A nationally recognized children’s advocacy organization, the Baltimore Child Abuse Center recently announced that, as of Jan. 1, it became a subsidiary of LifeBridge Health organization.
A nonprofit organization, the BCAC helps children and families in preventing and responding to child abuse, trauma, violence and other “Adverse Childhood Experiences,” or ACEs. The BCAC helps approximately 1,000 children and their families by providing free services.
Formed in 1998, the Baltimore-based LifeBridge Health network is one of the state’s largest and most comprehensive providers of health services. Employing more than 7,000, LifeBridge Health includes Sinai Hospital, Northwest Hospital, Carroll Hospital, Levindale Hebrew Geriatric Center and Hospital, and related subsidiaries and affiliates, including ExpressCare Urgent Care Centers and LifeBridge Health & Fitness.
The BCAC will remain at its current location in the Old Goucher neighborhood of Baltimore and continue its co-location of services with Baltimore Child Protection Services, Baltimore City Police and the Office of the State’s Attorney for Baltimore City
“We are thrilled to join the LifeBridge Health family and serve as experts in the areas of child advocacy, trauma and safety,” said Adam Rosenberg, the BCAC’s executive director for the past decade. “We look forward to helping the LifeBridge Health organization grow its presence, and we applaud their commitment to helping the communities’ most vulnerable citizens throughout the LifeBridge Health network.
“Our BCAC team will remain in place, continuing to serve the entire Baltimore community as we have for the past three decades.”
By joining LifeBridge Health, the BCAC will now have access to the health system’s resources and public health community. Meanwhile, the BCAC will provide its expertise and professional staff to LifeBridge Health to meet the growing crisis of ACEs and needs for victims of trauma and violence.
The new relationship will allow the BCAC to grow its programming with new space for mental health, support services and wellness programs, as well as support for the center’s medical director, a pediatrician specializing in child abuse who was a faculty member at Sinai’s Herman & Walter Samuelson Children’s Hospital.
“LifeBridge Health and BCAC share a mission to care for people in our communities, so having this team as part of our organization is a natural fit,” said Neil Meltzer, president and CEO of LifeBridge Health. “We are excited to expand upon our many years of partnership with BCAC, a national leader on these very important issues affecting far too many people.”
Said Brian M. White, LifeBridge Health’s executive vice president: “With BCAC as part of LifeBridge Health, we are eager to work together to bring additional resources to children and families. Moving forward, we see BCAC serving as the foundation for the future community programming and development through our LifeBridge Health family of services.”
For information, visit bcaci.org.