Critical Information Every Person Should Know

If you suspect child neglect or abuse, don't ignore the issue!  Take action!  Suspicion of abuse is all that is needed to file a report with the proper authorities.  Your information can be given anonymously.  You will be asked to describe your concerns about the child, and it will be helpful if you can provide the child's full name, age, address, gender, school attended and names of parents. 

Please don't walk away from a child that needs help.  Take the following three steps to take the proper action:

1.  If it is an emergency, call 911 or your local police department.  They can ensure the immediate safety of a child and get medical attention if needed.

2.  Call your state or local child abuse hotline.  Click on the following link to find your state child welfare agency:  http://www.cwla.org/members/members.htm

3.  If you are unsure how to report abuse, contact Childhelp USA National Child Abuse Hotline by telephone at  1-800-4-A-CHILD or through their website at http://www.childhelpusa.org/ for information about how to report in your community. 

Here is also the child pornography tipline:  1-800-843-5378

Please also check out the website for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at:  http://www.missingkids.com/ and the National Runaway Switchboard at:  http://www.nrscrisisline.org/. 

And here is the contact information for the National Domestic Violence Hotline: 

http://www.ndvh.org/ or call 1-800-799-SAFE

If you know of a personal situation regarding abuse or neglect you can also contact the Administration for Children and Families of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.  They maintain a list of contact information for state, local, tribal, and private organizations that address a range of child, youth and family issues at http://www.acf.hhs.gov/contacts.html. 

A simple phone call can make all the difference in preventing further harm to a child!  Please keep this information in case you ever need to save someone's life.  Please visit my other blog on the welfare and advocacy of children at:  http://www.progressiveu.org/190000-take-action-make-a-positive-difference-in-a-childs-life 

Take charge in promoting the safety of others; please visit my blog on National Safety Month at: http://www.progressiveu.org/190000-june-2006-marks-10th-anniversary-of-national-safety-month 

With regard to neglect, please visit my other blog on guidelines and laws for when children can be left alone at home to care for him/herself or to care for others at:  http://www.progressiveu.org/120128-home-alone   

If you know of other national or local organizations that may be of assistance in preventing and stopping violence, please respond to this blog.  Thank you!       

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