Centenial Celebration

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Date: April 29, 2024 Mon

Time: 11:05 pm

Results for vulnerable children

3 results found

Author: Morgan, David

Title: Promising Practices to Help Children and Youth who have been Exposed to Violence

Summary: Children and youth in challenging contexts, both in Canada and overseas, face common threats to their mental health that can be better addressed when researchers, service providers, practitioners, and communities pool their knowledge, resources, and lessons learned of what works best for improving young peoples' mental health. If these groups continue to work within their occupational and disciplinary boundaries, they will fail to mobilize the full potential of the evidence documented by researchers, the practice-related knowledge of service providers and practitioners, and the local knowledge of communities. The CYCC Network was developed in response to this need and in the summer of 2013, released three thematic knowledge synthesis reports: violence, technology, and youth engagement. Violence against children and youth, in particular, is a complex public health problem that affects communities worldwide, and can lead to potentially devastating consequences for young people and their families if left unaddressed. To tackle this problem, a coordinated effort to share and document best practices for addressing young peoples' mental health needs is urgently needed. Without opportunities to share this knowledge, there is a risk of delivering potentially ineffective interventions that are difficult for young people and their families to access or relate to. Additionally, poorly-researched or evaluated interventions often ignore the structural barriers (e.g. limited access to mental health practitioners, stigma, and a lack of resources to evaluate programs) that shape young peoples' mental health and wellbeing. In light of these challenges, the knowledge synthesis report on violence explores the effective strategies used among children and youth in challenging contexts who have been exposed to violence, in order to help them overcome trauma and feel safe in their families, schools, and communities. Recent years have seen an explosion of new, innovative programs that focus on improving the lives of vulnerable young people through the use of technology. The internet has opened doors of opportunity to reach these children and youth in more effective ways with the information and support they need to lead healthy lives. Today, mobile phones are one of the most prolific mediums through which interventions can be delivered. While the rapid developments made in technology present many opportunities, the expansion of this field has not been accompanied by a comparable level of research and evaluation. There is a need for more evidence to support the use of technology as a means of intervention with children and youth in challenging contexts. In response to this gap, the knowledge synthesis report on technology reviews innovations in technology that are known to be effective in helping children and youth in the most challenging of contexts, to nurture resilience, prevent mental health problems, and build a special place for themselves in the collective life of their communities. Finally, there has been an increasing recognition that youth engagement is central to any best practice or intervention that involves young people. Valuing youth engagement puts the focus on the positive contributions that youth make to programs and their effectiveness. Programs and services that acknowledge the independence and agency of at-risk youth provide opportunity for young people to give feedback on the relevance and appropriateness of the programs that serve them. Additionally, youth engagement can promote a sense of empowerment on an individual level, and facilitate healthy connections between young people and their community. Despite these benefits, however, there remains a gap in our understanding of the implications of engaging vulnerable youth. In order to better understand and optimize youth engagement, different strategies need to be explored that identify their appropriateness for youth living in different challenging contexts, representing all genders and age categories. With these gaps in mind, the knowledge synthesis report on youth engagement explores strategies that have been shown to work in engaging children and youth in challenging contexts as full members of their communities and in ending feelings of disempowerment and abandonment. Ultimately, the three knowledge synthesis reports are interconnected in ways that can help to form a comprehensive strategy for researchers, practitioners, service providers, and communities to address the needs of vulnerable children and youth in Canada and overseas. For example, lessons learned from the violence report can inform programs and interventions that use technology to address the mental health needs of young people in challenging contexts. Similarly, the many innovative examples and lessons learned highlighted in the technology report may be used to inform professionals working with children and youth exposed to violence, through the design and delivery of technology-based programming that is safe, accessible and effective for youth in different contexts. In turn, the youth engagement report showcases important work that can be used to inform both the violence and technology reports with best practices for engaging youth in the design and implementation of programs so that interventions are relevant, meaningful and effective to children and youth in challenging contexts.

Details: Halifax, NS: CYCC Network, 2013. 134p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed January 31, 2014 at: http://www.cyccnetwork.org/files/Violence%20Report.pdf

Year: 2013

Country: Canada

URL: http://www.cyccnetwork.org/files/Violence%20Report.pdf

Shelf Number: 131835

Keywords:
At-Risk Youth
Children and Violence
Domestic Violence
Family Violence
Violence against Children
Violent Crime
Vulnerable Children

Author: Department of Health and Human Services, U.S.

