Improving Outcomes for Transitional Age Youth

Improving Outcomes for Transitional Age Youth
Author: Katherine Ashley Robinson
Publisher:
Total Pages: 290
Release: 2013
Genre: Foster children
ISBN: 9781303203169

Abstract: This curriculum was developed to train social workers, foster parents, and supportive adults who work with Transitional Age Youth (TAY). This curriculum is designed to train on the best practices in the areas of team collaboration and building and permanency. The TAY population faces immediate adulthood and lacks emotional and developmental skills to be successful in society. Youth who have a team of supportive adults and a permanent connection to a committed adult have a greater chance of overcoming the negative odds. This curriculum focuses on training supportive adults (social workers, foster parents, and mentors) about the emotional needs of TAY including communication skills, coping skills, and decision making. These developmental needs have been overlooked in program implementation on state and federal levels. Research suggests that these skills are most effective when learned in a natural setting by adults TAY know and trust. This thesis will review the TAY population, the challenges, and the current responses to the problem. The second part of the thesis will include the curriculum modules and outline a facilitator's guide for each module.

Transition-Age Youth Mental Health Care

Transition-Age Youth Mental Health Care
Author: Vivien Chan
Publisher: Springer Nature
Total Pages: 485
Release: 2021-03-10
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 3030621138

Over the course of the last two decades, improved practices in child and adolescent mental healthcare have led to a decreased environment of stigma, which also led to an increased identification and treatment of mental health disorders in children and youth. Considering that treatment and outcomes are improved with early intervention, this is good news. However, the success gained in the field of child and adolescent psychiatry leads to a new challenge: transitioning from adolescent care to adult care. It has been known for some time that children, adult, and geriatric patients all have unique needs where it comes to mental healthcare, yet limited work has been done where it comes to the shifting of the lifespan. Where it comes to the child-adult transition—defined as those in their late teens and early/mid-20s—there can be multiple barriers in seeking mental healthcare that stem from age-appropriate developmental approaches as well as include systems of care needs. Apart from increasing childhood intervention, the problem is exacerbated by the changing social dynamics: more youths are attending college rather than diving straight into the workforce, but for various reasons these youths can be more dependent on their parents more than previous generations. Technology has improved the daily lives of many, but it has also created a new layer of complications in the mental health world. The quality and amount of access to care between those with a certain level of privilege and those who do not have this privilege is sharp, creating more complicating factors for people in this age range. Such societal change has unfolded so rapidly that training programs have not had an opportunity to catch up, which has created a crisis for care. Efforts to modernize the approach to this unique age group are still young, and so no resource exists for any clinicians at any phase in their career. This book aims to serve as the first concise guide to fill this gap in the literature. The book will be edited by two leading figures in transition age youth, both of whom are at institutions that have been at the forefront of this clinical work and research. This proposed mid-sized guide is therefore intended to be a collaborative effort, written primarily by child and adolescent psychiatrists, and also with adult psychiatrists. The aim is to discuss the developmental presentation of many common mental health diagnoses and topics in chapters, with each chapter containing clinically-relevant “bullet points” and/or salient features that receiving providers, who are generally, adult-trained, should keep in mind when continuing mental health treatment from the child and adolescent system. Chapters will cover a wide range of challenges that are unique to transition-age youths, including their unique developmental needs, anxiety, mood, and personality disorders at the interface of this development, trauma and adjustment disorders, special populations, and a wide range of other topics. Each chapter will begin with a clinical pearl about each topic before delving into the specifics.

Investing in the Health and Well-Being of Young Adults

Investing in the Health and Well-Being of Young Adults
Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 431
Release: 2015-01-27
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309309980

