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High prevalence of exposure to the child welfare system among street-involved youth in a Canadian setting: implications for policy and practice Barker, Brittany; Kerr, Thomas; Alfred, Gerald T; Fortin, Michelle; Nguyen, Paul; Wood, Evan; DeBeck, Kora
Abstract
Background: Street-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. Methods: From 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. Results: Among 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. Conclusions: Youth 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.
Item Metadata
Title |
High prevalence of exposure to the child welfare system among street-involved youth in a Canadian setting: implications for policy and practice
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Creator | |
Publisher |
BioMed Central
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Date Issued |
2014-02-24
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Description |
Background:
Street-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.
Methods:
From 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.
Results:
Among 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.
Conclusions:
Youth 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.
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Subject | |
Geographic Location | |
Genre | |
Type | |
Language |
eng
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Date Available |
2016-01-07
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Provider |
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
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Rights |
Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
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DOI |
10.14288/1.0223139
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URI | |
Affiliation | |
Citation |
BMC Public Health. 2014 Feb 24;14(1):197
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Publisher DOI |
10.1186/1471-2458-14-197
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Peer Review Status |
Reviewed
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Scholarly Level |
Faculty
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Copyright Holder |
Barker et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.
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Rights URI | |
Aggregated Source Repository |
DSpace
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Item Media
Item Citations and Data
Rights
Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)