Title: Separated Children Placed in Office of Refugee Resettlement Care

Summary: WHY WE DID THIS STUDY In the Spring of 2018, the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) implemented a "zero-tolerance policy" for certain immigration offenses. As a result, DHS separated large numbers of alien families, with adults being held in Federal detention while their children were transferred to the care of the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). On June 26, 2018, in a class action lawsuit, Ms. L v. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), a Federal District Court ordered the Federal Government to identify and reunify separated families who met certain criteria. Given the potential impact of these actions on vulnerable children and ORR operations, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) conducted this review to determine the number and status of separated children (i.e., children separated from their parent or legal guardian by DHS) who have entered ORR care, including but not limited to the subset of separated children covered by Ms. L v. ICE. HOW WE DID THIS STUDY We analyzed HHS internal data and reviewed court filings and other public documents. We also conducted multiple interviews with HHS senior leadership, agency officials, and staff. WHAT WE FOUND In the summer of 2017, prior to the formal announcement of the zero-tolerance policy, ORR staff observed a steep increase in the number of separated children referred to ORR care. Officials estimated that ORR received and released thousands of separated children prior to the June 26, 2018, court order that required ORR to identify and reunify certain separated children. HHS has thus far identified 2,737 separated children who were in ORR's care as of June 26, 2018, and whose parents meet the Ms. L v. ICE class definition. Additionally, from July 1 through November 7, 2018, ORR received at least 118 children identified by DHS as separated. However, DHS provided ORR with limited information about the reasons for these separations, which may impede ORR's ability to determine appropriate placements. WHAT WE CONCLUDE HHS faced significant challenges in identifying separated children, including the lack of an existing, integrated data system to track separated families across HHS and DHS and the complexity of determining which children should be considered separated. Owing to these and other difficulties, additional children of Ms. L v. ICE class members were still being identified more than five months after the original court order to do so. Further, it is not yet clear whether recent changes to ORR's systems and processes are sufficient to ensure consistent and accurate data about separated children, and the lack of detail in information received from DHS continues to pose challenges. OIG encourages continued efforts to improve communication, transparency, and accountability for the identification, care, and placement of separated children.

Details: Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Service, Office of Inspector General, 2019. 24p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 3, 2019 at: https://oig.hhs.gov/oei/reports/oei-BL-18-00511.asp

Year: 2019

Country: United States

URL: http://cdn.cnn.com/cnn/2019/images/01/17/oei-bl-18-00511.pdf

Shelf Number: 154752

Keywords:
Aliens
Department of Health and Human Services
Department of Homeland Security
Department of Justice
Illegal Immigration
Immigrants
Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Office of Refugee Resettlement
Separated Children
Vulnerable Children

Author: Katz, Adrienne

Title: Vulnerable Children in a Digital World

Summary: There can be no doubt of the significant change connected technology has had on the day to day lives of children and young people, and the pace at which the technology they are using develops is relentless. What is clear from our research is that the support networks around vulnerable children have not yet caught up with the reliance many of them have on their devices and the connectivity it brings them. Although it is readily accepted that some children and young people are more vulnerable than others we must now systematically and thoroughly consider the digital dimension in their lives to ensure we can better protect them from online risk. The Good Childhood Report shows that 18% of children live with seven or more serious problems, such as fear of crime, domestic violence and emotional neglect. One in five children do not have stability because of residential transience. More than a quarter live with a parent who has a mental health difficulty while almost 10% act as young carers for someone in their family. Children and young people may have physical, emotional or mental health problems of their own, including disabilities and special needs or speech and language difficulties. Increasing numbers of our young people have mental health difficulties, while others exhibit emotional distress. When adverse childhood experiences are acknowledged, it is evident that certain children require additional support. Despite these documented adversities, some vulnerable children remain hidden and neglected. The Children's Commissioner for England has raised awareness of many hidden groups and described the risks faced by vulnerable young people as 'the biggest social justice challenge of our time'. It is not surprising therefore that vulnerability should extend to digital life. Online, despite the advantages of technology, some children's vulnerabilities are exacerbated, and others are ill prepared for safe internet use. This briefing paper will highlight how some young people are vulnerable online in specific ways and suggest some solutions.

Details: London: Internet Matters, 2019. 44p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 2, 2019 at: https://pwxp5srs168nsac2n3fnjyaa-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Vulnerable-Children-in-a-Digital-World-FINAL.pdf

Year: 2019

Country: United Kingdom

URL: https://pwxp5srs168nsac2n3fnjyaa-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Vulnerable-Children-in-a-Digital-World-FINAL.pdf

Shelf Number: 155604

Keywords:
Child Protection
Cyberbullying
Internet
Internet Safety
Online Victimization
Social Media
Vulnerable Children