Connected Kids: Safe, Strong, Secure

Connected Kids: Safe, Strong, Secure Dear Pediatrician, I am pleased to announce the launch of a new AAP program, Connected Kids: Safe, Strong, Secure. Surveys of pediatricians in 1998 and 2003 revealed that a majority of pediatricians want to counsel patients and their families about violence prevention and want the training and support that will enable them to do so. Connected Kids offers child health care providers a comprehensive, logical approach to integrating violence prevention efforts in their practices. Connected Kids brings an asset-based approach to anticipatory guidance, focusing on helping parents and families raise resilient children. Each counseling topic discusses the child s development, the parent s feelings and reactions in response to the child s development and behavior, and specific practical suggestions on how to encourage healthy social, emotional, and physical growth in an environment of support and open communication. This program evolved from efforts to prevent intentional injuries youth violence and child abuse. Extensive research, including focus groups with parents around the country, suggested that the most effective approach to these critical areas would be a positive one, an approach that supports the alliance between parents and pediatricians by providing specific, important advice about children and families throughout childhood. The program builds on TIPP The Injury Prevention Program in that information for parents and pediatricians is coordinated with scheduled health maintenance visits. Connected Kids supports these developmentally timed topics with counseling suggestions and with written handouts for parents and teens. Why is violence prevention important to the American Academy of Pediatrics? As increasing numbers of pediatricians report treating children for injuries related to child abuse, domestic violence, and community violence, it is clear that this issue requires the attention of all those who care for children. Just as we work to protect children from disease, disability, and unintentional injury, so must we help provide them with the tools to be safe from violence. Development of Connected Kids began with the 1999 report of the Task Force on Violence and ultimately involved extensive input from parents, teens, and more than 100 recognized experts in child health, mental health, and development as well as practicing general pediatricians. The three-year development process, which was supported by a grant from the US Department of Justice, has produced a program that is rooted in science, is responsive to the real-life challenges of parenting, incorporates many issues that pediatricians already include in their practices, and has been field-tested extensively. Read on for information about what s included in Connected Kids, how to obtain a copy of TIPP and Connected Kids on CD-ROM, and how to get started using Connected Kids in practice. I invite you to use the new Connected Kids resources in your practice and your community, joining the Academy and pediatricians nationwide in addressing this vitally important public health issue. Sincerely, Errol R. Alden, MD, FAAP Executive Director

How Do I Get Started Using Connected Kids? Connected Kids is a comprehensive program for use in well-child visits for all children from birth to age 21. Its organization follows the familiar TIPP model: there are suggestions for topics to introduce and reinforce at scheduled visits, supported by printed materials to give to parents and teens to reinforce your advice. Fortunately, Connected Kids is a user-friendly and flexible program for providers and families, and it was designed so that you can implement it at your own pace in a way that is comfortable for you. Here are some suggestions for getting started with Connected Kids, based on how field testers used this program. One or more of these ideas may help you begin: 1. Understand Connected Kids. The clinical guide introduces the building blocks of the program and provides suggestions for specific office visits. Connected Kids does not require you to practice in an entirely new way; instead, it provides a different way to think about much of what you already do in providing well-child care. You can use Connected Kids tools to frame your counseling in an asset-based philosophy that pediatricians and parents find to be appealing and successful. 2. Start small and build incrementally. Try implementing Connected Kids with one or two visits or topics at a time. You might want to pick a visit during which you already cover topics addressed in Connected Kids but for which you feel you are lacking appropriate tools. For example, maybe you already counsel parents never to shake their babies, but you could implement Connected Kids at the very first visit to help them anticipate that their babies will cry and help them find needed support at the beginning. Or, you could pick a topic that you have wanted to address but didn t because you did not have the needed If you are interested in receiving periodic updates about Connected Kids, please send an e-mail to connectedkids@aap.org with updates in the subject line. information. For example, bullying is a hot topic, and Connected Kids could help you counsel families of bullies and children who are being bullied. 3. Be a leader. Successful use of Connected Kids will require the support of all practice staff. You can pave the way by serving as your practice s Connected Kids champion. You might want to hold a staff meeting to discuss how your practice can use Connected Kids. You can use the Connected Kids PowerPoint presentation (available on the Connected Kids Web site at www.aap.org/connectedkids) to introduce your practice to the program. Share your vision for how the practice can implement Connected Kids while being open to ideas from everyone else, from the receptionist to your partners. 4. Share your experience and get ideas from others. Visit the Connected Kids Web site for success stories and suggestions from pediatricians around the country. Use the Web site to pose questions about Connected Kids and get information about how others have overcome barriers to implementing the program. Talk to local colleagues who have implemented Connected Kids about their experiences. 5. Be patient. Your practice won t be able to implement all of Connected Kids overnight. But Connected Kids field testers overwhelmingly felt that the program was easy to adapt to their own practice styles. Even experienced pediatricians found that once they started becoming more comfortable using Connected Kids it improved their counseling, their ability to address violence prevention, and their relationships with parents.

