Child Advocacy Center

The Dell Hayden Memorial Child Advocacy Center, named in memory of the first executive director of the Family Crisis Center, creates a safe space to complete forensic interviews of children who have reported being sexual assaulted or abused. A multi-disciplinary team comprised of law enforcement, prosecution, mental health, medical and advocacy personnel work together to interview a child in a comfortable environment without multiple interviews. This approach has shown to be less traumatic for children and has a higher conviction rate for the prosecution. The CAC has an interview room with cameras to record the interview, a team room so that the team can watch the interview and send questions into the forensic interviewer if more information is needed, an exam room where evidence is collected by a trained pediatric Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE), and a family room for the non-offending parent to sit and wait while the interview is taking place.

What Is a Child Advocacy Center?

A Child Advocacy Center serves children who have been abused or neglected. The CAC coordinates a collaborative partnership of professionals who are dedicated to providing child-sensitive and compassionate services for the child and the child’s family. Professionals representing child protective services, legal, law enforcement, mental health, medical and other disciplines provide a coordinated team response when a child reports abuse or when there is reason to believe a child has been abused or neglected.

What Does the Dell Hayden Memorial CAC Provide?

A neutral, child-friendly place where victims of abuse can share the details of their abuse experience with trained, caring professionals.
A program to refer abused children to specialized mental health and medical services that treat their physical and psychological health needs.
A forum or “home” where law enforcement, child protection workers, prosecutors, therapists, medical providers and victim advocates can share information and develop coordinated strategies tailored to the needs of each case.
A system of support for abused children and their non-offending caregivers to connect families with resources to resolve the abuse crisis.

Why Is a Multi-Disciplinary Team Used?

This team approach strives to reduce further trauma to the child and helps the child and family to heal from the emotional wounds associated with abuse. The multidisciplinary approach of the Dell Hayden Memorial Child Advocacy Center focuses on prevention, detection, investigation, treatment and prosecution and includes: