Challenges for children:
- General change of routine and venue
- Larger class sizes
- Less intensive, personalized support
- Stigma of having been away
Challenges for families:
- Severed relationships with trusted hospital staff
- A return to sometimes tense relationship between family and school
- The stress of assuming more responsibility for the child’s behaviour and well-being
- Parents of children with mental health issues sometimes have their own mental health concerns, and the stress of this transition can be very taxing for them
Challenges for teachers and schools:
- Community schools have finite capacity and hundreds of students to manage; one child with severe behavioural issues can be a huge challenge
Challenges for social services:
- If a child regresses without support, he or she may end up back in the care of mental health services, including the day hospital, hospital ER, or CSSS network
The Transitional Care Program addresses each of these challenges by:
- Monitoring the child’s progress at school
- Supporting parents and caregivers by providing both support and intervention strategies
- Helping families to be consistent in reinforcing skills acquired from the Day Hospital program
- Facilitating communication between families and schools
- Helping schools to understand the needs of children with mental health challenges
- Helping schools to develop and maintain workable accommodations for children with mental health issues
The Transitional Care Program softens this transition by ensuring continuity of care and by providing referrals as necessary.
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