Coming of age
A group home director contacted us about an Indigenous youth with special needs who had been in the home’s care for seven years.
Issues: Rights (Good care), Disability, Indigenous
A group home director contacted us about an Indigenous youth with special needs who had been in the home’s care for seven years. The youth was nearing her 18th birthday, and the director was concerned that nothing had been done to ensure that she was transitioned to adult support services by referral to Developmental Services Ontario. He noted that normally, this is done through a children’s aid society case worker, and the process starts at age 16.
We reached out to the Indigenous child, youth and family well-being agency that was involved with the youth, and learned that it had only recently assigned a case worker to her, and had not developed a plan to transition her to adult services.
Result: The service director at the well-being agency committed to reviewing the youth’s transition plan and addressing her medical needs, which included hearing aids, glasses and braces. We followed up with the youth and confirmed that she had received hearing aids, started orthodontic treatment, and moved into an adult home while staying connected to her former group home.