Hibiscus Children’s Center

from Better Living & Marketplace Magazine

by Better Living & Marketplace Magazine

On the Cover

H I B I S C U S C H I L D R E N ’ S C E N T E R “SafeCare Program”

Helps Strengthen Families

Hibiscus Children’s Center implemented a new prevention program serving St. Lucie and Indian River County families in Spring 2019. The SafeCare Program is a collaborative partnership between Hibiscus Children’s Center and Behavior Basics, Inc. and focuses on providing parenting education through home visits. Hibiscus Children’s Center and Behavior Basics welcome new clients and the services are free.

SafeCare helps families in need of parenting assistance, like Jackson. *Jackson is a 28-year-old father of *Lilly, his 4-year old daughter who has been diagnosed with Down Syndrome. He was referred to the SafeCare Parenting Skills Training program after a report was made to the Department of Children and Families alleging he was not dispensing medications to the child adequately for a cold. Jackson and Lilly’s mom had a difficult relationship and disagreed often, but he *Names have been changed to protect privacy.

worked hard not to react in front of Lilly. The SafeCare Parent Coach met with Jackson and completed an intake to evaluate the family and present the program modules that would provide the training and skills needed. Jackson shared that he wanted to complete the program so he would be well-equipped to take care of Lilly. His love and concern for his daughter was evident and it was clear they had a strong bond. The SafeCare Parenting Skills Program entails three modules with six sessions each: Parent-Child Interactions, Health and Safety. The safety and well-being of the child is paramount. Jackson learned quickly to identify safety hazards and worked with the Parenting Coach to remove them throughout their home.

As the training progressed, the next step was the Parent-Child Interactions Module. The Parent Coach modeled the desired skills to include preparing in advance for an activity, explaining the activity to the child, saying what you expect and what will happen, using good physical interaction skills, and transitioning to another activity. Two of the areas that Jackson was hoping to see some changes was in getting his daughter dressed in the morning and mealtime as she wanted to play on her tablet and would become very upset if she was asked to put it down. The Parent Coach provided Jackson opportunities to practice the skills he was learning and by the end of the module, he had mastered these skills which made life better for both Jackson and Lilly. Her behavior significantly improved and she didn’t struggle as much when her dad asked her to put away her tablet because she now knew what he expected and she received positive consequences. T he last module focused on Lilly’s health and learning skills needed to identify the child’s symptoms of an illness and/ or injury. A health manual was provided and gave Jackson the appropriate resources to help ensure Lilly’s health was a priority.

As Jackson completed the program, he had gained new skills and tools to help ensure Lilly would receive the best care possible at home. He was encouraged by the changes in her behavior as a result and felt more confident as a parent. The goal of the SafeCare Program is to ensure that the children’s safety and health are a priority and the parent-child interactions are appropriate and reduce the stress and challenges for both of them. For more information, please visit us at HibiscusChildrensCenter.org or contact Behavior Basics at (772) 463-0444. We are here to help!