April is Child Abuse Prevention Month, a time to remember the important role everyone plays in keeping communities safe for kids to grow and thrive. Oral health professionals play a unique and important role in the prevention, recognition, and reporting of child maltreatment, including neglect. During April, KOHC continues our work with Delta Dental of Kentucky and the Face It Movement to equip oral health professionals with the tools they need to keep kids safe in their offices and communities.

Over the past three years, KOHC has hosted Pediatric Abusive Head Trauma trainings for oral health professionals to equip these health professionals with the tools they need to recognize and report the signs of child abuse. In addition, we developed a toolkit to provide additional resources for health professionals to feel confident when talking to patients, caregivers, and their staff members about this important topic.

This year, we are launching a NEW virtual training for oral health professionals on Recognizing and Responding to Neglect. In this training, participants will learn to recognize common forms of child neglect, contributing factors and key principles for assessing neglect, as well as appropriate response when neglect is identified in the dental office. FREE continuing education credits are available for dentists and dental hygienists. Register now to attend this training on April 5th from 10am-12pm ET.

Throughout the month of April, Face It and community partners will be hosting a series of events and trainings, sharing free resources for parents, caregivers, community members, and professionals, promoting child safety tips and family engagement ideas, and more! There’s are many ways to get involved in Child Abuse Prevention Month – be sure to check out the event page to learn more.

We all have a role to play in keeping kids safe in our communities – join KOHC in recognizing Child Abuse Prevention Month throughout the entire month of April!