Technical Assistance On the Road: Chapter 3

April 14, 2014

Trip to Routt County

Entering Routt County

Last week I traveled to Steamboat Springs where Beth Watson, Public Health Nurse with the Northwest Colorado Visiting Nurse Association (NWCOVNA) and CFR Team Coordinator for Routt and Moffat Counties, and Charity Neal, NWCOVNA Public Health Director, welcomed me to their first child fatality review meeting.

Steamboat Springs, CO

Howelsen Hill

The Routt County team had a rich discussion about the purpose of child fatality review, how they will structure meetings, and the importance of confidentiality within the context of their community. Even during the first case review, prevention was a priority and the team was able to develop a good strategy for preventing similar fatalities from occurring in the future. With all the key players at the table, some of these ideas will be implemented immediately in the community.

Strawberry Park Hot spring 

This truly is a testament to the benefit of a localized review process and I look forward to seeing the positive impact of these prevention strategies across Colorado in the future. 

Since this was my first visit to Steamboat Springs, I took full advantage of my time there. I quickly learned that it was "mud season", and although the snow still looked pretty good, the Ski resort had closed the day prior to my arrival. As a result, many of the town's shops and restaurants had also closed their doors for the off season. Despite slim pickings, I found good food and company as I explored the town on foot. 

I was amazed to discover Howelsen Hill just along the river, boasting the largest and most complete natural ski jumping complex in North America where over 79 Olympians have trained over the years!

I also took time in the evening to visit Strawberry Park Hot Springs. Strawberry Park was by far the most lovely hot spring that I have visited in Colorado so far and I would recommend to to anyone visiting Steamboat. 

Beth, thank you for your hospitality and for all the hard work you have put into establishing your Child Fatality Prevention team. I am confident that this team will do great work for the Routt community. 


Until we meet again,
Leah

______________________

Technical Assistance is always available!
If your team would like to request request technical assistance please click on the Contact CFPS Staff link  to request support. 

Technical Assistance On the Road: Chapter 4

April 15, 2014

Trip to Moffat County

"On the Road Again"

Entering Moffat County

I made a trip to Craig last week in conjunction with with my trip to Steamboat. Beth Watson, Public Health Nurse with the Northwest Colorado Visiting Nurse Association (NWCOVNA) and CFR Team Coordinator for Routt and Moffat Counties, and Charity Neal, NWCOVNA Public Health Director, welcomed me to Moffat County's first child fatality review meeting.

NWCOVNA

The Moffat County team was very engaged in the review process and prevention was a high priority. Based on the case reviewed, the team developed a prevention strategy that could be implemented through the local school district. 

Again, it is extremely exciting to see the immediate action and impact that these local teams will have on the community.

Colleen Zufelt, Public Health Director and CFR Coordinator for Rio Blanco County also attended this meeting. Colleen is in the process of setting up her Child Fatality Prevention team and was looking for some guidance. From attending this meeting, Colleen was able to get some ideas on how to get started and she was able to collaborate with Beth and Charity on CFR and other Public Health issues. 

Beth, Charity, and Colleen, it was great meeting you all. Thank you for your hospitality and for all the hard work you have put into establishing your Child Fatality Prevention teams. 

Until we meet again,
Leah 

______________________

Technical Assistance is always available!
If your team would like to request request technical assistance please click on the Contact CFPS Staff link  to request support. 

ATTN CFR COORDINATORS: Training Registration

Register by May 1, 2014

As a reminder, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) is hosting a comprehensive training for local Child Fatality Prevention Team Coordinators in Denver, Colorado on June 5th and 6th, 2014.The Colorado Child Fatality Prevention System (CFPS) Support Team, along with Theresa Covington, MPH, from the National MCH Center for Child Death Review, will be training Coordinators on how to effectively conduct child fatality reviews and how to facilitate the activities of a local Child Fatality Prevention Review team. The June Coordinator Training Agenda is available for you to review more details about the event. 


