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A few more words from The Doc


My friend The Doc has a few more words to share concerning the measures taken to combat coronavirus and how to protect children.
4.7 children die every day from abuse & neglect in the US. 1 in 7 children will be maltreated this year.  I have attached a quick few slides on statistic in case you need to validate anything to anyone On your blog.  I did not include photos of what we see happen to these children; I can if needed.
Anything that you can say or do may make a difference.  Many families are under stress in ‘normal’ times but times such as this…explosions
The attached document includes some talking points that I put together for Banner’s blog on Child Abuse prevention in general.
Some of the links are local and some are national.  I will get more national sources.
As regards the risk with shelter in place and increased child abuse,  child abuse ALWAYS peaks during times of economic and social stress and crisis.
Friends and family should not presume that parents/caregivers are ok, not at their wits end.  Best to be there before a family is reaching a crisis point.
We have to maintain isolation if ill; so if you are sick reach out to your parent friends via skype, facebook, facetime.
A few moments to vent, reconnect with an actual adult will do wonders.  Discuss Covid; look for good information, CDC and WHO but don’t super saturate yourself with news.
  • Talking with your kids about Covid
  • Helping children cope with emergencies
  • How to protect your home
If people in the family are sick, the sick adults would benefit from time to recharge, rest, shower.  The sick people should wear a mask, bandana etc.  The visitor can wear a mask as well if they feel more comfortable.
If you are well, go visit & make it a regular event; daily if possible.  Maintain social distancing while having a cup of coffee (or a glass of wine 😊 ), offer to help cook dinner, help with laundry etc.  Help the parents navigate the school bureaucracy to get school meals etc.
Offer to take the older kids outside to play ball, hopscotch, arts and crafts, play board games, ride bikes with helmets of course so mom n dad can have a moment of peace to get chores done, go shopping without the kids.
Offer to baby sit the younger kids, read to them, play games again while the parents can be “normal”.
Encourage the parents to set schedules, stick to ‘em.  This helps maintain normalcy as much as possible. 
Probably should set specific hours for screen time; for example screen time from 5-7 PM instead of 2 hours.
Do fun things around the house: “theater night w/ tickets, popcorn”, fancy dinner dress, hide n seek, plays, read books together (get a library card on line & check out books), do puzzles (can glue and frame for display), camping night sit around a camp fire on TV or in the yard, dancing competitions etc.
Do fun things outside the house if they can maintain social distancing; walks (explore bugs, birds, flowers on the walk), bike rides, lay down and look at the clouds while looking for shapes, start a garden together.
Older kids can play board games with friends and family on-line; for example the game master can move the pieces, read the cards etc.
Help set up virtual visits with family n friends nearby and around the country to help keep our more vulnerable populations safe from Covid.
Letting the parents do the shopping gets them away from the kids which may be a great stress reduce especially with the lines at some of the stores.
Online ideas to keep kids interested Thank you so much for helping me get this message out.
I will send more ideas as I read or things pop into my head.
If you have any ideas, resources etc please let me know so I can try to get Banner to use them.
Needless to say, I'm very proud and fortunate to be able to count this cabron among my meat-friends.

Stay frosty, my friends.
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