FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 17, 1998

CNMC DEDICATES FREDDIE MAC FOUNDATION CHILD AND ADOLESCENT PROTECTION CENTER
Facility Provides Child-Friendly, Family Oriented Care for Abused Children

Washington, DC – Children's National Medical Center dedicated the recently completed Freddie Mac Foundation Child and Adolescent Protection Center (CAP-Center) at a ceremony today. Made possible by a $1 million grant from the Freddie Mac Foundation, the CAP-Center offers services to children and adolescents who have been abused or neglected.

"Thousands of children and adolescents stream through the emergency department of Children's National Medical Center every month," said Edwin K. Zechman, President and CEO of CNMC. "Alarming numbers of these children and adolescents bring with them horrifying stories ¾ stories of how many of them have been victims of violence. Thanks to the generous support of the Freddie Mac Foundation the CAP-Center is here to help these children and adolescents and to hopefully prevent the abuse from happening again."

"The children we see at the CAP-Center are often frightened and distrusting of adults, in order to help them they need to know that they are in a safe and supportive environment," said Dr. Lavdena Orr, Director of the CAP-Center. "Thanks to the Freddie Mac Foundation's generous donation we can now give these children and adolescents a safe place to come and talk about what has happened."

"An important focus for the Freddie Mac Foundation has been to help prevent the terrible pain of child abuse which is why we are proud to support this cutting edge facility at Children's Hospital," explained Maxine Baker Stokes, executive director, Freddie Mac Foundation. "This center will provide abused and neglected children a place to be comforted and healed. For many, it will be the first real experience of what it means to be safe."

Because the CAP-Center is the hospital's designated reporting agent under the Child Abuse and Neglect Act, all cases of suspected abuse or neglect must be reported to them by the emergency department. The CAP-Center has a clinician available 24 hours a day who is there to ensure the child or adolescent receives the comprehensive medical and mental health services he needs to promote a successful recovery.

The CAP-Center offers many programs for abused and neglected children and adolescents, their families and communities, including:

• Crisis Intervention
• Forensic Medical Exams
• Specialized Mental Health Services
• Case Management
• Psychological Testing
• Victims of Crime Assistance Program (funded by the Department of Justice)
• PACE: Help for Parents
• Educational programs and seminars for physicians, social workers, psychologists, police, child protective services workers, teachers and other professionals that work with children and their families
• Community based parenting education programs
  

Services are also available for children and adolescents that are at risk for victimization.

Programs are designed to educate families and communities to recognize the indicators of abuse, the difference between good touch/bad touch, conducting medical exams of abused children and adolescents, treating juvenile sex offenders and their families, and other topics designed to raise the awareness and knowledge of abuse and neglect in their community. CAP-Center staff is also available to participate on panels, provide information at press conference and participate in media events.

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Created with an endowment from Freddie Mac in 1990, the Freddie Mac Foundation is dedicated to brightening the future for children, youth, and families at risk. One of the largest corporate funders in the Washington, DC metropolitan area, the Foundation has invested nearly $35 million in nonprofit organizations serving them.

Children's National Medical Center (CNMC) is a private non-profit medical and research facility. The CNMC family includes six suburban outpatient centers located in Upper Marlboro; Laurel; Shady Grove; Frederick; Fairfax, Va., and the Spring Valley neighborhood in Northwest D.C. CNMC also has a regional network of over 200 pediatricians and offers ambulatory surgery centers in Rockville, Md., and Arlington, Va. For over 125 years, CNMC has been providing a complete range of pediatric care to local, national, and international patients.