Children and Youth Services Review
Volume 100, 2019, Pages 31-38

Building a culturally-responsive, family-driven early childhood system of care: Understanding the needs and strengths of ethnically diverse families of children with social-emotional and behavioral concerns (Article)

Jain S. , Reno R.* , Cohen A.K. , Bassey H. , Master M.
  • a DNA Global, LLC, United States
  • b School of Public Health, University of California Berkeley, United States
  • c School of Public Health, University of California Berkeley & Department of Public and Nonprofit Administration, School of Management, University of San Francisco, United States
  • d DNA Global, LLC, United States
  • e WestEd, United States

Abstract

Families with young children who have mental health needs have unique challenges in caring for their children; these challenges are compounded for low-income, culturally- and linguistically-diverse families (some of whom may be immigrants). This study reports on findings from five multi-lingual focus groups that engaged caregivers of children (N = 65) receiving mental health services from California's Alameda County. Parents identified several challenges associated with caring for their young children including unmet basic needs, chronic stress, inadequate parent-provider communication, and organizational, community-level, and society-level factors (e.g., service fragmentation, neighborhood safety, and social injustice). These caregivers also reported numerous strengths, such as a commitment to their children's positive development, and a broader sense of community connectedness. Participants had several recommendations for how to improve the county's early childhood system of care, and emphasized a need to focus more broadly on school and neighborhood improvement to support health and wellness among young children. This study demonstrates the value of a system of care model, as its emphasis on system-wide impact is aligned with addressing challenges at the individual, family, community, organizational, and societal levels, as called for by parents. © 2019

Author Keywords

families Early childhood health disparities Mental health Health services

Index Keywords

California male controlled study female major clinical study Infant mental health service basic needs chronic stress neighborhood Article childhood health disparity caregiver human human experiment Child
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85061905332&doi=10.1016%2fj.childyouth.2019.02.034&partnerID=40&md5=e9cdb59fe29057526afb35003bc71ea3
DOI: 10.1016/j.childyouth.2019.02.034
ISSN: 01907409
Original Language: English