(Editor’s note: This is the first in a series of stories in
recognition of National Child Abuse Awareness Month. Various
experts from agencies throughout McKean County spoke to The Era
about children at different age groups, what makes them vulnerable
to possible abuse and steps to take for prevention.)
Even the smallest children can fall victim to abuse, as an
infant has no other way to communicate except crying.
Crying can be stressful to new parents, who are likely feeling
overwhelmed already. However, no one is alone in these situations.
Help is available from The Family Centers, local hospitals, various
agencies and maybe even from the person who lives next door.
Preventing child abuse can begin even before the child enters
the world. Judy Harris, maternal/child nurse manager at Bradford
Regional Medical Center, explained parents can begin planning on
who to call for help well in advance.
With a laugh, she said, “Until you are a new mom, you don’t know
what fatigue is.”
Making backup plans for yourself can help to stop situations
where abuse may occur before they begin. Harris explained, “Have a
game plan, who to call on when you need a break.” A grandparent, a
close friend, a trusted neighbor or relative can be a good safety
net for when a parent needs a time out from a crying, sick or
fussing infant.
“You need to be able to identify ‘why is the baby crying?’ It’s
their only way to communicate with us,” Harris said.
Once a parent gets to know his or her child, the cries for “I’m
hungry” become distinguishable from the cries for a dirty diaper.
“Figure out what’s wrong. Try to look at what might be wrong that
you can fix.
“The answer isn’t always ‘give a bottle,'” she said. Sometimes a
baby just needs a pacifier, or maybe some cuddling.
“Sometimes it is just fussy time,” Harris said. “Parents need to
recognize when they are at their wits end and walk away.”
Call in that backup person and take a break, suggested
Harris.
“Never, ever shake the baby,” added Cindy Smith, family
development specialist with the Kane Family Center and former LPN
with the Kane Hospital. “Make sure the baby is safe and leave the
room for a minute. Count to ten. Take a break.”
“We do have education when they come in regarding shaken baby
syndrome,” Harris explained.
She explained the syndrome was first studied at length at
Children’s Hospital of Buffalo, N.Y., and that hospitals in this
area were among the first in the nation involved in educating
patients about that form of abuse.
“After the education, we saw a huge improvement,” she explained,
saying the positive effects of that education were immediately
evident. Now, along with the education, “parents sign a statement,
a voluntary commitment not to shake their babies.”
Across the nation, an estimated 1,200 to 1,400 children are
treated after being shaken. Among those, 25 to 30 percent die as a
result of their injuries, according to the National Center on
Shaken Baby Syndrome.
There are many ways to soothe a crying baby, and the biggest one
is teaching the infant right from the beginning that you can be
trusted to care for them.
Smith explained bonding with one’s baby makes a tremendous
difference, as “children who are comforted and cared for are less
likely to cry.”
“The first psychological need a baby learns is trust,” Harris
said. If a parent fills a baby’s needs quickly, the baby trusts
them to be there when something is wrong and is less likely to
cry.
There is help available – free of charge – from the McKean
County Family Centers. The Parents as Teachers program is focused
on early childhood development and parenting through home
visits.
“We can educate the parents to these at home,” Smith said.
“It’s a whole different world when you’re at home,” Harris said.
New parents are sent home with their little bundle of joy and no
instruction book.
“There are Moms’ Clubs,” Smith said, explaining there are
support groups of other parents dealing with the same issues. “Try
to connect with something like that.”
While a crying baby can be frustrating for any parent, a baby
with a disability brings another set of frustrations that puts the
infant at a higher risk of abuse.
“It’s one more stressor in a stressful situation,” Harris
said.
That disability could be anything from eating problems or reflux
to heart problems or a serious disease, all of which are eligible
for services through Early Intervention, explained Lee Sizemore,
director of prevention programs for The Guidance Center.
Dawn Ernst, who previously was a home daycare provider but now
is an Early Intervention teacher, explained, “The biggest thing is
finding a support group” of other parents facing similar
issues.
“Ask questions and ask the doctor questions,” she said. “We are
also there to provide help.”
She said Early Intervention can provide help in several ways,
from referring parents to support groups to finding more
information on whatever the disability is that the child is
facing.
“Sometimes parents are afraid to ask questions,” Ernst said.
“They are afraid to feel dumb. You aren’t. You have to ask.”
“With Parents as Teachers, we can tell the parents what to
expect developmentally,” said Kelly Davis, family development
specialist at the Smethport Family Center. She explained sometimes
a parent just doesn’t know what to expect from a child at any given
age, and the Family Center programs can help with that.
Don’t be afraid of the agencies coming on home visits; they are
only trying to help, Ernst explained. It’s not to check up on them;
it’s to make sure all their questions are answered, Harris
said.
“Sometimes they may just need that moral support,” Smith said,
adding that the developmental specialists can reinforce the
positive things going on in a household.
“The baby doesn’t know you are a beginner,” Harris said.
Ernst agreed. “They love you unconditionally.”
