Realizing potential: Promoting resilience in children and youth in Eastern region

Realizing potential: Promoting resilience in children and youth in Eastern region

In today’s presentation, we ask:In today’s presentation, we ask:

What is resilience? Why is it important? How do we promote resilience? What is happening in Eastern region?

• What are the challenges in working towards resilience?

• What are some strategies for success?

What is resilience?What is resilience?

The capacity of children and youth that allows them to adapt and persevere in the face of adversity

Why is it important?Why is it important?

A strengths-based focus A shift towards prevention and

mental health promotion Helps us to understand how to

support young people to minimize negative impacts and maximize positive ones

Some basic definitions…Some basic definitions…Risk factor Any factor (or combination of factors)

that increases the chance of an undesirable outcome

Vulnerability Something that makes the negative effects of a risk factor worse

Protective factor

Something that helps to decrease the effects of a risk factor, making the outcome more positive

Turning point When a change in context or factors helps a person to return to a positive pathway to resilience

Early researchEarly research

Individual temperament

Absence of biological/genetic

threats

A safe environment

A nurturing family

Psychological well-being

More recent researchMore recent research

An ecological view of resilience Culture and context are key

• The International Resilience Project• Focus on understanding resilience across 14

communities in Canada, China, Palestine, Israel, Columbia, Russia, India, USA, Gambia, Tanzania and South Africa

How do we promote resilience in child How do we promote resilience in child and youth mental health?and youth mental health?

Identify and minimize risk factors Identify and enhance protective factors Resolve problems that set the stage for

challenging behaviours in a collaborative way (“kids do well if they can”)

Work preventatively to promote the healthy development of youth

What is happening in Eastern region?What is happening in Eastern region?

The Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS) community of practice

Communities that Care (CTC)

Ottawa Community of Practice

Collaborative Problem Solving

Ottawa Community of Practice (CoP: Ottawa)

Definition of Community of Practice“Communities of practice are groups of people who

share a concern or a passion for something they do and learn how to do it better as they interact regularly” (Etienne Wenger)

What is a CoP?

• Deliberate• Emphasizes ongoing, collective learning• Focuses on interaction, growth and evolution of

members (both individually and as a group)• No formal beginning or end• A site for creating practice-based evidence (a

complement to EvBP)

Collaborative Problem Solving

Ottawa Community of Practice• Funding from CoE to receive Advanced Level’s I & II training in CPS.• Created a weekly forum for further training and supervision

(CHEO, CCC, YSB, RSC, OCCARS, Cornwall Hospital and Christie Lake).

Why the CPS CoP was Established?• Development of common language and treatment modality.• Anti-stigma and creating resiliency

• In response to SOCPR evaluation.– Integration and coordination.– Seamless transition for children/youth and families.– Strength based treatment planning.

Collaborative Problem Solving

Collaborative Problem Solving

• Developed by Dr. Ross Greene.• Is a cognitive, behavioral approach.• Requires a change in mindset in how to work with children

presenting with challenging behaviours (i.e., inflexible, explosive).

• The goal of CPS is to decrease adversarial interactions between parents and children, improve children’s capacities for flexibility, frustration tolerance, communication and self-regulation.

• Increase resiliency in children.

Kids do well if they can…

…if they can’t,we need to figure out

what’s getting in their wayso we can help

Your explanation guides yourIntervention…

Conventional Wisdom

Because of poor (passive, permissive, inconsistent) parenting, challenging kids have learned that their behaviour is effective at getting things (e.g., attention) or escaping or avoiding things (e.g., homework).

Logical Intervention

Motivation more compliant behaviour through the use of intensive, consistent programs of rewards, punishment and ignoring.

Unconventional Wisdom:It’s a Learning Disability

Some kids are delayed in the development of crucial cognitive (thinking) skills – in areas like flexibility/adaptability, frustration tolerance, and problem-solving – or have significant difficulty applying these skills when they are most needed.

Logical Intervention

• Identify the lagging skills contribution to the challenging behaviour and then teach them.

• Identify the problems or triggers precipitating the challenging behaviour and work towards solving them (while maintaining adults as authority figures).

• Create resiliency in children generalizing strengths and skills to multiple environments.

“He just wants attention.”

