Case study

Junior is a 13-year-old Indigenous boy in grade 8. He is the oldest of four; he has two younger sisters and a younger brother. His parents are survivors of the residential school system during the 60’s scoop. They have experienced trauma as a result and struggle with mental health and addictions issues. Despite his parents’ greatest efforts to keep him in kinship care, child protective services have apprehended Junior and placed him in a group home where he has been for the past 6 months. His three younger siblings have been placed in a foster care setting. His sisters are together in the same foster home and his brother is alone in another foster home.
Junior and his siblings have been removed from their home multiple times – first when he was two years old, then at six years old, and again when he was nine – due to family violence concerns. Since his first time in care at two years old, Junior and his siblings have been in kinship care, different foster care homes, and group homes. His parents have expressed that they would like their children in the care of their maternal grandmother (and she is willing to accept all four children) but their caseworker at child protective services is hesitant as she is also a residential school survivor.
Since arriving in the group home, he has been suspended three times for various behaviors including smoking in the school bathroom, fighting, and skipping class. Junior likes skateboarding, movies, cultural dancing, and video games. He is an intelligent youth and enjoys learning at school however, his diagnosis of ADHD since the age of 10 interferes with his learning.
Junior has been having difficulties in the group home since he arrived. He is the youngest teen in the home and is often in conflict with the older teens. Junior’s teacher, Mr. Wilson, has contacted you, the child and youth care worker at his group home, and asked for a meeting to discuss Junior’s behavior and make a plan for supporting him.

3. Students will complete this assignment from the perspective of a primary child and youth care worker.

4. For this assignment you will develop an intervention plan for two(2) of the following settings. Students will base their intervention plan based on the theories and assessment models presented in class. (clearly labelled)

  • a. the group home setting
  • b. at school
  • c. with parents/elders/kinship care providers/grandmother
  • d. community setting

5. Each intervention plan should outline the following:

  • a. Strengths and Resilience Factors: What are the strengths that are per-existing for this family/support network/youth? OR what do things look like when they are going well? Who is involved in applying this strategy and why? (Approximately 100 – 200 words – can be bullet points)
  • b. Potential Challenges/Concerns: What are we worried about /Challenges (presently, as well as in the future if changes are not made) (Approximately 200 – 300 words)
  • c. Next steps: What specific actions can we take to create safety/make lasting changes for this youth/family? Indicate the specific role each player is going to take (ex. Group home commits to checking in with Junior twice a night to ensure he is okay). This would be the bulk of the work. (Why the strategy is useful in this case.) (Approximately 500 words)
  • d. Community Resources: You must include at least 3 community resources or programs that could support this family within the ‘next steps’ portion of your intervention plan.