By Jennifer Jones and Bart Klika, The Chronicle of Social Change, July 21, 2020

As we navigate the effects of a global pandemic and economic recession, we have the opportunity to rethink the ways we provide services and supports to children and families before they find themselves in crisis. Essential to this new thinking is the realignment of our systems to make them more prevention-oriented, integrated, science-informed, and equitable, and thereby better meeting the needs of children and families, not just during this pandemic, but into the future.

Creating a reimagined Prevention Services System in the United States will require a whole new approach not only to the services we deliver, but also the ways in which we deliver them.

Currently, we allocate few resources or time to the prevention of child abuse and neglect and instead wait until families are in crisis and something serious happens before we intervene. In states, there is a lack of adequate funding and little coordination to ensure all families have the support they need before abuse or neglect occurs.

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