We all want attention so this explanation isn’t very useful for helping us understand why a kid is struggling to do well. And if a kid is seeking attention in a maladaptive way, doesn’t that suggest he lacks the skills to seek attention in an adaptive way?

“He’s manipulating us.”

This is a very popular, and misguided, characterization of kids with behavioral challenges. Competent manipulation requires various skills – forethought, planning, impulse control, and organization, among others – typically found lacking in challenging kids.

“He’s not motivated.”

This is another very popular characterization that can be traced back to the “kids do well if they want to” mentality, and it can lead us straight to interventions aimed at giving a kid the incentive to do well. But why would any kid not want to do well?

Model Overview

Because this model views challenging behaviour as the byproduct of a learning disability of sorts, the emphasis is entirely different…

Assessment “raw materials”. • What’s going on in this kid’s head that we wish wasn’t?• What isn’t going on this kid’s head that we wish was?

Goals of intervention.1. teaching lagging thinking skills2. collaboratively solving problems.

Mantra

Behind every challenging behaviour is either a trigger or

a lagging skill or both.

Pathways

There is a rich literature linking challenging behaviour with deficits in the following areas (“Pathways”):

• Executive skills• Language processing skills• Emotion regulation skills• Cognitive flexibility skills• Social skills

* Replacing these lagging skills (Risk Factors) with Protective Factors.

C’est ta communauté C’est ta communauté Communities That CareCommunities That Care

Bienvenue !!Welcome!!

C’est ta communauté/ Communities That Care;;

Le programme «Clefs pour l’adolescence»/Lions Quest - Skills for Adolescence Program;

Les jeunes; la communauté/Our youth; our community

Plan de présentationSchedule

C’est ta communauté (CTC) est un projet communautaire qui vise à rassembler les membres d’une communauté afin de trouver les meilleurs moyens possibles pour favoriser le sain développement des jeunes de Prescott-Russell.

Communities That Care (CTC) is run by caring citizens of Prescott and Russell who work together to promote the healthy development of our youth.

CTC vise à réduire et à CTC vise à réduire et à prévenir cinq comportements :prévenir cinq comportements :

La consommation de drogues et d’alcool; La grossesse précoce; La violence; La délinquance; Le décrochage scolaire.

CTC aims at reducin the CTC aims at reducin the following 5 behaviours :following 5 behaviours :

Alcohol and drug use Alcohol and drug use Teenage pregnancyTeenage pregnancy Violence DelinquencyDelinquency School Drop-out

Collectivité entièreCollectivité entière

Le projet CTC mobilise tous ceux qui ont Le projet CTC mobilise tous ceux qui ont l’avenir des jeunes à cœur.l’avenir des jeunes à cœur.

C’est un projet qui se fonde sur desC’est un projet qui se fonde sur des études rigoureuses qui sont testées etétudes rigoureuses qui sont testées et validées.validées.

Sondage Sondage CTCCTC

Un sondage a été effectué auprès des élèves de 6e, 8e, 10e et 12e années dans 24 écoles de la région de Prescott-Russell.

Au total, 2 243 sondages ont été complétés.

140 questions ont été demander, par exemples;

• Dans la DERNIÈRE ANNÉE combien de fois as-tu été soul ou « high » à l’école ?

• À quelle fréquence est-ce que tes parents te disent qu’ils sont fiers de toi quand tu fais quelque chose de bien?

• À combien d’occasions as-tu consommé de l’alcohol dans les 30 derniers jours?

Sondage CTCSondage CTC

Selon le sondage les Selon le sondage les facteurs facteurs de risquesde risques les plus dominants les plus dominants sont;sont;

L’attitude des jeunes favorisant la consommation de drogues et d’alcool;

L’attitude des jeunes favorisant les comportements délinquants;

L’attitude des parents favorisant la consommation de drogues et d’alcool.

L’attitude des parents favorisant la consommation de drogues et d’alcool

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

6e 8e 10e 12e

Comportements parentaux favorisant la consommation des drogues

Selon le sondage les facteurs de protection les plus positifs se retrouvent dans le domaine scolaire.

Les élèves indiquent avoir des occasions positives à l’école et reçoivent la reconnaissance pour leur implication.

