By Joseph E. Colford, Ph.D., Co-Chair, Program Committee and Member, Board of Directors Prevent Child Abuse-NJ and the Child Wellness Institute
In its recently released report, Parents Under Pressure, the US Surgeon General’s Advisory on the Mental Health and Well-Being of Parents concluded that the well-being of parents and caregivers today should be an important public health priority, since it is directly linked to the well-being of their children.
If it truly is a collective responsibility as reported, then many systems must be involved in assisting parents and caregivers in their increasingly important role in raising children. The report’s suggestions include:
What the Government Can Do
Programs that can support parents and caregivers are varied. Universal preschool and early childhood education programs go a long way to assist families in being able to balance child care and employment opportunities.
Home visitation programs also can make significant inroads into supporting parents and caregivers. In a close-knit neighborhood, neighbors help neighbors, but what about those living in psychological, economic, or social isolation from the larger community, specifically those young parents overwhelmed with child care needs?
When they need a friend and a connection to available resources for assistance, they often have been able to rely on the support of a visiting trained caregiver from a home visitation program. Such programs are essential supports for parents and young families. They provide cost-effective means of promoting infant and child health and supporting family functioning. More importantly, home visitors teach positive parenting practices.
What Employers Can Do
Family friendly work policies would allow parents to seek employment outside the home in order to be able to provide financial support to the household. Paid sick leave for employees to tend to their own health needs or those of their children should be an important component of these policies as well. Flexible and fair work schedules and access to child care, whether in the community or on-site, also would provide significant assistance for parents and caregivers with young children.
What Communities and Schools Can Do
Community-based parent training programs devoted to teaching positive parenting practices and typical child development issues are essential. Community agencies or home visitors are just two of the ways through which such training can be provided. A sense of social connection can decrease the negative effects of stress in parents and caregivers, whether those connections are fostered in public libraries, faith-based organizations, schools, or any other venue which is inviting to parents wishing to bond with others.
What Else Can Be Done to Support Parents Under Pressure?
One of the organizations involved in providing the report’s suggestions for parents and caregivers is Prevent Child Abuse-New Jersey (PCA-NJ). Its programs include:
Grow NJ Kids Technical Assistance Center – coaching and other assistance to pre-school programs and other childcare providers to improve the quality of early childhood education
Home Visiting Program – designed to help new parents form healthy bonds with their babies; interact in developmentally appropriate ways; provide safe homes for their children; improve school readiness; detect early developmental delays
Essex Pregnancy and Parenting Connection – provides early childhood services and connects families with children under the age of eight to supportive community resources. Its specialists take referrals from the Division of Child Protection and Permanency; they educate families and the community on typical child developmental milestones.
Parent Linking Program – provides support to young adolescent parents and those expecting a child to assist them in graduating from high school and in reaching their career and academic goals. These supports include free child care, parenting groups, individual counseling, and education on parenting skills and child development.
Connections Matter – curriculum devoted to helping adults prevent and recover from Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). The training is offered to the staff of the Division of Children and Families.
Parent Education and Technical Assistance – a program to educate parents and professionals on the issues of child abuse and neglect.
PCA-NJ’s subsidiary, the Child Wellness Institute (ChildWIN®), offers similar prevention programs designed for all children and families. Its Healing Hearts® series of workshops is a comprehensive training program for teachers, other school staff members and parents to help them manage challenging behaviors in children. It involves professional development, coaching, and workshops for children and parents. Some of the skills taught include understanding ACEs, recognizing and responding to children who have experienced trauma, and learning ways to build resilience on both a community and individual level.
The Peaceful Practices to Calm and Reset program offers trained ChildWIN® facilitators to provide classroom-based lessons to children and parents in a series of workshops. The purpose of this program is to help the participants acquire strategies to identify their emotional/behavioral triggers and ways in which they can remain calm in the face of these challenges. Techniques such as teaching the mind-body connection and the importance of stepping back, re-setting, and using breathing as a calming skill are all evidence-based practices.
The parent workshop component assists them in understanding their own ACEs and the impact they might have had on their own lives. Additionally, these parents gain an understanding of what their children’s behavior might mean. The workshops also offer useful strategies on ways to stay calm as a parent so that they, too, can teach their children how to regulate their own emotions to reduce household stresses.
ChildWIN®’s prevention activities will continue to grow over the years. We offer many workshops to help support parents and reduce their stress.
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For more information, visit: preventchildabusenj.org and childwin.org
or call 732-246-8060
