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Choose Your Partner
Carefully Campaign |
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Living with an unrelated adult, especially
an unrelated man substantially increases the risk that a child will die
violently. Far too often a child us abused or even killed when left in
the care of a parent’s partner, usually mother’s boyfriend (who is
typically not the biological father). Many media outlets throughout
Ohio have reported on situations in which a child was injured or killed
at the hands of mother’s partner. This campaign focuses on a very
specific, and often deadly, form of child abuse. The Choose Your Partner
Carefully Campaign is a way to build public awareness and community
resolve around highly preventable injuries and deaths.
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Overview
 In
2008, a caseworker at Lorain County Children Services (LCCS) in Elyria,
Ohio became alarmed when several infants and young children were
severely physically abused within months of each other. Although all the
cases were unrelated, they all had one factor in common. The children
were harmed by an unrelated adult - usually mother's boyfriend. Lorain
County Children Services (via crystal reports) shows the local rate of
abuse by mother’s paramour to be approximately 7% of all
substantiated/indicated abuse or neglect cases. When viewed as a
portion of physical abuse, the percentage increases as expected.
When Allen County reviewed the data from
their local Child Fatality Review Board of the children killed, the rate
was 18%. As the severity in outcome is narrowed, the percentage of
instances in which mother's boyfriend is the AP rises substantially.
After looking closely at this alarming
trend, a committee at LCCS decided to research it further and consider
developing an awareness campaign to help women better judge who they let
into their children's lives. LCCS developed a rudimentary "Choose Your
Partner Carefully” campaign. The campaign was brought to the PCSAO
PIO/Recruitment committee where, after looking in to their own
statistics, other counties discovered this same trend.
It was through the combined efforts of the
PIO/Recruitment Committee, staff from several counties examined their
local and state data. Across the state on average approximately 10% of
all substantiated/indicated abuse or neglect cases were at the hands of
an unrelated adult. The campaign message was refined and the toolkit
launched so that any agency or organization could launch their “Choose
Your Partner Carefully Campaign”. The committee worked diligently to
develop a campaign that can be used by local, state and national
organizations.
Through the contacts and connections of
the PCSAO we hope this campaign finds its way across the country, to all
women and those who love them, so that they have the tools to Choose
Their Partner Carefully. Their child's life depends on it.
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The Objectives of the Campaign
The Objectives of the Campaign Include:
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Increase awareness among women of the
risk their children face when a non-related male is entrusted with
their care
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Provide tools to help women better
evaluate the likelihood that their paramour could become a
perpetrator of abuse
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Educate women to help them recognize
potential signs of abuse to their children
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Increase community awareness of the
problem and its overall impact on the community
Internal Objectives Include:
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Utilize data for the awareness of this
issue
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Build community coalition to identify
which agency should get referrals from target population
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Provide local resource information
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National and State Data Points
The body of research and data on child
abuse by a parent’s partner is young and meager. However, it is a
growing area of research and has already initiated some new
conceptualizations and spring boards for more in depth research. This
is a brief non-exhaustive summary of that research.
All the way back to 1989,
Margolin & Craft noted the need assess the caretaking activity of
nonbiologically related babysitters. Later,
Margolin (1992)
offered substantial evidence of the overrepresentation of mother’s
boyfriends perpetrating child abuse.
Smith Slep & O’Leary (2001)
found that partner abuse and child abuse co-occur more often than one
might expect by chance, and they suggest a more integrated
conceptualization of family violence. Also, in 2001 Mudaly & Goddard
provide was with a glaring case study of partner child abuse. In this
case a boy experiencing extreme abuse by his mother’s partner is left
deeply disturbed and psychiatric professionals made paralleled his
disturbance with that of individuals in hostage situations.
Medical research
also indicates a severe problem. Casanueva, et al (2005) found that
exposure of the
mother to current severe intimate partner violence was
positively associated with children's use of the emergency room. More
recently, Martin et. al (2007) conducted very important research on the
role of partner violence on pregnancy associated femicide and suicide.
Results suggest that intimate partners perpetrate one- to two-thirds of
the pregnancy-associated femicides in the United States and that
intimate partner abuse during pregnancy appears to be a risk
factor for attempted/completed femicide. Also, although little
information exists on the topic, a hospital-based study suggests that
intimate partner violence may be a risk factor for attempting
suicide while pregnant.
According
to a July study by the American Academy of Pediatrics, between 2001 and
2005, a total of 2,402 children younger than 2 died of homicide in this
country. Children younger than 2 account for 46 percent of all homicides
involving children from birth to age 14. Seventy percent of the
perpetrators are male and 61 percent are younger than 25.
In 2005, a
study, published in the November issue of Pediatrics, children who live
with adults who are not biologically related to them are nearly 50 times
as likely to die at he adults’ hands as children who live with two
biological parents.
The percent of cases in which the parent’s
partner is the alleged perpetrator appears to increase as the severity
of the child’s outcome increases. For example, the Ohio Department of
Health reports that of the cases in which a child was killed due to
child abuse or neglect, mother’s partner was cited in 28% of them.