The Connected Kids Clinical Guide offers pediatricians comprehensive advice on how to implement the program in clinical practice. It provides counseling suggestions for each age and well-child visit, including information about important topics in each brochure, suggested scripts for assessment and anticipatory guidance, and practical hints about how to discuss sensitive topics. The Clinical Guide also includes several tools and worksheets that reinforce important messages and help connect families to valuable community resources. The Connected Kids Clinical Guide can be found on the AAP TIPP and Connected Kids on CD-ROM. Infancy and Early Childhood: Prenatal to 5-Year-Old Visits Visit Introduce Reinforce Brochures 2 Days to What Babies Do 1. Welcome to the 4 Weeks Parental Frustration World of Parenting! Parent Mental Health Parent Support 2 and 4 Child Care Parent Mental Health 2. Parenting Your Infant Months Family Parent Support Safe Environment Parenting Style Bonding and Attachment 6 and 9 Establishing Routines Parent Support 3. How Do Infants Learn? Months Discipline = Teaching Child Care 4. Your Child Is On the Firearms Safe Environment Move: Reduce the Risk Modeling Behavior Bonding and Attachment of Gun Injury 12 and 15 Child Development Parenting Style 5. Teaching Good Months and Behavior Firearms Behavior: Tips on Modeling Behavior How to Discipline Safe Environment 18 Months Child s Assets Parent Support 6. Playing Is How and 2 Years Guided Participation Firearms Toddlers Learn Media Child Development 7. Pulling the Plug on and Behavior TV Violence Establishing Routines 3 and 4 Peer Playing Modeling Behavior 8. Young Children Learn Years Safety in Others Homes Guided Participation a Lot When They Play Talking About Emotions Promoting Independence

Middle Childhood: 5- to 10-Year-Old Visits Visit Introduce Reinforce Brochures 5 Years Establishing Routines Child Development 9. Growing Independence: and Setting Limits and Behavior Tips for Parents of Child s Assets Young Children Safety in Others Homes Promoting Independence 6 Years Teaching Behavior Modeling Behavior 10. Bullying: It s Not OK Bullying Establishing Routines Out-of-School Time and Setting Limits 8 Years School Connections Firearms 11. Drug Abuse Alcohol and Drugs Promoting Independence Prevention Starts Interpersonal Skills Establishing Routines With Parents and Setting Limits 12. Friends Are Important: Tips for Parents 10 Years Child Mental Health Media 13. Everybody Gets Mad: School Performance Out-of-School Time Helping Your Child Cope with Conflict Adolescence Visit Introduce Reinforce Brochures Early: Family Time Together Firearms 14. Talking With Your Teen: 11 to 14 Peer Relationships Establishing Routines and Tips for Parents Years Support System Setting Limits 15. Staying Cool When Staying Safe Alcohol and Drugs Things Heat Up Teen Mental Health School Performance 16. Expect Respect: Conflict Resolution Skills Healthy Relationships Healthy Dating Gaining Independence 17. Teen Dating Violence: Tips for Parents Middle: Plans for the Future Alcohol and Drugs 18. Teen Suicide and Guns 15 to 17 Firearms and Suicide Peer Relationships 19. Next Stop Adulthood: Years Depression Healthy Dating Tips for Parents Resiliency Gaining Independence Late: Transition to Peer Relationships 20. Help Stop Teenage 18 to 21 Independence Plans for the Future Suicide Years Negotiating a Depression 21. Connecting With New Environment Your Community

Connected Kids Brochures Infancy and Early Childhood: Prenatal to 5-Year-Old Visits 1. Welcome to the World of Parenting! Provides new parents with information about normal newborn behaviors and development. It offers parents ways to cope with crying, fatigue, relationship changes, and other challenges of new parenthood. 2. Parenting Your Infant Continues themes of the first brochure, focusing on babies behaviors and personality development. It discusses common concerns such as colic, trouble sleeping, and clinging to parents, and gives advice on establishing new family routines. 3. How Do Infants Learn? Offers practical suggestions to parents on how to help their babies learn about the world through play, reading, exploration, and positive relationships. 4. Your Child is On the Move: Reduce the Risk of Gun Injury Discusses guns as a household safety issue, to be addressed with other household hazards. This brochure advises parents on how to protect their newly mobile babies from gun injury as they explore their surroundings. 