High Prevalence of Exposure to the Child Welfare System among Street-Involved Youth in a Canadian Setting: Implications for Policy and Practice

Resource type
Date created
2014
Authors/Contributors
Author: Kerr, Thomas
Author: Nguyen, Paul
Author: Wood, Evan
Author: DeBeck, Kora
Abstract
BackgroundStreet-involved youth are more likely to experience trauma and adverse events in childhood; however, little is known about exposure to the child welfare system among this vulnerable population. This study sought to examine the prevalence and correlates of being in government care among street-involved youth in Vancouver, Canada.MethodsFrom September 2005 to November 2012, data were collected from the At-Risk Youth Study, a prospective cohort of street-involved youth aged 14–26 who use illicit drugs. Logistic regression analysis was employed to identify factors associated with a history of being in government care.ResultsAmong our sample of 937 street-involved youth, 455 (49%) reported being in government care at some point in their childhood. In a multivariate analysis, Aboriginal ancestry (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 2.07; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.50 – 2.85), younger age at first “hard” substance use (AOR = 1.10; 95% CI: 1.05 – 1.16), high school incompletion (AOR = 1.40; 95% CI: 1.00 – 1.95), having a parent that drank heavily or used illicit drugs (AOR = 1.48; 95% CI: 1.09 – 2.01), and experiencing physical abuse (AOR = 1.90; 95% CI: 1.22 – 2.96) were independently associated with exposure to the child welfare system.ConclusionsYouth with a history of being in government care appear to be at high-risk of adverse illicit substance-related behaviours. Evidence-based interventions are required to better support vulnerable children and youth with histories of being in the child welfare system, and prevent problematic substance use and street-involvement among this population.
Document
Published as
Barker
et al. BMC Public Health
2014,
14
:197
http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2458/14/197
Publication title
BMC Public Health
Document title
High Prevalence of Exposure to the Child Welfare System among Street-Involved Youth in a Canadian Setting: Implications for Policy and Practice
Date
2014
Volume
14
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Copyright is held by the author(s).
Scholarly level
Peer reviewed?
Yes
Language
Member of collection
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1471-2458-14-197.pdf 198.35 KB