2.3 LEVERAGE RESOURCES
State health departments already have a variety of programs and efforts in place that directly work to prevent child maltreatment or address risk and protective factors. They include home visitation, parent education, child death review, early childhood development, domestic violence prevention, WIC, and more. These programs bring a wealth of resources beyond funding, such as staff expertise, partner outreach, and community relationships.
Leveraging resources involves identifying current funding in your state, careful consideration of current funding and resources, and acting on opportunities for better coordination. It is important to identify child maltreatment categorical funding as well as funding that will support activities that address child maltreatment risk and protective factors. Braiding funding, which involves aligning separate categorical funding sources to support integrated and coordinated service delivery, may be a useful strategy to make resources go farther. This type of funding strategy can reduce reliance on single funding sources and contribute to long-term sustainability.
Consider:
- What state funding is currently available to support prevention efforts (e.g., docket fees, license plates, option to donate funds on tax forms)?
- What other state or federal funding sources could be used to support child maltreatment prevention (e.g., Medicaid, State Children’s Health Insurance Program, private insurance)?
- What private resources could be used to support child maltreatment prevention (e.g., state-based foundations, for-profit corporations)?
- What resources are designated to support efforts that address child maltreatment risk and protective factors?
- What opportunities exist for leveraging funding from state agencies and organizations (e.g., multiple agencies jointly funded community-based services state-wide)?
- How well do staff understand opportunities for aligning resources to better address child maltreatment prevention?
3. Collaboration