The best antidote to denial is exposure to stark reality. You can invite a representative from child protective services or from your local law enforcement agency to speak to your board of directors or other policy makers. You can talk with representatives of other organizations who have gone through the emotional trauma of a child abuse case in their organization. And, hopefully, the wake up call will not come from a child abuse incident in your organization. This attitude is an extension of the denial reaction.
Some organizations consider child abuse to be solely a societal phenomenon beyond their control.
They reject the notion that they have a responsibility to go beyond basic programmatic concerns. Some organizations get very defensive if they are asked about their child abuse problem. Some organizations believe that they do not need to be concerned because children and youth are not their primary service recipients. To overcome resistance to acknowledging that child abuse is your organization's problem, you may need to stress the moral obligation to protect children. If you get nowhere, you can point to insurers' requirements and lawsuits.