Resources
- 1.800.96.ABUSE: The Florida Abuse Hotline serves as the central reporting center for allegations of abuse, neglect, and/or exploitation for all children and vulnerable adults in Florida. The Hotline receives calls, faxes, and web based reports from citizens and professionals with concerns of abuse, neglect, or exploitation of children and vulnerable adults in Florida. The hotline's vision is: "To help protect children and vulnerable adults from abuse, neglect, abandonment, and exploitation."
- 1.800.FLA.LOVE: Babies don't come with instructions. That's why Healthy Families Florida helps provide parents with encouragement and important information on healthy child growth and development through this special hotline. Call today for helpful resources and to find a Healthy Families Florida program in your area.
- 407.317.7430: Contact the Howard Phillips Center for Children & Families for more information on its six vital programs serving Central Florida. Part of Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children, the Howard Phillips Center is a place of hope, helping children, healing families and strengthening communities. Through the Orange County Children's Advocacy Center, the Child Protection Team, The Healing Tree, the Developmental Center for Infants & Children/Early Steps, Healthy Families Orange and Teen Xpress, the Howard Phillips Center provides hope and help to families in Central Florida faced with challenges such as child abuse and neglect, childhood developmental delays and disabilities, the uncertainties of becoming a new parent and lack of access to healthcare for teens.
- 2.1.1: Heart of Florida United Way's free 24-hour information and referral helpline links people in need with assistance from more than 2,000 local health and human service programs. Calls are free and confidential, and can help those in need of food, housing, employment, healthcare, counseling and more.
- http://www.ounce.org/: Founded in 1989, The Ounce of Prevention Fund of Florida is a private, nonprofit corporation dedicated to shaping prevention policy and investing in innovative prevention programs that provide measurable benefits to our state's children, families and communities.
- http://www.hfuw.org/: Founded in 1939, Heart of Florida United Way is Central Florida's largest supporter of local health and human service agencies. A baby born with developmental disabilities, a senior who can no longer drive or prepare meals, a family that is struggling to find affordable housing – these are a few of the more than 364,000 Central Floridians who are served each year by Heart of Florida United Way supported agencies and programs.
- http://www.healthyfamiliesfla.org: A nationally accredited home visiting program for expectant parents and parents of newborns experiencing stressful life situations, Healthy Families Florida improves childhood outcomes and increases family self-sufficiency by empowering parents through education and community support. Parents voluntarily participate in Healthy Families so they can learn how to recognize and respond to their babies' changing developmental needs, use positive discipline techniques, cope with the day-to-day stress of parenting in healthy ways, and set and achieve short- and long-term goals.
- http://www.dcf.state.fl.us/: The Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) protects the vulnerable, promotes strong and economically self-sufficient families, and advances personal and family recovery and resiliency. The program protects children, the elderly and the disabled from abuse and neglect and is responsible for nearly 19,000 children in foster care. In addition, DCF finds permanent homes for children who cannot safety be reunited with their families. It also offers services that help families on a day-to-day basis, providing assistance with food stamps, temporary cash assistance and eligibility for Medicaid. DCF provides access to substance abuse and mental health treatment and works with community partners who provide services to families threatened by homelessness and domestic violence.
