Child Protection Measures as a Legal Instrument for Child Protection at Tirana Municipality

For Albanian institutions and society, application of the protection measures comes not only as an innovation in the field of child rights and protection but especially as a legal instrument that for the first time attains to put the highest interest of the child and to guarantee his/her protection in time and according to the simplified legal procedure. This paper presents types of protection measures, child characteristics for which these measures have been in place, analysis of the process starting with the identification and evaluation of the risk till in confirming of the protection measure from the Court as well as all the progress of implementation of the Individual Protection Plan. The paper offers an analysis of the demographic and analytic factors on the motives and cases where protection measures are applied. 74 measures analyzed are 74 children's’ life's where the protection system has intervened to stave off from the risk and offer the services in a safe place. In 36 of them is being realized specialized supervision in family environment where through the Individual Protection Plan, despite family services, specialized support from child protection unit is being more intensive in family. In absence of foster families, the protection measure for child placement in alternative care is applied in residential care institutions or at their relatives. For emergent protection cases, all 23 children are placed in residential care institutions for children; 8 cases taken under immediate protection and other 13 cases taken under protection and placed in alternative care actually are not leaving in street condition but placed in a safe place meanwhile that child protection structure continue with empowering plans for families aiming at returning of child close to biological families. Received: 31 May 2021 / Accepted: 4 September 2021 / Published: 5 November 2021

Narrativ socialpædagogik giver pædagoger nye handlemuligheder

Resumé Denne artikel viser, hvordan en narrativ socialpædagogisk metode skaber nye pædagogiske handlemuligheder i relation til unge med autisme på et specialiseret botilbud. Artiklen bygger på resultater fra et toårigt praksisforskningsprojekt: Narrativ tilgang i socialpædagogiks arbejde. Et metodeudviklings- og følgeforskningsprojekt på socialområdet i Region Sjælland. Forskningsresultaterne peger på, at den narrative metode giver nye handlemuligheder i indsatsen i relation til unge med diagnoser og komplekse vanskeligheder. Metoden skaber forandringer hos pædagogerne og udvider mulighederne for forandringer hos de unge med autisme. I artiklen præsenteres kort det teoretiske grundlag og tre centrale narrative begreber i Michael Whites narrative terapi: ’Alternative fortællinger’, ’intention’ og ’eksternalisering’ – som var afsæt for udvikling af narrative redskaber og guidelines for den pædagogiske praksis. Viden blev opnået gennem fortællinger fra praksis i afprøvningsforløbet, hvor pædagogerne mødtes og delte fortællinger i kollektive refleksionsrum. Disse er optaget på lydfiler, tilsendt forskerne som herved har fået et vindue til praksis. En enkelt fortælling, fortalt af en pædagog på et af de deltagende botilbud, eksemplificerer analyse og resultater. Abstract A narrative pedagogical approach offers new opportunities for actions in practice. This article is based on results from a two-year practice research project: A narrative approach in pedagogical work. A combined method development project and research project within the social service of Region Zealand, Denmark. The results show that the narrative pedagogical method creates new opportunities for pedagogical actions in practice with young residents with a diagnosis and serious difficulties in specialized residential care institutions. Usage of this method creates changes for the residential social workers as well as increase the possibilities for changes for the young residents. ­ The article briefly presents the theoretical foundation and three central concepts from the narrative therapy of Michael White: ‘alternative stories’; ‘intention’; ‘externalization’ – which the development of the narrative tools and guidelines for practice are based on. Knowledge are obtained from stories told during the testing period, in which the residential care workers have met and shared stories from practice. Audio files from these sessions were handed over to the researchers, who thereby were able to study the practice. One of these stories told by a residential care worker from one of the participating institutions is used to exemplify the analysis and results.