Facteurs de Facteurs de protectionprotection

Programme de Programme de préventionprévention

Pour faire suite aux résultas du sondage CTC, Pour faire suite aux résultas du sondage CTC, l’étude des données de notre communauté, l’étude des données de notre communauté, l’évaluation des ressources communautaires l’évaluation des ressources communautaires existantes et les recherches des programmes existantes et les recherches des programmes CTC, les conseils communautaires ont choisi CTC, les conseils communautaires ont choisi le programme de préventionle programme de prévention : :

LIONS QUEST – SKILLS FOR ADOLESCENCE LIONS QUEST – SKILLS FOR ADOLESCENCE CLEFS POUR L’ADOLESCENCECLEFS POUR L’ADOLESCENCE

Le programme Lions Quest « Les clefs pour l’adolescence » a pour but d’aider les jeunes à développer des habiletés afin de prendre des décisions responsables, d’établir de bonnes relations et de gérer efficacement des situations difficiles.

Lions Quest

Lions Quest

• Programme de prévention en milieu scolaire;

• Mise en œuvre en 7e année;

• Implication et soutien de la Implication et soutien de la communauté;communauté;

• L’engagement des jeunes envers leur L’engagement des jeunes envers leur famille, leurs pairs, l’école et leur famille, leurs pairs, l’école et leur communautécommunauté.

Développe des attitudes de base telles que l’écoute active, le respect, la confiance et la franchise;

Crée un climat positif dans la salle de classe, dans l’école et dans la communauté (moins de taxage et d’intimidation);

Augmente la coopération dans la salle de classe (moins de discipline).

Les effets positifs du programme

Lions QuestLions Quest Raise the level of respect in class, Raise the level of respect in class,

at home, with friends.at home, with friends. Learn to communicate and express Learn to communicate and express

their emotions (fear, anger, joy); their emotions (fear, anger, joy); Learn how to deal with difficult Learn how to deal with difficult

situations and manage stress;situations and manage stress; Work on self-esteem - learn how to Work on self-esteem - learn how to

make good decisions; make good decisions; Learn how to listen and learn from Learn how to listen and learn from

positive role models;positive role models; Build positive relationships.Build positive relationships.

La mise en oeuvre du programme; Onze (11) écoles ; Vingt-cinq (25) classes; 700 élèves approximativement; Programme offerts en Français et en Englais

Casselman – Hawkesbury –

Clarence-Rockland

Solidifier la mise en œuvre du programme;

L’intégration des partenaires communautaires;

Volet parental et communautaire de LQ;

Sondage CTC 2010;

Année 2009-2010

The goal…

Healthy behaviors…for all children and youth

Start with…

Healthy beliefs & clear standards…in families, schools, communities and peer groups

Build…

Bonding• Attachment • Commitment

…to families, schools, communities and peer groups

And by nurturing…

Individual characteristics

By providing… By providing… By providing… Opportunities Skills Recognition

…in families, schools, communities and peer groups

1. Lions Quest : To empower adults to develop healthy, capable young people of strong character.

2. Partnerships: A community-wide approach to create positive change in the lives of our youth.

Caring citizens working together for our youth.

Our Community – Our Youth

The youth projects and activities we choose are to help lower the risks and give our youth the opportunity to learn healthy life skills, then recognise them for their efforts.

CTC has active Youth groups who help promote the CTC philosophy in our communities and who enjoy positive life experiences in return.

CTC Youth Activities

CTC Dance-a-thon CTC and OPP ‘Good Deeds’ initiative Summer youth dances Youth committee outings (movies, skating, etc) Clean-up of our local parks Visit to the Ottawa Mission Day of recognition – all grade 7 students Summer park animation Getting involved in community events

CTC Youth Activities

N’oubliez pasUn avenir meilleur pour les jeunes de notre

communauté commence avec VOUS !

Don’t forgetA better future for our youth begins with

YOU!

Questions Questions ??

For more information…For more information…Michael Hone, Director of Clinical Services

Crossroads Children’s Centre

613.723.1623 ext. 228

[email protected]

Chantale Tremblay, Superviseur options communautaire

Services aux enfants et adultes de Prescott-Russell

613.673.5148

[email protected]

Questions?Questions?

Dr. Purnima Sundar

Research and Knowledge Exchange Consultant

613.737.7600 Ext. 3485

[email protected]