Welcome to Your 1st Visit at Hope House
You and your child have been asked to come to Children’s Advocacy Center – Hope House because child abuse has been suspected and reported, and is now being investigated. The CAC houses the professionals who will help you and your child with the investigation, advocacy, and the healing process.
What to Expect During Your First Visit
At Hope House, we want to ensure that your first visit is as comfortable and informative as possible. Our dedicated staff will guide you through each step of the process, answering any questions you may have along the way.
Forensic Interview
The first step in the investigation is usually a forensic interview. CAC interviewers are compassionate and highly trained in professional forensic interviewing protocols. They talk to children and teens at their developmental level. Interviews are neutral and child-friendly.
Meeting with a Investigator
You will also meet with an investigator. We work closely with local law enforcement agencies and the Louisiana Department of Children & Family Services to ensure the investigative needs are met for your family.
Therapy, Advocacy, & More
When you come to the CAC Hope House, you’ll learn about other services, like therapy and advocacy, which may help you and your child during this time. Our clinicians are highly trained in Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, an evidence-based treatment designed to significantly reduce the impact of childhood trauma.
Forensic Medical Exam
In some cases, a forensic medical exam will be needed. Forensic medical exams are conducted at the Audrey Hepburn CARE Center in New Orleans. If you are told that your child needs a forensic medical exam, your investigator or advocate will help you schedule an appointment and guide you the process of the forensic medical exam.
Testimonials
CAC Hope House is based on a nationally recognized model of care. The child advocacy center model has been shown to be a more child-friendly, effective community response to reported child abuse. We ask parents and caregivers about their experience at the center on a regular basis.
Jane Smith
Marketing Manager, XYZ Company
Mark Johnson
Founder, ABC Corporation
Emily Brown
HR Director, XYZ Inc.
Michael Johnson
COO, ABC Company
Sarah Thompson
Marketing Director, XYZ Corporation
Frequently Asked Questions
Find answers to common questions about your first visit to Hope House.
The Family Advocate is there to answer basic questions the family may have throughout the process and point the family to the appropriate resource. Investigative & legal questions prior to an arrest are directed to Law Enforcement. Once an arrest is made, the family may contact the DA’s office with additional legal questions. There are Victim’s Assistance Coordinators associated with the District Attorney’s Office who also help families get support and navigate the criminal justice process.
You will want to know the current status of your child’s case and any pending court dates. Regarding the arrest, you will want to know what the perpetrator’s current charge(s) are. At this time, you are encouraged to ask any additional questions you may have.
You will need to know the law enforcement file number for your child’s case, the detective’s name and the date of your child’s interview.
All incidents of trauma impacts victims whether it occurs in childhood, adolescence and adults. Responses to trauma and the capacity of victims to bounce back is highly variable. All survivors benefit from some intervention depending on the nature of the trauma and the factors in the survivor’s life that could promote recovery. The interventions vary from short-term supportive approaches that include skills to help the survivor to more formal and longer term therapy interventions, including individual and family psychotherapy.
Therapy at Baton Rouge Children’s Advocacy is provided by full-time, licensed and board-certified mental health professionals, as well as supervised, master’s level student interns in the field of social work and mental health counseling. Therapists and student interns use evidence-based interventions to ensure clients receive the highest quality of treatment. Trauma Focused-Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) is an evidence-based treatment and proven to be a highly effective intervention for victims of abuse. The majority of abuse victims have symptoms of post-traumatic stress and TF-CBT treats the symptoms in the context of the trauma specific to our clients: THE ABUSE.
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