Families and the Mental Health System for Children and Adolescents : Policy, Services, and Research

This volume describes a myriad of policy, research and practice issues related to families of children with serious emotional disorders. It centres on families′ direct and indirect roles in children′s mental health services - for example, families can determine if and when the child enters treatment, and they can provide the context within which all therapeutic gains are played out.

The contributors discuss: family-centred service delivery characteristics and strategies; society′s role in strengthening the family and preventing emotional disorders in children and young people; supports for and barriers to parent-professional partnerships; the complexities of assessing family functioning; and culturally sensitive service del

The family plays both direct and indirect roles in the formal mental health services sector, from determining whether and when a child enters treatment to providing the context within which all therapeutic gains are played out. Providing a much-needed analysis, the contributors to this volume examine a myriad of policy, research, and practice issues related to families of children with serious emotional disorders. Families and the Mental Health System for Children and Adolescents considers issues including characteristics and service strategies for family-centered service delivery, the role that society can play in strengthening the family and preventing child and youth emotional disorders, the supports for and barriers inhibiting parent-professional partnerships, the complexities of assessing family functioning, and culturally sensitive service delivery. Throughout this timely volume, the contributors take into account the complexity and diversity of families today and the consequent impact on service delivery at the societal and policy levels. An important resource, Families and the Mental Health System for Children and Adolescents critically examines an issue of interest to practitioners, researchers, and students in evaluation, family studies, developmental psychology, public policy, and social work.