Pursuing Justice, Providing Hope, Promoting Healing

When a child is severely mistreated, Robin’s Nest and partner agencies work together to help the child. 1051 Harper Avenue

These partners work with Robin’s Nest Organizational Collaboration Chart for Multi-Disciplinary Response to Child Abuse Caldwell County Schools DSS & Child Protective Services 25th Judicial District Attorney's Office Law Enforcement Mental Health Entities Medical Evaluation Robin's Nest Executive Director + Multi-Disciplinary Team Representing Partners   providing Forensic Interviews Medical Exams Victim Advocacy Counseling Connections These partners work with Robin’s Nest To see that an abused child receives help.

Before, the child retold to many . Now, the child talks to 2 or 3. Child Abuse Investigation Process Without a Children’s Advocacy Center With a Children's Advocacy Center Before Robin’s Nest With Robin’s Nest Before, the child retold to many . Now, the child talks to 2 or 3.

Services Provided at Robin’s Nest Support for Child and Family Forensic Interviews Medical Evaluations Counseling – Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) All interviewers, medical examiners, and counselors are trained according to best practices.

To decrease trauma and promote healing.... Advocacy/Support Comprehensive support network for children and non-offending family members: “point of entry” specialists Child advocate coordinates services, assists in access to community resources, and provides crisis intervention and support at all stages of investigation and prosecution. Caregivers receive information to guide them through the abuse situation and help from the Child Advocate to make connections to agencies that also help. Robin’s Nest is a child and family – friendly place. Everyone’s Goal: To decrease trauma and promote healing....

Forensic Interviews Within a child-friendly environment, trained professionals, in a one-to-one discussion, talk with children in a developmentally appropriate, non-threatening, non-suggestive manner, allowing them to tell in their own words the events of the abuse. The investigative team observes the interview in a separate room.

Medical Evaluations The purpose of a medical evaluation in suspected child abuse is threefold: Primarily, to help ensure the health, safety, and well-being of the child; to diagnose, document, and address medical conditions resulting from abuse; and to differentiate medical findings indicative of abuse from those which may be explained by other medical conditions. The Medical Specialist trained in pediatric best practices comes to Robin’s Nest to perform the evaluation in the child-friendly environment, decreasing trauma for the child.

Mental Health Treatment Counseling helps children overcome the long-term social, emotional, and developmental symptoms of trauma that can adversely affect their lives. Research demonstrates that 80% of children, ages 3 to 18, that complete trauma-focused therapy sessions make obvious improvement in their ability to live life normally, feeling safe again.  Our goal is to graduate every child who enters therapy at Robin’s Nest from a full series of Trauma-Focused therapy sessions.

How Prevalent is Child Sexual Abuse? 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys are sexually abused before the age of 18. Only 1 in 10 ever report their abuse. The average age of the child abused is 9. 90% of those abused know their offender. It is someone their family knows and trusts. There are more than 42 million adult survivors of child sexual abuse in the U.S. today. Source: Darkness to Light www.d2l.org Abuse can happen to anyone, regardless of where you live or how safe your neighborhood feels!

Robin’s Nest Data From 2011-late 2018 1600+ 1,103 children have received services at Robin’s Nest 9 Average Age of Children Served locally Females - 70% Males - 30% 205 have completed Trauma Focused Therapy

Think of the data this way: Caldwell County Children 1,600 Caldwell County Children That’s 80 average size classrooms! Or 32 school buses filled to capacity! The problem is real; The need is great.

THE FACE OF ABUSE IN CALDWELL COUNTY Young People Often Face Abuse such as-   Permanent physical damage Repeated sexual assaults Pregnancies Prostitution Bruises, abrasions, breaks and burns Forced illegal drug intake Witnessing life-threatening domestic violence

Common CONSEQUENCES for child victims Depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and anxiety (80-90%) Suicidal thoughts / attempts (20-30%) Drug and alcohol dependence (70-80%) Difficulty forming long term relationships Eating Disorders Sexual risk taking that leads to teen pregnancy (60%) Prostitution (more than 90% of child prostitutes have been sexually abused) Delinquency

How Does Abuse Show Up in Schools? Lower performance on tests when compared to same-age, non-sexually abused cohorts Increased high school absentee rates More grade retention Increased need for special education services Difficulty adapting to school Significant increase in the chance of dropping out of school Risky behaviors

The Wrapped Bear by a 6-year-old male A badly abused first grader sat silent for weeks in therapy. One day while playing, he took a white teddy bear and began to wrap it around and around with blue tape, talking out loud as he did . . . “I’m covering your eyes so you can’t find me . . . I’m covering your mouth so you can’t talk to me . . . I’m taping your arms down so you can’t grab me . . . I’m taping your legs together so you can’t catch me ever again.” Then he hid the blue bear under books in a basket on the floor and said, “He can’t hurt me anymore.”

It’s everyone’s responsibility to protect children and hold those who hurt them accountable.

Change for Children provides 1/3 of this category! THANK YOU! No family is ever charged for services received at Robin’s Nest. How is Robin’s Nest able to provide services to the children and non-offending caregivers at no cost? Change for Children provides 1/3 of this category! THANK YOU!