Child advocacy service centralized Stephen E. Booker Child Abuse Response Team plans to open Child Advocacy Center for Jackson County children

The function of a new Child Advocacy Center is to provide a central location to conduct forensic interviews, medical evaluations, therapeutic interventions, and victim advocacy in a developmentally appropriate and non-intrusive environment.

“In a police station, it can be difficult for a child to understand they are not in trouble,” Melanie Lesley with the Department of Human Services said. “In a hospital, they might think that everyone knows why they are there. This way, there is a peaceful environment that is out of the way and private.”

Cultural Anthropologist Margaret Mead said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”

The Stephen E. Booker Child Abuse Response Team, established in June 2015, made it a goal to establish a Child Advocacy Center in Jackson County. With a building available for the center and continued efforts to provide forensic interview training for the team underway, after four years of work, that goal has been reached.

Named for the late, former Jackson County Assistant District Attorney Stephen E. Booker, honoring his dedication to work on behalf of children, the team envisions a safe, friendly environment for the evaluation of child abuse in coordination with a team of professionals from the Department of Human Services and the District Attorney’s office, working in coordination with law enforcement, mental health service providers and medical personnel.

According to Dennie Christian from the Oklahoma State Health Department, two nurses and a nurse practitioner are working on receiving sexual assault nurse examiner or SANE training in medical forensic care to work with victims of abuse. Pediatrics specialists, Dr. Lindsey King and Dr. Hokehe Effiong at Jackson County Memorial Hospital Pediatric Clinic will have been involved in the progress of the new Child Advocacy Center.

“We work together on the investigation, treatment, management and prosecution of child abuse cases to ensure the best outcome in a safe and supportive environment,” Lesley said.

In 2015, child abuse and neglect were identified as an unmet needs in Jackson County through the Jackson County Community Health Alliance-Community Needs Survey taken that year.

“Before we have had to send children to Lawton, Oklahoma City or Sayre because there wasn’t a designated place for victims of child abuse in Jackson County,” Tonya Boots at Youth Care Oklahoma said. “Having an inconspicuous place to see these children will reduce the number of people they have to talk with and have a big impact on their care.”