Families need support from a variety of sources in the community, writes Pat Dolan
Whether or not our economic Celtic Tiger continues may be of questionable relevance to the many families currently lacking support and living in poor conditions or in disadvantaged communities.
Those with responsibility for ameliorating the plight of troubled and troublesome children are all too aware of this simple fact, despite an increase in resources being made available since the introduction of the Child Care Act, 1991.
At a basic level, the cost to benefit of investment in children's services needs consideration, and it could be strongly argued that the current costs of custodial care for out-of-control youth may be excessive. What is particularly worrying are the poor outcomes for children who come through such systems. If we consider the legal fees for taking children from their families and the ongoing running costs in secure facilities for what is a small population of young people, one could argue for better redirection of such investment (or part of it).
For example, offering funds directly to families in need (within a controlled structure) over time may lessen the need for such "acute" interventions. In terms of designing services to work with families, there is a growing belief that two essential factors may be overlooked. Firstly, it is crucial that the service provided matches the help needed by families. Put simply, where parents need practical help such as a washing machine, advice from a professional, although helpful, won't suffice and won't get the washing done. Secondly, there is growing evidence that prevention is centrally related to better use of people's natural networks (family friends and neighbours) and this applies equally to children.
For any of us, when we face a problem, it is usually a loved one, family member, close friend or work colleague whom we turn to for help - professionals are not usually our first port of call. Ideally, services that are community-based and involve professionals working in unison with family networks should be developed as partnership arrangements and ahead of expensive or more intrusive interventions.
This is not to minimise the difficult task of working with children who demonstrate horrifying behaviours. Nor is it to suggest that family support is the panacea. Whereas prevention and community-based approaches are accepted internationally as the best way forward, how this applies in action remains questionable. There is some promising evidence on ways for helping young people through family support programmes, but there is an onus on the children's research community, including those in Irish universities, to provide objective research as to their effectiveness.
It is ironic that the case for community and family support only comes to the fore following a tragic case of child death by a misadventure such as a multiple suicide. It is then that issues of family stressors such as poverty, mental ill-health or community isolation are brought to the fore and sometimes sensationalised within the media.
The need to ensure families have ongoing support from natural and other sources is vital, and methods for regular "check-ins" with parents and children should be developed. For example, most parents can recall the benefit of a visit by a public health nurse after the birth of their child. The potential of repeating such a supportive visit at regular intervals as the child matures could tackle issues earlier and prevent human tragedies All young people who appear as out of control started out as babies and their problems did not occur overnight. There are many cases where, if need is identified early and simple help provided, problems can be overcome.
This responsibility to achieve better outcomes for families lies not just with government or local services, it applies to young people, their families, schools, communities and to the Irish universities' children's research community. If, as expected, a referendum on children's rights occurs in 2008, the debate on wording, ethics and issues of parental rights over their offspring will be contentious. However, the ways that children's rights actually get played out in their lives is equally if not more important. Providing better proven prevention services to support families can enable them to have happier and healthier children, lessen the need for secure care and demonstrate that children are protected and listened to.
Dr Pat Dolan is director of the Child and Family Research Centre at NUI Galway, which will be opened today by President Mary McAleese