Finally, an
article by Valios (2009) reports that children in Great Britain are more
likely to be killed by their stepfather or mother's boyfriend than by
their birthfather. It is stated that a child cannot be kept safe without
knowing the nature of the child's relationship with the members of the
family. It is also stated that health care professionals should find out
about the child from the mother or neighbors in that area. More
research is needed in all of these areas so that evidenced-based
preventive/therapeutic interventions may be developed.
According
to the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS), click
here for the rate of children abused by unrelated adults.
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The Campaign Tools
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Data:
Counties can utilize data available from
local, state and national sources to illustrate problem. Data reports
that might be useful are:
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(Local) Crystal Reports. Crystal
reports can produce the number of substantiated or indicated cases
in which mother’s paramour were cited as the AP. You will need to
have access to Crystal Reports. For technical assistance on how to
access your data via crystal reports, contact Jennifer Marple,
Continuous Quality Improvement Manager, Lorain County Children
Services (440-329-5340).
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Relationship of Alleged Perpetrator to
Alleged Child Victim for either all CAN reports for (one year
period) or for all substantiated and indicated CAN reports from (one
year period)
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Data from your local Child Fatality
Review Board.
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Data from the Ohio Department of
Health, Child Fatality Review annual report (http://www.odh.ohio.gov)
According to the ODH Child Fatality Annual Eighth Annual Report
(September 2008), the person causing the death of a child who died
from child abuse/neglect, was a biological parent in 61 percent of
the reviews. The mother’s partner was cited in 28 percent of the
reviews.
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Data from National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS)
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Postcards:
 The
campaign is geared toward increasing protective behaviors from mother as
well as mother’s friends, family and services providers. The message
needs to be presented to mother as frequently as possible and by people
that have influence in her life. The campaign then needs to aim toward
providing mother with information by providing the information to mother
directly and to her friends and family so they can also provide the
message to mother.
Postcards can be reproduced economically
and distributed to the community service providers that are most likely
to have contact with the target audience. Additional distribution sites
can be local libraries, YMCA/YWCA, pediatric clinics, health clinics,
domestic violence shelters, groups, child care providers, preschools,
Head Start, health departments, job and family service workers.
To help with distribution and increase
community collaboration, agencies can leave room for multiple logos so
all interested community organizations can be actively involved and
identified with this important campaign.
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Press Release:
The media would likely be interested in
this campaign because they have the headlines from the child fatalities
to demonstrate the severity of the problem. Engage the media through
phone calls and discuss any recent incidents. Help them see how this
campaign will be valuable in preventing children from being severely
harmed or killed.
Agencies that do not have a relationship
with their local reporter can send a press release. The press release
will contain the data you collected to help the reporter see the scope
of the problem.
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Op-Ed:
Newspapers often welcome “op-ed” columns
that address issues of community interest. An op-ed column, prepared
under the name of a county child welfare director or other community
leader, can serve to educate the newspaper audience. A similar piece can
be effectively posted on community websites. |
Talking Points:
Develop a series of talking points that
can be provided to educators, partner agencies, medical professionals,
hair salons, churches, day care centers and other gathering places to
help them understand the problem, recognize its symptoms and communicate
the need for action to mothers.
Some talking points to consider
incorporating in your message are:
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Know if he has a criminal history
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How does/did he treat other women in
his life?
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How does he treat other children?
(Nieces, nephews, friends’ children)
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Does he show extreme frustration for
his children over yours?
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Does he get angry when you spend time
with your child?
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Does he dictate when your child can
visit extended family?
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This is one choice you can make to
ensure the safety of your child in our home.
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Every year XX children are abused by
their mother’s partner. XX of those children were killed.
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Use other bullet points from post card
for additional talking points.
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PowerPoint
Presentation:
The Choose Your Partner Carefully power
point was developed for the “Choose Your Partner Carefully” campaign
tool-kit and using materials from the starting point website, The Ohio
Department of Job and Family Services Website and the Break the Cycle
Website. PowerPoint presentations can be used to both “teach the
teacher” and educate mothers about this problem.
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Curriculum Model:
Attached is a 6 week curriculum targeted
at pregnant teens, teen mothers, and single adult mothers and aimed at
increasing awareness among women of the risk their children face when a
non-related male is entrusted with their care. Other objectives
include:
- Provide tools to
help women better evaluate the likelihood that their paramour could
become a perpetrator of abuse
- Educate women to
help them recognize potential signs of abuse to their children
- Educate women
about potential community resources for child care (other than
non-related male)
- Increase
community awareness of the problem and its overall impact on the
community
The curriculum
describes activities which can be used in small group settings to
provide more awareness on the issue.
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Public
Service Announcement (PSA):
Develop a 30 second and 60 second, PSAs
addressing the issue of paramours being perpetrators of child abuse.
Distribute to local radio stations. Consider asking a local official or
media personality to appear in a radio or TV spot.
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Advertising:
The message sent to mothers via the
individuals important in their lives (via postcard campaign) can be
supported by paid advertising or public service message placement. While
the campaign will be most effective with a grassroots message, the
advertising message will support the community as a whole and identify
this issue and an important issue for your community to tackle.
Advertising can include radio message,
print advertising, billboard, poster, television or Internet campaign.
Lorain County Children Services for example, sent a newsletter article
and supporting image (postcard image) to partner agencies and they
included the message in their newsletter to their constituents.
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