De -institutionalization: Strategy and implications for South Asia

De-institutionalization: Strategy and implications for South Asia Mr. RajendraMeher CEO, Youth Council for Development Alternatives (YCDA), Odisha, India

Conceptual Understanding on DI Deinstitutionalization is a step by step process to release children from institutional care to Family care.

Issues • Millions of children (no accurate number available) live in Institutional care setting/outside of family care and without the love and nurturing of family members. • Through residential care facilities, children may have some basic needs met, such as food and clothing, but many do not receive the attention and love that only a family can provide. • Research has shown repeatedly that residential care causes long-term negative effects on children’s physical, intellectual, and psychosocial development. • Children who have lived in residential care may be among the most susceptible to violence, abuse and exploitation, • and when they leave institutional care they are often ill-prepared for independent life, which frequently results in unemployment, exploitation, and homelessness, causing long-term costs to society.

Strategies We need to focus Preventive and Rehabilitative strategies to address the Issue of Deinstitutionalization in a very systematic manner.

Operational Readiness strategies • Prepare Children: Children is well prepare and participate in the decision to back to Family. • Prepare family: Family is well prepare and willingness to accept Children and render all basic rights and services. • Prepare Government: Government is prepare to implement the change/shift with strong will power.

Strategy:1 (Gatekeeping) Family care requires an effective gatekeeping process, which is the assessment and decision-making process that ensures the prevention of inappropriate placement of children in institutions. Gatekeeping at Community level and at Competent authority level

Strategy:2 (Family Strengthening) Transitioning children to family care and keeping children out of residential care in the first place requires services that prevent separation and family breakdown, as well as a range of family-based services to ensure the education, health, safety, and wellbeing of each child.

Strategy:3 (Continuum of Care) Transitioning children out of residential care is possible only when there is families who are willing and able to provide loving and supportive care for them. Because every child’s needs and circumstances are unique. (Here Continuum of care framework is also applicable)

Strategy:4 (Child participation) Children have a right to participate in decision-making process. In care arrangements taking opinion of children is a fundamental requirement.

Strategy:5 (Partnering with Child Care Institutions) Partnering with Child Care Institutions (CCI)/staff and volunteers as key and essential to an effective transition process. This engagement begins by actively including staff in building capacity and awareness rising.

Partner with CCIs…Reform Care system Reform Child care system Reduce the reliance of institutional care and offer a range of alternative care looking in to the best interest of Children. Three key elements; • What we want to REDUCE • What we want to RESHAPE • What we want to IMPROVE

Reform Care systemSome recommendations • Close dawn/Reduce the dormitory style of facilities. • Limiting and regulating the number of new children entering CCIs. • Develop/Increase Community outreach programme • Developing and enforcing standards to improve quality care • Offering a range of alternative care potions like, Kinship care, Foster care, After care etc. • Utilizing the institutional infrastructure and workforce to promote family strengthening and community outreach programmes. (Family Support Centre)

Strategy :6 (Transition & Reintegration) • The process of preparing to transition from residential to family care and effective planning to ensure the safe transition of children into strong families and engaged communities. • Each transition is unique to its context and depends on the support and engagement of multiple stakeholders, including staff, service providers, and the children and families themselves. • At the heart of every transition process is an individualized approach to working with children and families, with the goal of supporting each child’s placement in a family that can best meet his or her needs. (Case Management)

Strategy:7 (Road map/Vision plan) Looking in to the socio cultural and long history of residential care strategies, Government has to take a serious reflections together with various stakeholders and prepare own road map/vision to make this happen.

Submission If De-institutionalization is not handled properly, it may create more harm to children.

Thanks RajendraMeher (rajendra.meher@gmail.com)

De -institutionalization: Strategy and implications for South Asia