ORIGINAL ARTICLE   

Minerva Psichiatrica 2019 March;60(1):12-6

DOI: 10.23736/S0391-1772.18.01981-7

Copyright © 2018 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

The risk for mental and developmental health problems in children living in alternative care

Pietro FERRARA ^{1, 2} ✉, Francesca IANNIELLO ¹, Annalisa GAZZELLONE ¹, Roberta AUTUORI ², Valeria BLASI ³, Angelo PENNELLA ⁴

¹ Institute of Pediatrics, Catholic University Medical School, Rome, Italy; ² Unit of Pediatrics, Campus Bio-Medico University Medical School, Rome, Italy; ³ Unit of Clinical Nutrition, University Policlinic A. Gemelli IRCCS Foundation, Rome, Italy; ⁴ School in Psychology of Health, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to evaluate the distress, behavior and developmental health problems of children living in alternative care.
METHODS: The data were collected through a questionnaire between May and November 2017. The communities involved in this study were 169, from all Italian Regions, and hosted 1621 children.
RESULTS: Children living in alternative care can manifest their distress in multiple ways. The respondents report the presence of aggressive behavior in about 27% of children, especially verbal aggression, followed by vandalism and physical aggression.
CONCLUSIONS: Children in alternative care placements may be particularly vulnerable at risk for mental and developmental health problems, which may impact long-term outcome if untreated or ineffectively treated.

KEY WORDS: Group homes - Child - Child development disorders, pervasive