Supported Rating by Federal Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse Paves Way for Expansion of Parents Anonymous® Programs.
Parents Anonymous® has been rated as a Supported evidence-based intervention program by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services’ Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse, only one of five such program designations nationwide, for the effectiveness of Parents Anonymous® in addressing child safety and the prevention of child abuse and neglect. This Supported rating for Parents Anonymous® from the Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse is a distinguished honor. As a result of Congress passing the Family First Prevention Services Act, the Administration for Children and Families within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, established the Clearinghouse to conduct objective and transparent review of research on programs intended to provide enhanced support to children and families and prevent foster care placements.
The studies reviewed by the Clearinghouse found that Parents Anonymous® reduced subsequent child maltreatment substantiations by more than half as compared to parents who did not use the program, even after leaving the Parents Anonymous® program a year later. Additionally, the study found that Parents Anonymous® predominately served communities of color, one of the communities in highest need of services. “This is acknowledging the 52 years of evidence-based Parents Anonymous® programs that are raising the future,” says Dr. Lisa Pion-Berlin, President and C.E.O. Parents Anonymous® Inc. “Together we can build on the strengths of diverse parents, children and youth throughout America, ensure long-term positive child safety outcomes and mitigate and prevent Adverse Childhood Experiences.”
The opportunity to help more Parents, Children & Youth nationwide rests with states applying for dollar for dollar prevention federal matching funds to provide evidence-based Parents Anonymous® programs. Parents Anonymous® is a proven intervention to keep children out of the child welfare system and ensure child safety by addressing mental health, substance use prevention or treatment, and in-home parenting skills.
The study found that parents who participated in Parents Anonymous® were significantly less likely to experience new referrals and new substantiated referrals to the child welfare system within a year of finishing the program than parents who did not participate in the program. The odds of a parent who finished the program experiencing a new substantiated referral were one third as high as those of parents who did not attend the program. While Parents Anonymous® serves a wide variety of parents, most participating parents from those two California counties are at high risk of repeated system involvement and have considerable histories in the child welfare system. Taken in context, the study findings indicate that the program could help reduce the likelihood of system involvement even for this high-risk group. This study adds to previous studies over the past 51 years showing Parents Anonymous® leads to better outcomes for families.