5. Teaching Good Behavior: Tips on How to Discipline Gives specific suggestions on how to encourage good behavior and correct bad behavior in developmentally appropriate ways. It helps parents establish rules and limits and provides tips on alternatives to corporal punishment. 6. Playing Is How Toddlers Learn Helps parents understand normal toddler behavior and how to encourage learning through play. It offers ways to help toddlers learn to make friends and interact with others. 7. Pulling the Plug on TV Violence Informs parents about the influence of television violence on children and gives them specific suggestions on how to limit television s harmful effects. 8. Young Children Learn a Lot When They Play Discusses playing with peers and how parents can support their preschool-aged child s social development. This brochure gives tips on how to deal with common interpersonal problems, such as aggression and rejection. Middle Childhood: 5- to 10-Year-Old Visits 9. Growing Independence: Tips for Parents of Young Children Offers guidance to parents in helping their children begin to become independent. It focuses on establishing limits and daily routines, talking and listening, encouraging independence in daily tasks, teaching safety around other adults, and learning to be a friend. 10. Bullying: It s Not OK Offers facts about bullying and strategies for parents to help stop bullying, whether their child is a victim, a perpetrator, or a bystander. This brochure is useful in clinical settings or as a handout for school and community groups. 11. Drug Abuse Prevention Starts with Parents Highlights the connection between parent behavior and attitudes, media influences, parent/child communication, and children s subsequent use of drugs and alcohol. Major themes include parental role modeling and open communication. Adolescence 12. Friends Are Important: Tips for Parents Focuses on the importance of peer relationships as children become teenagers. It offers parents guidance on getting to know their child s friends, helping their child avoid risky situations, and getting their child involved in community service. 13. Everybody Gets Mad: Helping Your Child Cope with Conflict Describes children s anger and guides parents in giving their children specific strategies to avoid fighting when they are angry. It emphasizes communication and teaching children how to respond to their anger in appropriate ways. 14. Talking with Your Teen: Tips for Parents Helps parents understand the ways that their children s feelings and behaviors will change as they enter puberty and the teen years. It emphasizes the importance of continued communication and establishing reasonable limits to keep teens safe. 15. Staying Cool When Things Heat Up Acknowledges that it is normal for teens to get angry and helps them find ways to respond to their anger without fighting. Written for young adolescents, it offers methods of defusing conflict and helping other teens avoid fighting. 16. Expect Respect: Healthy Relationships Guides teens in avoiding abusive relationships and intimate partner violence. Written for adolescents, it describes signs of healthy and unhealthy relationships in an interactive quiz format and empowers teens to take steps to change or end an unhealthy relationship. 17. Teen Dating Violence: Tips for Parents Helps parents recognize signs that their teenager is involved in an abusive relationship. It offers parents advice on how to talk about potential problems and help their teenager deal with the relationship safely. 18. Teen Suicide and Guns Highlights the risk of having a gun in the home in the context of teen suicide prevention. It provides the facts about suicide attempts involving guns being deadly more often than attempts by other methods. 19. Next Stop Adulthood: Tips for Parents Helps parents and teenagers negotiate the complex relationship changes that occur as teenagers become more independent. It gives advice to parents on helping their teen learn to be a responsible adult while staying connected and having realistic expectations. 20. Help Stop Teenage Suicide Provides information about warning signs for suicide and dispels common myths about teen suicide. It offers practical suggestions to parents, peers, and others on how to respond if you are concerned that a teen may attempt suicide. 21. Connecting With Your Community Encourages teenagers to be actively involved in their communities as a way of growing into an independent and successful adult. It provides information on what adolescents can expect as their relationships with their parents and other adults change.

