Psychosocial Support

The best form of psychosocial support is a healthy family and supportive environment, preferably in the child's community of origin, or one that is culturally similar. Psychosocial well-being is a product of multiple support, which is rooted in the ability to form healthy relationships and participate in community networks.

However, certain considerations may be required in order to help children and caretakers come to terms with life-changing events, such as the loss of a parent. Separation can be highly stressful for children, particularly if it is unexpected, or repeated. Some children may experience anxiety, attachment problems, sleep disturbances, dependency issues, regression, and a range of other behavioural issues which threaten their mental health and development.

Specific types of support may be required for children suffering from loss, severe or chronic ill health, abuse or exploitation. The child’s experience, age, resilience, and the level of support received from the family and community will determine if a child needs external services. A child is far less likely to experience psychosocial stress if they have good natural support mechanisms and therefore protection efforts should focus on supporting families and communities to help each other.

When psychosocial support is needed, an assessment is important in determining the scope and type of issues, the existing family and community resources, and analysis of how these can be strengthened. Clinical mental health interventions such as therapy, psychiatry or psychological counseling, should only be provided by trained professionals after a clinical assessment and, in all cases, should be culturally relevant.

Psychosocial activities must promote the children’s development and their relationships with others, re-establish routines, increase self confidence and sense of control over their lives. Children’s activities, such as the provision of safe places, group work or referrals to specialists, should be designed around the child’s individual needs, age, gender, and cultural identity. Interventions should be empowering, inclusive, and fully integrated with wider community efforts. Children’s participation is essential in psychosocial work; children should be encouraged to express their opinions, and to have these taken into account.

The literature found here describes the psychosocial effects of separation, and other threats to children such as HIV/AIDS, conflict, abuse and exploitation, and provides guidance and examples of psychosocial interventions.

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Fostering Emotional and Mental Health in Residential Youth Care Facilities: A Systematic Review of Programs Targeted to Care Workers

Laura Santos, Rita Ramos Miguel, Maria do Rosário Pinheiro, Daniel Rijo, 01 Apr 2023

This Children and Youth Services Review study performed a systematic review of research on training programs aiming the fostering of emotional and mental health in residential youth care. A systematic search was conducted in nine digital databases and other sources (websites, relevant journals, reference lists of included articles and relevant reviews), for publications from 1980 to 2021.

The Importance of Supporting Mental Health in Children's Care: Part 3

Family for Every Child, 21 Dec 2022

This Family for Every Child webinar focuses on the use of creative therapies in supporting the mental health of vulnerable children and youth.

Psychosocial Wellbeing of Orphaned Children in Selected Primary Schools in Tanzania

Edna Kyaruzi, 30 Nov 2022

This study aimed at investigating the psychosocial wellbeing of orphaned children in selected primary schools in Tanzania.

Prioritizing Adolescent Mental Health in Low- and Middle-Income Countries

RTI International, 03 Nov 2022

This global webinar addressed the need to give greater priority to adolescent mental health, globally, and particularly in low- and middle- income countries. Experts from RTI International, Plan International, Johns Hopkins University, and AstraZeneca share research findings and present new analysis of global data with the aim of motivating and guiding action to improve adolescent mental health.

The Importance of Supporting Mental Health in Children's Care: Part 2

Family for Every Child, 19 Oct 2022

Four Family for Every Child member organisations share their experiences and perspectives on supporting the mental health of vulnerable children, building on discussions from their last event:

Family-Based Mental Health Interventions for Refugees Across the Migration Continuum: A Systematic Review

Mary Bunna, Nicole Zolman, Chloe Polutnik Smith, Deepika Khanna, Rosie Hanneke, Theresa S. Betancourt, Stevan Weine, 09 Sep 2022

This global study reviewed the literature on family-based mental health interventions for refugees across migration contexts and settings to identify types of interventions and intervention components, implementation approaches and to assess effectiveness. The review used a systematic approach, and ten intervention studies were retained for analysis.

Mental Health of Unaccompanied Refugee Minors in Europe: A Systematic Review

Andrea Daniel-Calveras, Nuria Baldaquí, Inmaculada Baeza, 09 Sep 2022

The aim of this systematic review is both to summarize findings regarding the prevalence of mental health disorders among unaccompanied refugee minors (URM) in European countries since the last available systematic review (October 2017), and to describe associated risk factors.

Mental Health of Unaccompanied Refugee Minors in Europe: A Systematic Review

Andrea Daniel-Calveras, Nuria Baldaquí, Inmaculada Baeza, 02 Sep 2022

Child Abuse and Neglect - The International Journal

The Importance of Processing Stakeholder Emotions in Transition

Better Care Network, 26 Aug 2022

In this video, Anne Kinuthia, shares how social work practitioners from Kivuli, a residential care service provider in Kenya, used a simple, fun, and non-threatening activity called My Say to help children, families and staff, surface and process their emotions during the organization’s transition.

The Importance of Supporting Mental Health in Children's Care: Part 1

Family for Every Child, 17 Aug 2022

In this webinar three members from the Family for Every Child alliance present how they support the mental health of vulnerable children they work with in their different contexts, sharing their programmes and methodologies and responding to questions from audience members.