Young adulthood - ages approximately 18 to 26 - is a critical period of development with long-lasting implications for a person's economic security, health and well-being. Young adults are key contributors to the nation's workforce and military services and, since many are parents, to the healthy development of the next generation. Although 'millennials' have received attention in the popular media in recent years, young adults are too rarely treated as a distinct population in policy, programs, and research. Instead, they are often grouped with adolescents or, more often, with all adults. Currently, the nation is experiencing economic restructuring, widening inequality, a rapidly rising ratio of older adults, and an increasingly diverse population. The possible transformative effects of these features make focus on young adults especially important. A systematic approach to understanding and responding to the unique circumstances and needs of today's young adults can help to pave the way to a more productive and equitable tomorrow for young adults in particular and our society at large. Investing in The Health and Well-Being of Young Adults describes what is meant by the term young adulthood, who young adults are, what they are doing, and what they need. This study recommends actions that nonprofit programs and federal, state, and local agencies can take to help young adults make a successful transition from adolescence to adulthood. According to this report, young adults should be considered as a separate group from adolescents and older adults. Investing in The Health and Well-Being of Young Adults makes the case that increased efforts to improve high school and college graduate rates and education and workforce development systems that are more closely tied to high-demand economic sectors will help this age group achieve greater opportunity and success. The report also discusses the health status of young adults and makes recommendations to develop evidence-based practices for young adults for medical and behavioral health, including preventions. What happens during the young adult years has profound implications for the rest of the life course, and the stability and progress of society at large depends on how any cohort of young adults fares as a whole. Investing in The Health and Well-Being of Young Adults will provide a roadmap to improving outcomes for this age group as they transition from adolescence to adulthood.

Mental Health Resources for Transition-age Youth and Their Providers

Mental Health Resources for Transition-age Youth and Their Providers
Author: Derek Baldridge
Publisher:
Total Pages: 132
Release: 2013
Genre: Foster children
ISBN: 9781303204500

Abstract: The purpose of this project was to design a program that would deliver mental health resources to transition-age youth and their providers, identify potential funding sources, and write a grant to fund the project. This proposed program aims to connect transition-age youth in transitional housing programs in Los Angeles County, as well as the social work staff serving them, with mental health resources to improve outcomes and usher healthier transitions into adulthood. This project includes an extensive literature review highlighting an array of negative outcomes and mental health challenges among foster youth and former foster youth. The potential funding source selected was the California Endowment. The proposed program is detailed with the program objectives and outcomes, an evaluation plan, staffing information and a budget narrative. The actual submission or funding of this grant was not a requirement for the successful completion of the project.

Transitional Age Youth and Mental Illness: Influences on Young Adult Outcomes, An Issue of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America, E-Book

Transitional Age Youth and Mental Illness: Influences on Young Adult Outcomes, An Issue of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America, E-Book
Author: Adele L. Martel
Publisher: Elsevier Health Sciences
Total Pages:
Release: 2017-03-21
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0323523994

This issue of the Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America, guest edited by Drs. Adele Martel and Catherine Fuchs, aims to bridge the current state of knowledge about risk and resilience during the transition to adolescence for young people with mental illness with the need for developmentally-attuned and culturally–competent strategies to engage and maintain them in treatment. Topics covered in this volume include, but are not limited to: Developmental Psychopathology and Resilience; Conceptualization of Mental Illness in Transitional Age Youth; Suicidal Behaviors and Suicide; Substance Abuse; Working with Parents/Family; Social Media; Youth Transitioning from Foster Care; Heading to College with a Psychiatric Diagnosis; Issues of Diversity, Integrated Identities and Mental Health in Transitional Age Youth; and Autism Spectrum Disorders, among others.

Opportunities for Improving Programs and Services for Children with Disabilities

Opportunities for Improving Programs and Services for Children with Disabilities
Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 351
Release: 2018-08-06
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309472245

Although the general public in the United States assumes children to be generally healthy and thriving, a substantial and growing number of children have at least one chronic health condition. Many of these conditions are associated with disabilities and interfere regularly with children's usual activities, such as play or leisure activities, attending school, and engaging in family or community activities. In their most severe forms, such disorders are serious lifelong threats to children's social, emotional well-being and quality of life, and anticipated adult outcomes such as for employment or independent living. However, pinpointing the prevalence of disability among children in the U.S. is difficult, as conceptual frameworks and definitions of disability vary among federal programs that provide services to this population and national surveys, the two primary sources for prevalence data. Opportunities for Improving Programs and Services for Children with Disabilities provides a comprehensive analysis of health outcomes for school-aged children with disabilities. This report reviews and assesses programs, services, and supports available to these children and their families. It also describes overarching program, service, and treatment goals; examines outreach efforts and utilization rates; identifies what outcomes are measured and how they are reported; and describes what is known about the effectiveness of these programs and services.