Internet www.aap.org/bookstore For secure online ordering. NEW! TIPP and Connected Kids on CD-ROM: Injury and Violence Prevention Counseling Resources TIPP and Connected Kids on CD-ROM: Injury and Violence Prevention Counseling Resources includes Complete TIPP The Injury Prevention Program, which consists of 40 printable and age-related safety sheets, safety slips, and safety surveys NEW! Connected Kids: Safe, Strong, Secure violence intervention and prevention program, which consists of 21 child and adolescent violence prevention resources and handouts Plus additional TIPP and Connected Kids: Safe, Strong, Secure resources and implementation guides TIPP The Injury Prevention Program is a comprehensive and easy-to-use program to help parents prevent common childhood injuries from birth through age 12 years. Since the program was first introduced more than 20 years ago, more than 21 million TIPP handouts have been distributed on topics such as bicycle safety, car safety seats, fire prevention, first aid, poison prevention, water safety, and much more. NEW! Connected Kids: Safe, Strong, Secure is a new set of resources developed by the Violence Intervention and Prevention Program (VIPP). Connected Kids: Safe, Strong, Secure provides pediatricians with guidance and patient-oriented materials to take an asset-based approach to violence prevention. The CD-ROM includes 21 Connected Kids: Safe, Strong, Secure handouts on topics such as bullying, discipline, interpersonal skills, parenting, suicide, television violence, and much more. TIPP and Connected Kids on CD-ROM, 2006 X-CD0038 Price: $325 Member Price: $275 For multiple users or institutional site licensing, call 800/433-9016, ext 7114. FOUR EASY WAYS TO ORDER Call Toll-free Fax 888/227-1770 847/228-1281 7:00 am to 5:30 pm CST Include your credit card (Call 847/434-4000 outside number or POs. the US and Canada.) Do not mail confirming PO. BILLING ADDRESS PLEASE SEND Mail Send completed order to American Academy of Pediatrics 37925 Eagle Way Chicago, IL 60678-1379 ITEM MEMBER ITEM DESCRIPTION NUMBER QUANTITY PRICE PRICE TOTAL TIPP and Connected Kids on CD-ROM X-CD0038 $325 $275 SUBTOTAL Name Member ID Organization Address City/State/ZIP E-mail Name Member ID Organization Address City/State/ZIP SHIPPING ADDRESS METHOD OF PAYMENT Check or money order (payable to the American Academy of Pediatrics) Charge: VISA MasterCard Discover AMEX if different than billing address IL RESIDENTS ADD 8.75% SALES TAX* CANADIAN ORDERS ADD 7% GST CANADIAN ORDERS ADD 8% HST ADD SHIPPING & HANDLING TOTAL * Illinois Residents: Sales tax applicable to all products except patient education materials. If you or your organization is tax-exempt, please provide us with a copy of your Tax-Exempt Certificate. If the publication(s) is for resale, please provide us with a copy of your Resale Certificate. HST affects provinces Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, and Labrador. Allow 2 to 3 weeks for delivery. Prices subject to change. SHIPPING & HANDLING UNITED STATES OUTSIDE THE (FEDEX GROUND) CANADA US & CANADA CD-ROM ONLY $5.95 $7.95 $9.95 Card Number Expiration Date Authorized Signature CID Number Telephone Number System Requirements: Windows 95/98/ME/2000/XP/NT: Pentium processor, 64 MB RAM, 4X CD-ROM drive. Macintosh : PowerPC processor, Mac OS 9.1 or later, CarbonLib 1.2.5 or later, 64 MB RAM, 4X CD-ROM drive. PROMO CODE P5525 FOR OFFICE USE ONLY Customer # Check #