The LTV program “Forbidden Method” analyzed the possibilities for “difficult children” and young people with addictions in Latvia to receive support and help.
In Brukna manor “Community of Blessings of the Mountain”, led by the priest Andrejs Mediņš, earned reproaches on the disproportionate employment of children, the re-education methods used for adolescents were illegal and judged to be ineffective and even traumatic. But where should families turn when faced with adolescent behavioral problems and addictions?
In Latvia, local governments have the duty and responsibility to help and resolve crisis situations with “difficult children” and their parents. The LTV show “Forbidden Technique” explored how this is happening and sought help from a teenager with behavioral problems in the experiment.
The “Forbidden Technique” listened to the story of a young girl, Dana, who was a so-called “difficult child”. There have been protocols, administrative commissions, correctional programs on the part of the municipality, but there was a lack of psychological support.
What is the municipality’s plan if the parents have a problem with a “difficult child”? The Forbidden Technique conducted a small experiment, calling several municipalities with questions they could suggest and suggest.
In the experiment, the mother turned to the local anxious about her 13-year-old daughter, who allegedly drank cider and smoked herb, as well as worsened her success.
Conclusion: The solutions offered by municipalities are fragmented and communication is not always helpful to parents. The problem is that within each municipality it is not clear who takes responsibility and what is the basic formula for providing valuable advice and resolving the situation.
Nikita Bezborodov, a certified child psychiatrist, also assessed the situation with local solutions: there is no one-stop shop for help.
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The “Forbidden Technique” modeled another situation – with a 15-year-old teenager with aggressive and provocative behavior, as well as spending time in computer games and beating another student.
How to deal with parents? The situation was commented on by psychiatrist Nikita Bezborodov and the State Inspectorate for the Protection of the Rights of the Child.
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Currently, one of the most popular alternatives to support young people is the Adolescent Resource Center, established in 2018 by the Children’s Hospital Foundation. Last year it was made in Liepāja as well. The demand is so high that queues are starting to form.
But in other municipalities even worse – there are no such centers at all.
In addition, they are not the only children who need such help. A study conducted in 2018 shows that the actual number of children in Latvia, and thus their families, who would need support, is many times higher than it is currently received.
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Meanwhile, the Ministry of Welfare pointed out the possibilities of state support for young people:
- The Adolescent Resource Center is able to provide support to an average of 200 to 250 children a year.
- At the Ģintermuiža hospital, the service is received from 20 to 60 children a year.
- The Consultative Division of the State Inspectorate for the Protection of the Rights of the Child (VBTAI) provides a European Union-funded service to children with behavioral and communication difficulties, as well as to their parents, carers and municipal specialists. Since November 2016, specialists have developed 866 support programs for children.
- VBTAI is intended for special family psychotherapy support or resource groups for adolescents whose parents live apart or are in the process of divorce.
- In Riga, in addition to the municipality, which provides support to an average of 50 young people a year, the service for young people at social risk is also provided by the Latvian Samaritan’s Association with the program “Jump”. A similar program operates in Tukums, which is provided by the County Social Service.
- In Latvia, services close to the family assistant service are provided in more than 31 local governments, according to the data collection of the Ministry of Welfare (MoW).
At the same time, the ministry acknowledges that social workers often lack specific skills in working with different target groups of clients. Therefore, in the pilot project, the relevant training is currently provided to the employees of 15 municipal social services.
In the opinion of the Ministry, the involvement of the family doctor team in the assessment of children’s mental health is also insufficient. There is also a shortage of child psychiatrists and neurologists in Latvia.
The MoW also acknowledged that schools often “turn a blind eye” to whether these children attend school. For unknown reasons, more than a thousand children of compulsory school age are not registered in any of the schools each year.
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