Days after a Miami Herald investigation documented 475 child abuse deaths on the agency's watch, Florida's Department of Children and Families is launching a new child safety program. It's advice for busy parents who may not be too careful about who takes care of their children.
DCF's interim secretary Esther Jacobo says the program will pull together 30 agencies and organizations to counsel and guide parents about the hazards of leaving children in the care of unrelated caregivers such as girlfriends, boyfriends, and family acquaintances. Jacobo told reporters, it’s an appropriate time for extraordinary care.
"As the Miami herald article pointed out this weekend, we know there are dangers associated with nonrelative caregivers or what we in practice call 'the paramours.' That's a DCF term", said Jacobo.
More than 25 percent of the of the child protective investigations last year involved nonrelative caregivers, mostly boyfriends and girlfriends with no ties to the child as the alleged perpetrator.
It's what DCF calls boyfriends or girlfriends -- part of the group of unrelated caregivers she says were responsible for 12,000 incidents of child abuse or neglect last year. That was 25 percent of the total. This new program is called "Who's Really Watching Your Child?" Its advocates and advisers will guide participating parents to wiser child care choices, and lobby businesses for financial contributions to sponsor day care spots for needy parents.
Jacobo said the Herald series, which continues this week, raised questions that programs like this are helping to answer.
"I think that the takeaway s that we Floridians - not just in the department, our community - are really working together to find solutions", Jacobo said.