Training check-in: June 5th at 8:30 am

Schedule:  June 5th, 8:30 am - 5 pm and June 6th, 8:30 am - 1:30 pm (breakfast and lunch provided on both days)

Reimbursement: the CDPHE has funding to provide hotel accommodations and travel compensation for one team member per county (ideally the team coordinator). If your team would like to sponsor an additional team member to attend the training, you may consider using your county's planning funding to pay for that attendees accommodations. 

Coordinators who are traveling more than 2 hours to Denver may request hotel accommodations on June 4th as well as June 5th. If you are traveling less than 2 hours but you would like to stay in Denver on June 4th, you may consider using your county's planning funding to pay for that extra night. 

Confirm your registration

Reservations: all reservations will be made through the CDPHE, so please complete this form as completely as possible to help us plan effectively for your stay.

Equipping Parents with the Tools and Knowledge to Reduce Teen Motor Vehicle Fatalities

Celebrating Distracted Driving & Alcohol Awareness Months in April

Parents of teenagers may think they do not have much influence on their kids, but when it comes to safe driving, they do — and it could mean the difference between life and death. From 2004 to 2011, rates of motor vehicle crash deaths among 15-19 year-olds in Colorado dropped more than 67 percent. However, in 2012 Colorado experienced a 10 percent rise in teen fatalities from 2011.

The Colorado Teen Driving Alliance (CTDA) has created a new resource to reach parents with the powerful message that they can limit their teen’s risks while driving by enforcing safe driving practices, and we need your help getting this resource into the hands of parents. Teens who say their parents set rules and monitor their driving behavior in a supportive way are 50 percent less likely to crash and 70 percent less likely to drive intoxicated.

As a part of Distracted Driving and Alcohol Awareness Months, the CTDA is promoting the online parent course that provides step-by-step instruction on how parents can support their teens through Colorado’s Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) laws, which are designed to phase-in beginning drivers. This course was prompted by a recent Colorado Department for Health and the Environment survey of over 700 parents of teens throughout Colorado that showed only 6.4 percent of parents could accurately identify each component of graduated driver licensing laws, including limits on distractions like passengers and cell phones, curfews and seat belt requirements. 

Teaching teens to drive can be a daunting process, but the best way to put parents at ease is to give them the educational tools they need to understand the process of getting a license and the specific restrictions for teen drivers. Send the parents or guardians of teens that you know to COTeenDriver.com to learn more about Colorado’s graduated driving licensing laws and to access the online parent course. 

Save the Date: Monday, April 14 (12:00-1:00 pm)

    

SafeCare Colorado is Expanding to a Community Near You Informational Webinar - Monday, April 14 12PM-1PM Gov. John Hickenlooper’s Child Welfare Plan “Keeping Kids Safe and Families Healthy 2.0” recognized the importance of child abuse and neglect prevention. As part of a group of cornerstone prevention programs formed or expanded under this plan, SafeCare Colorado (SafeCareCO) offers pro-active in-home, voluntary services that support at-risk families in understanding the health, development and safety needs of young children. The timeline for year two implementation will be released by April 7th followed by the RFA release for Cohort 2 in early May. Download the updated SafeCare Colorado Fact Sheet  We need your help to expand and prepare for Year 2 Implementation. SafeCare Colorado will host this webinar to answer questions and explain how to bring SafeCare to your county or county collaborative partnerships. To participate in this April 14th informational webinar please save the following link (https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/429726509) or RSVP below to receive an electronic reminder, add the event to your calendar and let us know you are interested. (Use your microphone and speakers (VoIP) - a headset is recommended).

CLICK HERE TO RSVP

This webinar is hosted in partnership with:

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month

Wear Blue Day

The Injury, Suicide and Violence Prevention Unit at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (pictured above) kicked off Child Abuse Prevention Month by participating in Wear Blue Day on April 1st. Wear Blue Day was sponsored and promoted by Our Kids Your Kids, a small group of community-based nonprofit organizations serving Colorado's abused and neglected children. 

If your organization would like more information on the coalition or would like to better collaborate to fulfill the unmet needs of Colorado's most vulnerable children, please don't wait. Email help@ourkidyourkids.org today.

Learn more at Our Kids Your Kids.