Salem Hospital

Salem, Oregon

Hospital Emergency Department Staff display their Pledges throughout the Emergency Department

Salem Hospital Emergency Department

Permanent reminders of Salem Hospital’s staff display their Pledges to show their personal commitment to help create safe communities. Over 100,000 patients are expected to be treated in the ER this year, with an average of 2.5 people accompanying them. More than 250,000 people see the Hands & Words Project’s Pledge Banners, Signs and Pledges hanging in the waiting area alone.

In 2005, the Salem Hospital Foundation provided funds to purchase Hands & Words Are Not For Hurting Project® logo sign sets. These were displayed prominently along with other Hands Project educational materials throughout various departments within the hospital system. These permanent Hands signs are located in the following areas:

· Emergency Department:

1. Reception
2. Triage
3. Children’s play area
4. Sexual assault exam rooms
5. Pediatric exam rooms

· Critical Care Unit – waiting room
· Family Birth Center- children’s play area
· Urgent Care Treatment Facility
· Pediatric Unit

In Addition Hands & Words Project brochures are available at various public display racks located in the Emergency Department and the Family Birth Center.

New Mom's Connection Support Group embraces the Hands & Words Pledge for families!!

Salem Hospital Family Birth Center

The Hands & Words Project was awarded a grant from Trust Management Services, LLC in 2006 to implement the Hands & Words Project in the Salem Hospital Family Birth Center. This partnership reached over 3,100 families from June 2006 to December 2007. Our message encourages parents to model respectful behavior and to raise their children in a safe and nurturing home environment.

At our evaluation meeting in December 2007 with the childbirth educators provided overwhelmingly positive feedback about the simplicity of implementing the Hands & Words Are Not For Hurting Project®. They found our program complemented their existing curriculum and provided all participants with a positive and proactive tool to use in their daily lives. Comments from parents included a sincere appreciation for receiving tangible gifts for their family (Purple Pledge Bears, Magnets, Pledge Certificates, etc.).

Family educators were supportive during all phases of this project and provided important feedback regarding their experiences. They expressed that the Hands Project is simple, positive, proactive, and a direct approach to address child abuse and family violence prevention. They found that most parents were eager and excited to learn about the Hands Project and share the Pledge with their families and survey results reflect this as well.

This project encompassed all of the elements necessary to create a long-term partnership with Salem Hospital and the Hands Project. This approach to community-wide education has become a model that will be promoted to hospitals and birthing centers nationally so that the Hands Project can be easily incorporated into their existing programs. It is vital that we continue to create community partnerships that foster sustainability of the Hands Project and enable educators to provide cost effective and quality resources. Our hope of a world without abuse/violence depends upon the “power of one” to bring communities together in an effort that understands the need to educate the meaning of respect and equality in all relationships.

Respect: to value, appreciate, care for and protect
Equality: having the same value as another.

Click here to read full report and supporting documents.