Displaying 1 - 10 of 17
Background: Children without parental care are at high risk for under-nutrition. Ethiopia counts as one of the largest populations of orphans in the world. However, there is no information about the nutritional status of children in Ethiopian orphanage centers. Thus, we aimed to assess magnitude and associated factors of undernutrition among children aged 6–59 months in Ethiopian orphanage centres.
Methods: Institution-based descriptive and analytical cross-sectional study was conducted on 227 children aged 6–59 months in selected orphanage centers of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from July to…
Abstract
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…
Real or perceived sexual orientation that is different to the norm is often the basis for discrimination and violence against many people around the world. A group that is particularly vulnerable is children who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) who are at risk of losing parental care and who already lost parental care. For a number of LGBTI children under 18 years of age the rejection experienced within their own families is often the first of many rejections. Thereafter they continue to suffer from the effects of rejection, discrimination and violence within their…
ABSTRACT
This study employed a correlational design and examined the extent to which four components of quality of care (including food security, quality of shelter, quality of caregiving, and access to health care services) predicted psychosocial well-being of orphaned and separated children (OSC), as well as the extent to which these components of quality of care and key demographic factors, such as age, gender, and orphan status moderated the associations between care settings and psychosocial well-being of OSC. This study was an extension of Whetten et al.’s 2009 study that found…
In this Ethiopia Child Protection Fact Sheet, UNHCR provides the main child protection highlights, issues, and trends for 2014 to 2016. These issues surround the large influx of unaccompanied and separated children entering Ethiopia. In 2015, northern Ethiopia recorded approximately 4,200 new unaccompanied and separated children arrivals. In northern Ethiopia 63% of unaccompanied and separated children live in community-based housing/alternative care/group care.
Research strongly suggests that children are best served by care that is as safe, nurturing and as close to family as is feasible for the given situation. Many care organizations that have long served children in large scale residential settings desire to shift decisively toward family-based solutions. However, transitioning from residential care to family-based care can be difficult, even intimidating. The organizations profiled in these case studies have pioneered effective transitions from residential to family-based care. For these studies, they have generously shared from their…
Abstract
This interpretive study examines the experiences of 54 Ethiopian emerging adults who had aged out of institutional care facilities. Findings are derived from interviews and focus groups in which questions and activities focused on the challenges faced by participants and the supports they relied on throughout the transition process. These young adults reported facing many challenges upon leaving care, including difficulty finding gainful and interesting employment, a lack of many basic life skills, difficulty finding a support network, and significant stigma in…
Abstract
This interpretive study examines the experiences of 54 Ethiopian emerging adults who had aged out of institutional care facilities. Findings are derived from interviews and focus groups in which questions and activities focused on the challenges faced by participants and the supports they relied on throughout the transition process. These young adults reported facing many challenges upon leaving care, including difficulty finding gainful and interesting employment, a lack of many basic life skills, difficulty finding a support network, and significant stigma in the community due…
This issue brief from the UNHCR highlights key messages from UNHCR in regards to alternative care, including the importance of making alternative care arrangements based on the best interests of the child and using residential or institutional care only as a very last resort. The brief defines the role of the UNHCR in alternative care as well as key concepts of alternative care. The brief reviews the types of alternative care and key actions that UNHCR and its partners can do to ensure the best interests of the child in alternative care. The brief concludes with some examples of the…
This video features a segment of a talk on the effects of care environments on children, hosted by the Christian Alliance for Orphans. The key speakers featured include Dr. Kathryn Whetten & Dr. Charles Nelson, who discuss the Positive Outcomes for Orphans study (POFO) and the Bucharest Early Intervention Project (BEIP), respectively.
Dr. Nelson speaks about the institutionalization of children and its impact on the brain development of institutionalized children. Many children in institutions, says Dr. Nelson, experience isolation, a lack of response to distress, a…