Klamath-Lake Child Abuse Response and Evaluation Service (CARES) is an accredited Child Advocacy Center (CAC) that provides trauma-focused, evidence-based services to children and the community. We serve children impacted by traumatic events, including childhood physical abuse, sexual abuse, and neglect. We also serve drug endangered children and those exposed to domestic violence or other critical incidents.

Services include comprehensive medical examinations, child-sensitive evidence-based forensic interviews, support service referrals, expert witness testimony, and community education programs. CARES’ Staff includes physicians, nurse practitioners, forensic interviewers, advocacy specialists, and volunteers.

CARES is where Intervention, Prevention, and Healing can begin for young victims and their families. As a fully accredited member of the National Children’s Alliance and a member of the Oregon Network of Child Abuse Intervention Centers, CARES works with community partners to provide a coordinated and comprehensive response to help, support, and protect children as they pursue healing and justice. 

CARES began in 1993 as a department of Sky Lakes Medical Center, then Merle West Medical Center, with a staff of two in the Emergency Department. The support of Sky Lakes and its Foundation continues to this day, providing CARES with tax-exempt status and in-kind administrative services. As a result, virtually all donations to CARES go directly to child abuse assessment, education, and prevention programs.