Facts and Resources About Our Kids!

Each year approximately 10,000 children in Missouri are involved in incidents that are substantiated for abuse or neglect. Thousands mre are investigated for suspected child maltreatment. The counties served by Whole Kids Outreach (Reynolds, Carter, Butler, Wayne, Shannon, and Iron) have rates of child abuse and neglect that are 1 ½ -2 times higher than the State’s percentage per population.

ONE CHILD IS TOO MANY.

We ALL get angry with our children. We ALL get upset. We ALL get feelings that make us want to act violently. Yet there are ways to stop ourselves before we really hurt someone we love. Create a SAFETY PLAN:

• Long before your child’s behavior or words cause you to feel out of control, decide on ways you can react to situations that might make you upset.
• Think about how you would react if your child(ren) misbehaved in three different situations: for example, at in the house on a cold day when children can’t be sent outside to play; in the grocery store; and in the car.
• Decide NOW on a plan of action to reduce your chances of hurting your child in each of these situations: for example, if your child misbehaved in the grocery store, you might decide to place your cart in a safe place, take the child outside, and sit down or walk around with the child until your anger and hers/his misbehavior subsided.
• Continue to think of situations where you might want to react violently towards your children and develop plans of action like the one described above.
• Remember that there is ALWAYS help. If you believe that your anger may be harmful to you or your child, there are places you can turn. You are not alone. Other people have also had these feelings and can help you find ways to deal with them. If you would like to talk to someone, call one of the numbers listed below.

Child abuse and neglect can be prevented.

For more information on how to prevent child maltreatment, please contact Whole Kids Outreach (WKO) 1-800-760-3259 or the Children’s Trust Fund of Missouri (CTF) 573-751-5147. http://www.ctf4kids.org/

For more data on Child Abuse and Neglect in Missouri ,(http://www.dss.mo.gov/re/canar.htm) and from Missouri Kids Count (http://oseda.missouri.edu/kidscount/04/) .