Search results for ‘Subject term:"vulnerable children"’ Sort:
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Organizational strengths and challenges of Kenyan NGOs serving orphans and vulnerable children: a template analysis
- Authors:
- FERGUSON Kristin M., HEIDEMANN Gretchen
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Social Welfare, 18(4), October 2009, pp.354-364.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
This qualitative study of Kenyan non-governmental organizations (NGOs) identified strengths and challenges associated with service provision to orphans and vulnerable children (OVC). From September to December 2006, data were collected by Kenyan research assistants in 34 NGOs in Nairobi and Eldoret. In-depth interviews were used to explore the perceptions of directors and staff in relation to organizational strengths and challenges in serving OVC. Emergent themes and supporting interview quotations are presented to highlight common patterns across organizations, including strengths such as staff commitment, client outcomes, and resourceful communities, as well as challenges such as lack of staff, funding, and parental involvement.
Burning “Centre Bolt”: experiences of sexually transmitted infections and health care seeking behaviour described by street boys in Urban Kenya
- Authors:
- KAIME-ATTERHOG Wanjiku, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Children and Youth Services Review, 29(5), May 2007, pp.600-617.
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
This paper is about how street boys described their experiences of sexually transmitted infections and the care they sought in Nakuru, Kenya. The data were collected over a six-month period at a Soup Kitchen frequented by street children aged 5 to 18 years. Data were generated using participant observation of 115 children; group discussions with 12 boys; interviews with 20 boys; 17 key informant interviews; two home visits; and clinical records of five boys that had sexually transmitted infections. The findings revealed who the boys' sexual partners were, their sexual practices, and their pattern of condom use, their experience of sexually transmitted infections, how they communicate symptoms and when and how they seek care. Lack of money for treatment delayed care seeking. The study also indicated the existence of strong bonds and support networks as a survival strategy on the streets. In conclusion, understanding the ways the street boys experience, reason and communicate their symptoms as well as their support networks is useful in the prevention of sexually transmitted infections and the promotion of their general health and wellbeing. Moreover, eliminating the barrier to health care is imperative for the sustainable provision of care to this vulnerable group of children.
Characteristics and personal social networks of the on-the-street, of-the-street, shelter and school children in Eldoret, Kenya
- Authors:
- AYUKU David O., et al
- Journal article citation:
- International Social Work, 47(3), July 2004, pp.293-311.
- Publisher:
- Sage
Most of the street-based children are not educated beyond primary school and their living conditions are based on begging and doing odd jobs in the market and streets. Forty-six percent of the on-the-street children live with one parent, and 97 percent of the of-the-street children have lost contact with their parents. The on-the-street children have a higher percentage of family sector networks than the of-the-street children and the shelter or institutionalized children. Generally, school children still have strong family ties.
Interprofessional training on resilience-building for children who experience trauma: stakeholders’ views from six low- and middle-income countries
- Authors:
- VOSTANIS Panos, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Interprofessional Care, 33(2), 2019, pp.143-152.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
Children exposed to multiple adversities are at high risk of developing complex mental health and related problems, which are more likely to be met through integrated interprofessional working. Combining the expertise of different practitioners for interprofessional care is especially pertinent in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) in the absence of specialist resources. The aim of this study was to work with practitioners who deliver care to vulnerable children in six LMIC (Turkey, Pakistan, Indonesia, Kenya, Rwanda, and Brazil) to understand their perspectives on the content of an interprofessional training programme in building resilience for these children. Seventeen participants from different professional backgrounds, who were in contact with vulnerable children were interviewed. A thematic analytic framework was used. Four themes were identified, which were the benefits of a tiered approach to training, challenges and limitations, perceived impact, and recommendations for future training. The findings indicate the importance of co-ordinated policy, service, and training development in an interprofessional context to maximize resources; the need for cultural adaptation of skilled-based training and interventions; and the usefulness of new technologies to enhance accessibility and reduce costs in LMIC. (Publisher abstract)
Caring and thriving: an international qualitative study of caregivers of orphaned and vulnerable children and strategies to sustain positive mental health
- Authors:
- PROESCHOLD-BELL Rae Jean, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Children and Youth Services Review, 98, 2019, pp.143-153.
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
Background: Child well-being is associated with caregiver mental health. Research has focused on the absence or presence of mental health problems, such as depression, in caregivers. However, positive mental health – defined as the presence of positive emotions, psychological functioning, and social functioning – likely prevents depression and in caregivers may benefit children more than the mere absence of mental health problems. Little attention has been given to how caregivers sustain positive mental health, particularly when doing challenging work in impoverished settings. Objective: The study's objective was to determine what successful caregivers of orphaned and vulnerable children (OVC) in diverse countries do to sustain their positive mental health. Methods: Using a mixed-methods, cross-sectional study design, trained local interviewers recruited a convenience sample of OVC caregivers through residential care institutions from five geographic regions (Kenya; Ethiopia; Cambodia; Hyderabad, India; and Nagaland, India). Participants completed surveys and in-depth interviews about strategies used to sustain their mental health over time or improve it during challenging times. Results: Sixty-nine OVC caregivers from 28 residential care institutions participated. Positive mental health survey scores were high. The authors organized the strategies named into six categories ordered from most to least frequently named: Religious Practices; Engaging in Caregiving; Social Support; Pleasurable Activities; Emotion Regulation; and Removing Oneself from Work. Prayer and reading religious texts arose as common strategies. Participants reported promoting positive emotions by focusing on their work's meaning and playing with children. The similar findings across diverse regions were striking. Some differences included more emphasis on emotion control in Ethiopia; listening to music/singing in Kenya and Hyderabad; and involving children in the tasks the participants enjoyed less (e.g., cleaning) in Cambodia. Conclusions: Under real-world conditions, small daily activities appeared to help sustain positive mental health. In addition, fostering structures that allow caregivers to engage regularly in rewarding caregiving tasks may be an affordable and scalable idea which could potentially benefit caregivers, children, and employers. (Edited publisher abstract)
A discussion of perceptions of community facilitators from Swaziland, Kenya, Mozambique and Ghana: cultural practices and child protection
- Authors:
- MUROVE Tapfuma, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Vulnerable Children and Youth Studies, 5(Supplement 1), June 2010, pp.55-62.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia, USA
This article highlights the importance of knowing some of the cultural practices that encourage child abuse or hinder effective implementation of community-based child protection responses. Data were collected from 287 community development facilitators from Swaziland, Ghana, Mozambique, and Kenya using open-ended qualitative interviews in which they were asked about harmful cultural practices which they thought had negative impacts on their child protection work in respective communities. The range of interviewees varied from home visitors, development workers, faith-based organisation employees, HIV-AIDS facilitators to child monitors and peer educators. Four general types of cultural practices were identified by interviewees as posing risks to children and challenges to child protection work: marriage practices, rites of passage or rituals, family secrets, and religious or spiritual practices. The authors conclude that an understanding of cultural practices is essential for the success of child protection responses in communities, especially with regard to child protection advocacy work that focuses upon harmful cultural practices. Community child protection interventions should deliberately target children who are especially vulnerable or isolated due to some harmful cultural practices. However, as cultural issues are sensitive, child protection interventions should commence by highlighting those positive aspects of people’s cultural practices, which can then become entry points for engaging with other practices that may be harmful to children. It is essential to train and empower community development facilitators so that they can engage cultural issues more effectively. Existing child protection interventions or responses need to be contextualised to various cultural environments of children.