WATERTOWN, S.D. – The Northeast REACH (Respond, Educate, Advocate, Counsel, Heal) Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) will host an open house on October 3rd from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at Sanford Health Child’s Voice Outreach Clinic in Watertown, SD.
The REACH team will serve victims of child maltreatment across 13 counties in northeastern South Dakota. The MDT model has been widely adopted as best practice in response to child sexual abuse and other forms of child maltreatment. The REACH team is comprised of professionals from the Watertown Police Department, Department of Social Services, Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI), local prosecutors and Sioux Falls-based Child’s Voice, a nationally accredited Child Advocacy Center that provides medical evaluations for children who may be victims of abuse and neglect.
The grand opening celebrates the collaboration and initiative from the Watertown community and statewide partners. This call to action was inspired by the work of Jolene’s Law Task Force which identified that more than 4,000 children from all socio-economic and ethnic groups experience sexual abuse every year in South Dakota. The Jolene’s Law Task Force created a 10-year comprehensive plan to end childhood sexual abuse in the state, with efforts led by the Center for the Prevention of Child Maltreatment (CPCM) at the University of South Dakota.
State Senator Deb Soholt (District 14) and DCI Special Agent Cameron Corey will speak at noon. The public is welcome to attend. Sanford Health Child’s Voice Outreach Clinic is located at 401 9th Avenue NW, Watertown.
ABOUT CHILD ADVOCACY CENTERS OF SOUTH DAKOTA
The Child Advocacy Centers of South Dakota (CACSD) is an accredited State Chapter of the National Children’s Alliance and represents the children’s advocacy centers in South Dakota. Since 1998, CACSD membership has grown to four accredited centers and one developing center that serve children and families throughout the state. The CACSD Chapter Coordinator also serves as the MDT Coordinator for the Northeast REACH team. For more information please contact Nick Bratvold at [email protected] or (605) 951-5174.
ABOUT CENTER FOR THE PREVENTION OF CHILD MALTREATMENT
The Center for the Prevention of Child Maltreatment (CPCM) is the first organization to join local, tribal, state and federal efforts in the fight against child sexual abuse and other forms of maltreatment in South Dakota. CPCM was born out of the work of Jolene’s Law Task Force, established through SDCL 2-6-31, and its comprehensive 10-year plan to help South Dakotans know of, respond to, and prevent child sexual abuse. For more information on CPCM please contact Carrie Sanderson at [email protected], (605) 357-1392, or visit www.sdcpcm.com.
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