Barbara Sinatra Children's Center Breaks Ground on New Wing to Expand Forensic Medical Services to Survivors of Abuse

Services in the Pavilion for Child and Adolescent Health made possible through a partnership with San Manuel Band of Mission Indians and Loma Linda University Children's Hospital

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif., Dec. 3, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center (BSCC) broke ground on a new wing of its facility to expand the Center's forensic medical services to patients ages 18 and under. The Pavilion for Child and Adolescent Health expansion project is expected to be complete in early 2026. The new wing is part of the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center Foundation's $10 million "Passion to Prevent" campaign, which has reached 70% of their goal and now enters the public phase of the campaign.

In anticipation of this new wing coming online, the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians (SMBMI) has provided a $500,000 grant to increase forensic medical capacity at the Center with Loma Linda University Children's Hospital personnel. This new wing will support additional forensic medical examinations for children and adolescents due to suspected sexual or physical abuse, along with follow-up medical exams for abuse survivors and mandated foster care medical exams. Funds from the Tribe's grant will support additional pediatricians, pediatric nurse practitioners and pediatric fellows from Loma Linda University Children's Hospital who are providing these services.

"At the Center, we are dedicated to ensuring the safety and security of children around the world, and providing proper forensic services is a crucial part of that mission," said Director and CEO of Barbara Sinatra Children's Center, John Thoresen. "We are honored and so grateful to our partnership with San Manuel Band of Mission Indians and Loma Linda University Children's Hospital to assist us as we work to increase the level of care we can provide to our patients."

The Pavilion for Child and Adolescent Health at the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center will include three new exam rooms and provide a space to house medical staff and the staff of the Riverside County Coalition to End Human Trafficking.

"Healthy and resilient communities start with making sure that children have access to services that will keep them safe and cared for," said Chairwoman Lynn Valbuena, San Manuel Band of Mission Indians. "Together, we are bringing critical resources to youth in the Coachella Valley. We look forward to the creation of a safe, compassionate space for pediatric forensic services."

The Tribe has a shared mission to ensure the health and wellbeing of children in the Southern California region and has a longstanding relationship with Loma Linda University Hospital. San Manuel Band of Mission Indians will now extend that same support and generosity to the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center and leverage its partnership with Loma Linda University Hospital to help bring more services and support to children in need.

"Loma Linda University Children's Hospital is eager to provide our services to further the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center's mission," said Amy Young, MD Loma Linda University Children's Hospital and the new BSCC Medical Director. "Our pediatric staff is ready to care for these young patients in the new BSCC wing as we work to extend our reach into the Coachella Valley for those in need."

To learn more about the new wing expansion project at the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center as well as the services provided by the Center, please visit BarbaraSinatraChildrensCenter.org.

About the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center (BSCC): Founded in 1986 by Barbara and Frank Sinatra, the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center is dedicated to ensuring every child's right to a normal, healthy and secure childhood. Since its inception, the Center has provided outpatient mental health services, counseling, forensic services, and advocacy to more than 25,000 children. The Center offers individual, group, and family therapy, along with specialized programs designed to address the effects of child abuse and neglect. Each year, approximately 1200 children receive counseling and/or forensic services on an outpatient basis, with no child being turned away due to a family's inability to pay. In addition to its direct services, the Center's work has a global impact. An animated video series, funded by the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center Foundation, has reached over 400 million worldwide and generated over 75 million single and classroom views on YouTube in the United States and aboard, with India as the second largest user behind the U.S. For more information, visit BarbaraSinatraChildrensCenter.org. Additional resources, including the Protect Yourself Rules and Teen Series Videos, can be found on the Fight Child Abuse YouTube channel at youtube.com/@fightchildabuse1913/videos or FightChildAbuse.org

About the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians (SMBMI): The San Manuel Band of Mission Indians is a federally recognized Indian tribe located on the San Manuel Indian Reservation near Highland, California.  San Manuel exercises its inherent sovereign right of self-governance and provides essential services for its citizens by building infrastructure, maintaining civil services, and promoting social, economic and cultural development.  As the Indigenous people of the San Bernardino highlands, passes, valleys, mountains and high deserts, the Serrano people of San Manuel have called this area home since time immemorial and are committed to remaining a productive partner in the San Bernardino region. For more information, visit http://www.sanmanuel-nsn.gov.

About Loma Linda University Children's Hospital (LLUCH): The Children's Hospital is the only dedicated pediatric hospital in the vast geographic region of San Bernardino, Riverside, Inyo and Mono counties. With 348 beds dedicated just for kids, one of the largest Neonatal Intensive Care Units in the country and more than 100,000 children who come each year, LLUCH is a major pediatric teaching facility, known worldwide as the pioneer of neonatal heart transplantation. LLUCH is part of Loma Linda University Health – the umbrella organization encompassing Loma Linda University's eight professional schools, Loma Linda University Medical Center's six hospitals and more than 1,000 faculty physicians located across the Inland Empire in Southern California. A Seventh-day Adventist organization, Loma Linda University Health is a faith-based health system with a mission "to continue the teaching and healing ministry of Jesus Christ."

SOURCE The Barbara Sinatra Children's Center