The Stress of Caring—Resilience and HPA-Axis Activity in Hair Samples of Youth Residential Caregivers

Background: Professional caregivers in youth residential care institutions experience frequent verbal and physical aggression as well as multiple stressors as part of their everyday work, leading to high levels of burnout and staff turnover. Resilience might buffer against psychophysiological stress response and therefore be crucial for well-being in professional caregivers.Objectives: We aimed to investigate if measures related to resilience [sense of coherence (SoC), self-efficacy and self-care] and attachment security of caregivers were cross-sectionally associated with stress markers in hair samples [cortisol and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA)].Method: Participants (n = 134; 64.2% women) reported on individual resilience measures and provided hair samples for cortisol and DHEA assays. Attachment was assessed in a subsample using the Adult Attachment Projective Picture System (AAP, n = 69). Linear regression models were fitted to estimate the association between resilience measures and the Cortisol:DHEA ratio, cortisol and DHEA, controlling for gender and age.Results: SoC was associated with a lower Cortisol:DHEA ratio (β = −0.36, p < 0.001), driven by a positive association between SoC and DHEA levels (β = 0.28, p = 0.002). Self-care was also associated with lower Cortisol:DHEA ratios (β = −0.24, p = 0.005), due to self-care being associated with higher DHEA (β = 0.21, p = 0.016). HPA-axis measures were not associated with self-efficacy nor with attachment patterns in a subsample.Conclusions: Our findings imply that youth residential care institutions might benefit from programs focusing on enhancing SoC and self-care practices. Fostering a meaningful, comprehensible and manageable professional climate in caregiving environments and implementing self-care in routine practices might enhance not only well-being but also physical health of professional caregivers and in this way buffer adverse health effects of chronic stressors.

ASSESSING THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN CARE QUALITY AND HOUSEHOLD CHORE RULES IN RESIDENTIAL CARE INSTITUTIONS IN JAPAN

The performance of household chores by children in Japanese residential care institutions has been widely accepted as a practice that fosters children’s independence and self-sufficiency. However, children coming from neglectful or dysfunctional families often require sensitive, individualized care, which they did not receive from their family of origin. While a shift away from large-scale institutions has begun, with smaller units or group homes now accounting for 40% of all care institutions, it is not clear that family-like, individualized care has been achieved in these smaller group homes. This study involved 61 participants aged 10 to 15 years and their care workers from six residential care institutions in the greater Tokyo area. It explored what aspects of care quality were related to the presence of certain characteristics of traditional management-oriented care: fixed rules for household chores and lack of choice in daily living. Care workers were asked whether children washed their own dishes, did their own laundry, chose their own clothes when shopping, and had mandatory events to attend in the residential care institutions. Care quality was assessed using the Early Adolescent HOME (Home Observation for Measurement of Environment) developed for Japanese residential care institutions (EA-HOME-JP). The findings suggest that care workers should re-examine their intentions in setting and applying household chore rules while exploring which aspects of child care, including regulatory activities and modeling, should be emphasized in order to actualize family-like and individualized care in institutions.

Children Displaced: Deinstitutionalisation of Child Care Institutions in Tibetan Exile Settlements in Dharamshala, India

This study assesses the present situation of the deinstitutionalisation and alternative care arrangements in exile settlements concerning various cultural and socio-structural factors. It explores how elements of social structure and culture operate to transform the residential care institutions to community-based alternative care arrangements for 10,000 young Tibetans uprooted from Tibet and presently settled in India. Their day-to-day problems of repatriation and resettlement in an unfamiliar demography with distinct ethnic values are pushing them to the margins. The dependence of these children on their exile government, the host community and the uncertainty of going back to their country makes them depressed, dependent and vulnerable to trauma and negligence. The study uses cross-sectional, descriptive, exploratory and qualitative methods. Primary data were collected through in-depth, semi-structured interviews. Open-ended questions were used for interviews in order to gain in-depth information from the respondents. Twenty-five informants were selected on a purposive basis to facilitate a focus on information-rich cases that illuminate the research questions. The selection criteria of informants apply to their professional experience of deinstitutionalisation in Tibetan settlements, professionals having experience of heading care institutions, officials of the Central Tibetan Administration, people from non-government organisations, development agencies and government officials who were a part of the interventions. Respondents from both state and non-state agencies were selected for the study to avoid bias.

