Despite the efforts of dedicated and committed family members, social workers, their aides, police, guardian ad litem, doctors, foster parents, psychologists, therapists, legal counselors and judges who make every effort to protect the child from further harm, the current answer is too late for too many children. The broken bones, burns and bruises will most often heal, sometimes even without visible scars. Therapy, counseling and caring can even help heal much of the emotional and psychological pain. A healed home, an adoptive home or other permanent caretaker's love can work miracles for a child. Beyond the visible scars, child abuse has long-lasting and devastating effects.
Victimized children are at threefold risk for substance abuse.
These children are 67 times more likely than other children to be arrested between ages 9 and 12. Two-thirds of pregnant teenagers were victims of child sex abuse, which also is the leading risk factor for adult alcoholism. We are working harder than ever, but we will not really be protecting our children's best interests until we develop a system of support for extended-family intervention, which must precede the protective system. A system that could tap into an abundant human resource in our state, the child's extended family's love and concern for their family's child's best interests. We can develop a foundation for our present prevention efforts that promotes awareness, acceptance of responsibility and motivates appropriate action by extended family members at the earliest signs of potential harm to their child's best interests.