The COVID-19 pandemic has created challenges in every corner of society – injury and violence prevention (IVP) has not escaped this disruption. At the Children’s Safety Network (CSN) we have been working closely with states and jurisdictions to reduce child and adolescent injury and violence since the 1990s. While COVID-19 presents new and unique challenges in the field of IVP – CSN’s approach to technical assistance and support for states and jurisdictions is as relevant as ever.
The CSN Framework for Quality Improvement and Innovation in Child Safety, with accompanying methods, resources, and tools, gives states and jurisdictions practical means to respond to the current crisis in a thoughtful and nimble way. The CSN Framework focuses on child safety expertise, quality improvement, implementation science, systems level thinking, and data-driven decision making – in addition to strong management and leadership. These skills and related resources and tools are needed now. One such tool is the CSN Outcome Measures Worksheets. These worksheets offer guidance to states in data collection across child safety topics we believe are exacerbated during COVID-19, such as suicide and self-harm, falls, interpersonal violence, and poisoning.
As this pandemic unfolds, CSN is working with partners as a national leader in IVP to share information on the challenges facing states and communities and communicating best practices during COVID-19. Examples of this national-level effort include:
- Sharing COVID-19-related messages through our newsletter – such as helping kids wear masks – that reaches more than 20,000 readers.
- Harnessing social media to spread information about child safety issues exacerbated during this time such as risk of child poisoning in the home, including posts on EDC blog post on COVID-19, children returning to school and anxiety, trauma, and educational inequities (Facebook, Twitter)
- Working in close partnership with other national leaders such as the Children’s Safety Now Alliance, Safe States Alliance and Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs to coordinate and discuss how to address IVP in the time of COVID
CSN will continue to learn, adapt, and support IVP leaders and practitioners during these challenging times. We are committed to provide timely and necessary information out to the IVP field. For more information follow us on social media or visit our website for resources and technical assistance.
To learn more email csninfo@edc.org