What Can Donors Do? The Role of Donors in Advocating for Family and Community-Based Care in South Asia

Elevate Children Funders Group (ECFG), a consortium of foundations dedicated to building strong families and a life free from violence for all children, strongly believes and supports the idea that children are best able to thrive and reach their full potential when they remain with their families and communities rather than living in residential care. Years of research has shown that orphanages often expose children to serious abuse, harm and neglect, can impact a child’s physical and psychological development and is often much more expensive than family or community-based care. However, despite this evidence, the number of residential care institutions has been steadily or even exponentially increasing. Donors continue to invest in orphanages—drawing more children into institutions and away from families. To this end, this article will make a case for investing in families and communities rather than orphanages by putting a spotlight on ECFG member investments in Asia. By drawing on recent ECFG funding research and foundation investments, this article will highlight how donors can do more to help deinstitutionalisation efforts across the region.

Employability Skills of Unaccompanied Immigrant Minors in Canary Islands

Young unaccompanied immigrants have various problems in their professional careers which lead to situations of exclusion and hinder their emancipation. The development and consolidation of employment skills is a necessary condition for the labour integration of this group. This research analyzes the employability skills of unaccompanied young immigrants who must leave the public social protection system when they reach the age of majority. A multiple case study was conducted. The cases were selected: 1) having been in residential care institutions, 2) having been in a job placement program, and 3) are 16-18 years of age. The study data were collected using qualitative and quantitative techniques. Results show that young immigrants have: a) language and socio-emotional difficulties that limit their chances of employability; b) some employability skills that facilitate labour insertion, and c) families which act as a powerful motivator for achieving their goals. We discuss the need to design individual transition plans to help young immigrants overcome their limitations, cope with the transition to adulthood and consolidate their career paths.

Aging and Oral Care: An Observational Study of Characteristics and Prevalence of Oral Diseases in an Italian Cohort

Background: Poor oral health is a common condition in patients suffering from dementia. Several aspects of this systemic pathology contribute to causing oral problems: cognitive impairment, behavior disorders, communication and, motor skills deterioration, low levels of cooperation and medical-nursing staff incompetency in the dental field. Objectives: The objectives of this study were to evaluate the prevalence and the characteristics of oral pathology in a demented elderly population, as well as to check the association between the different degree of dementia and the oral health condition of each patient. Materials and Methods: In this observational study (with cross-sectional design) two groups of elderly patients suffering from dementia, living in two different residential care institutions were recruited. The diagnosis of dementia of each included patient was performed using the Clinical Dementia Rating Scale. In order to evaluate the oral health condition of the included subjects, each patient underwent a physical examination of the oral cavity, during which different clinical parameters were analyzed (number of remaining teeth, oral mucosa, periodontal tissues, bone crests). To each parameter, a score was assigned. Spearman’s Rho test was used. Results: Regarding the prevalence of oral pathology in elderly suffering from dementia, it emerged that 20.58% of the included patients had mucosal lesions and/or new mucosal formations (in most cases undiagnosed and therefore untreated). The prevalence of periodontal disease was equal to 82.35% and a marked clinically detectable reabsorption of bone crests was found in almost all patients (88.23%). 24.13% of patients, who underwent the oral examination, had totally edentulous maxillae and/or with retained roots, without prosthetic rehabilitations. The correlation index r showed the presence of a linear correlation (inverse relationship) between the degree of dementia and the state of health of the oral cavity of each patient. Conclusions: Several factors contribute to poor oral health in the elderly suffering from dementia: cognitive functions deterioration, behavioral disorders and inadequate medical-staff nursing training on oral hygiene. This study also demonstrated that the lower the dementia degree is, the lower tends to be the oral health status. In order to guarantee a complete assistance to these patients, residential care institutions should include in their healthcare program specific dental protocols.