Improving Outcomes for Youth Aging Out of the Foster Care System

Improving Outcomes for Youth Aging Out of the Foster Care System
Author: Kayla Freeman
Publisher:
Total Pages: 44
Release: 2014
Genre: Child welfare
ISBN:

While many foster care social service agencies direct the majority of their focus on active foster care cases, the needs of foster care alumni tend to fall to the wayside. In order to help combat this problem, we first need to know what the needs of these youth are as they approach the time when they will inevitably have to exit the foster care system and what social workers and other social service professionals can do in order to ease this transition for the youth. This qualitative study utilized participatory observation as well as reflective journaling and pre and post-tests in order to gather data related to the needs of youth who would soon age out of the foster care system. Data from six youth has been included along with the researcher's personal journal reflections and observations. This study concluded that youth may be better able to adapt from being a dependent foster care recipient to independent young adult if they learn how to develop healthy relationships with others, feel a sense of cohesion with other youth in foster care, develop a long-lasting mentoring relationship, and if their assigned caseworker and/or other helping professionals respect the unique trust and attachment issues that youth in foster care may present with." -- Author's abstract.

Achieving Permanence for Older Children and Youth in Foster Care

Achieving Permanence for Older Children and Youth in Foster Care
Author: Benjamin Kerman
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Total Pages: 416
Release: 2009-05-18
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0231146884

Through a novel integration of child welfare data, policy analysis, and evidence-informed youth permanency practice, the essays in this volume show how to achieve and sustain family permanence for older children and youth in foster care. Researchers examine what is known about permanency outcomes for youth in foster care, how the existing knowledge base can be applied to improve these outcomes, and the directions that future research should take to strengthen youth permanence practice and policy. Part 1 examines child welfare data concerning reunification, adoption, and relative custody and guardianship and the implications for practice and policy. Part 2 addresses law, regulation, court reform, and resource allocation as vital components in achieving and sustaining family permanence. Contributors examine the impact of policy change created by court reform and propose new federal and state policy directions. Part 3 outlines a range of practices designed to achieve family permanence for youth in foster care: preserving families through community-based services, reunification, adoption, and custody and guardianship arrangements with relatives. As growing numbers of youth continue to "age out" of foster care without permanent families, researchers, practitioners, and policymakers have increasingly focused on developing evidence-informed policies, practices, services and supports to improve outcomes for youth. Edited by leading professionals in the field, this text recommends the most relevant and effective methods for improving family permanency outcomes for older youth in foster care.

Transition of Youth & Young Adults with Emotional Or Behavioral Difficulties

Transition of Youth & Young Adults with Emotional Or Behavioral Difficulties
Author: Hewitt B. Clark
Publisher: Brookes Publishing Company
Total Pages: 388
Release: 2009
Genre: Education
ISBN:

This comprehensive professional resource collects the best, most current knowledge on supporting the transition to adulthood for young people with mental health issues. Includes in-depth analyses of five successful transition programs.

Transition by Design

Transition by Design
Author: Audrey A. Trainor
Publisher: Teachers College Press
Total Pages: 180
Release: 2017
Genre: Education
ISBN: 0807775762

Transitions to adulthood for adolescents with disabilities are as diverse as the adolescents themselves. While there have been marked improvements for students with disabilities, there is still concern that employment education and independent living outcomes are not equitable across groups of students. For example, adolescents of color are more likely to face exclusionary discipline procedures in school resulting in detention and court involvement which, in turn, can limit access to educational opportunities in inclusive settings. Recommending a shift toward strengths-based approaches to research and practice, Trainor explores how all stakeholders, including researchers and practitioners, can help shape equitable opportunities for youth with disabilities in transition. Transition by Design reframes disability, diversity, and equity during the transition from high school to adulthood. “Audrey Trainor offers an excellent treatise on transition research and practice as cultural acts that lead to differential outcomes for youth with disabilities, particularly for those from historically marginalized groups. Each of us must heed her call to examine how our personal and professional cultures influence our work and contribute to equity, or inequity, in programs and services for these populations.” —Alba A. Ortiz, professor emerita, The University of Texas at Austin “With passion and precision, Trainor calls us to see the work of transition education through new and broader lenses. Her remarkable book pushes the field to pursue equity and ensure every young person with a disability can flourish.” —Erik Carter, professor, Vanderbilt University