KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month. It's a time to bring awareness to what Childhelp calls the 'silent epidemic.' Five children die each day due to child abuse and neglect.
Healthy Families America is a national program that provides support and resources to families in need. The program is designed to prevent child abuse and neglect by promoting healthy parent-child relationships and enhancing the well-being of families.
In East Tennessee -- the program runs through the McNabb Center. They serve about 300 people across the region.
According to recent studies, Healthy Families America has been successful in reducing child abuse and neglect by providing home visitation services and promoting positive parenting techniques. The program has also been effective in reducing the number of children in foster care and improving academic outcomes for children.
"It's really important for kids in our community to make sure that we are supporting them really early on in life and Healthy Families is a research-based program that does just that," said Sarah Long, the Assistant Director of Family Treatment Services at the McNabb Center.
The Healthy Families program starts early. They serve women who are pregnant, to instill good practices before the baby is born. The program stays with the family until that child is in kindergarten.
The program is voluntary, meaning it is completely up to the family to participate. Once they enroll, each family is assigned to a home visitor.
"The home visitor comes out to their home every single week to check on them. The home visitor is an expert in early childhood development. They're an expert in supporting interactions between parents and kids," Long said.
Sometimes the home visitor brings things like diapers, formula, etc. Other times, they just come to check in.
"Some families enroll in healthy families just because they want a little bit of extra support. Some families enroll in the program because they're really struggling and they know they need something a little bit more intensive and long-term," Long said.
Katherine Bobinski was a mom who enrolled in the Healthy Families program. She has three kids. Her youngest son is just over a year old.
"When I found out I was pregnant, it was a surprise. And just at that time, my husband was kind of going back and forth between jobs," Bobinski said. "Just with everything job situation, it was really nice to know, there was some kind of support system out there."
However, after being served by the program for about a year, Bobkinski transitioned into a role within the program.
"It has been probably the best change in my life. It's been amazing to go from not making hardly any money and staying at home with my kids, to helping my community," she said.
Bobinski said it gives her a newfound sense of purpose to give back to other struggling mothers in this way.
"A lot of my families don't have anybody else. They have parents that are, you know, not existent. Or they have no other family. So it's just really good to know there's somebody there that they can count on," Bobinski said.
In addition to promoting healthy families, Healthy Families America is also working to raise awareness about the importance of early childhood education and the role that parents play in their children's development.
As the program continues to grow and expand, more families across the country are expected to benefit from the services and resources provided by Healthy Families America. For families in need, this organization is a beacon of hope, providing the support and guidance they need to build healthy relationships and create a brighter future for themselves and their children.
"A lot of parents in our community need support. When we support parents, we're supporting kids," Long said.