County Kids Among Safest in Country

Summary

---

"Kids are safer here than in most places because of all of the prevention and safety measures here," said County Human Services Director Marc Cherna. "We do an immediate response where we send someone out on any call regarding a child 6 and under. That's only apart of our whole cadre of prevention and support services for families."

"A vast majority of our parents don't want to hurt their children," Cherna said. "Often times circumstances such as mental health, drugs and poverty are factors. The community stepped up to help. Protection of our kids is a community effort. You can't rely on the government to protect children. Government is only apart of it. Our community partners, faith-based institutions and family support centers are big pieces of it."

"I think for a program or initiative to be effective, you must have the support and input of the community," said Debra Tucker, director of the Family Growth and Child Development department at the Urban League of Pittsburgh, which operates support centers in Duquesne and Northview Heights. "The commitment of the [DHS] to integrate programs and services and bring organizations together has been significant. There's definitely a vision that will have a positive impact on children and families."

See the full content of this document

Extract

---

County Kids Among Safest in Country

Every year, thousands of children in the United States die from abuse or neglect, but not in Allegheny County. At least not last year.

Due to an increased commitment to prevention services and community involvement, not one child in the county d...

See the full content of this document

---