. They are also an information source for outreach and marketing. Hospital and birthing center staff are the front-line of communication with all unmarried parents and are best able to convey the importance of paternity establishment at a time when both parents are flushed with pride.
Informed parents are more likely to sign a Certificate of Parentage at the time of birth.
These staff can also educate parents who have children for whom paternity has not yet been established. Health and Social Service Providers are a critical component for increasing post birth paternity establishment rates. The Paternity Opportunity Program provides all the support necessary to ensure success of the paternity program. Our Paternity Opportunity Program staff contact the hospitals quarterly and visit hospitals frequently to make certain that everything is running smoothly. The Paternity Opportunity Program Staff should assist birth certificate clerks by providing technical assistance with problem cases, training and retraining as needed, providing program brochures, video, posters, and a translation service, and referring their legal questions to the IV-D agency or social worker.