Irvine, CA -- Child welfare professionals, substance abuse treatment providers, physicians, researchers, judges, attorneys, law enforcement officers and government officials are gathering to discuss the way forward for families affected by substance abuse, at Putting the Pieces Together for Children and Families: The National Conference on Substance Abuse, Child Welfare and the Courts, January 30-February 2, 2007, at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim, CA.

Approximately 250,000 children are taken into protective custody every year, and of these children nearly 80% have been abused or neglected by a parent with a substance use disorder. Researchers have found that abused and neglected children have a higher risk of becoming adults with substance use disorder and/or parents who neglect or abuse their children.

"There is increasing awareness of better ways to address the problem of families affected by substance abuse," said Nancy K. Young, director of Children and Family Futures, a non-profit organization based in Irvine, CA. "This conference will highlight and promote promising practices nationwide, creating new opportunities for communities to reach the goal of safe, stable homes for children and recovery for family members."

In addition to Dr. Young, conference speakers include Ira J. Chasnoff, M.D., president of Children's Research Triangle and professor of Clinical Pediatrics at the University of Illinois, College of Medicine in Chicago; Kathy Sanders-Phillips, professor of pediatrics at Howard University School of Medicine and director of the Research Program in the Epidemiology and Prevention of Drug Abuse; Randolph Muck, M.Ed, co-editor of Clinical Assessment and Substance Abuse Treatment: The Target Cities Experience, and Kathryn Icenhower, Ph.D., executive director of SHIELDS for Families in Compton, CA.

The conference main topics include appropriate child welfare interventions for families involved with methamphetamine, family-based models for serving families with substance use disorders, collaboration, funding and systems issues, and serving adolescent children of substance abusers.

Attendance is open to the public, but pre-registration is required. 

For more information and to register for the conference, visit www.cffutures.org.