Blogul unui om care face reforma sistemului de protecție a copilului din 1997
Do you know that 72-78% of the children in our country suffer from severe material deprivation? The poverty the children directly suffer from - is the harshest in all European states. Even if they stay with their parents, poverty squeezes the children"s chance to adequate health, education and care.
The traumas and wounds a tormented childhood leave, are certainly to leave traces on them.
OK. There are insufficient members of staff. The Romanian state tolerates a fact: from 2010, the childcare system has 14,000 employees less than it should. Most of these should directly work with children and youngsters in residential services. In most cases, 12-13 children or youngsters are cared for by 1 employee. And because the employee cannot cope, he ties up the one who cannot be controlled by words only, the one who needs interaction, the one who is a danger to himself, and to others. And what else could you do, huh? Let"s just shrug our shoulders. Let"s just say "that"s it", or "there is no choice".
Și ce altceva să faci, nu? Hai să ridicăm din umeri. Să spunem că ”asta e”, ”nu avem ce face”.
There is a choice. Firstly, let us not be resigned so easily. In the last week, I talked to my colleagues about seven such cases. And there are many, all over the country. We say what happens if you make a formal complaint to the social services: the problematic youngsters are locked in a psychiatric ward, where they are sedated and tied. This time, with the proper paperwork. We have not heard of such things as prevention. Or of elementary things, such as ensuring the right number of employees. No, we wait, nice and easy, with 14,000 jobs uncovered! And we lock more and more youngsters in the psychiatric wards. The attachment disorders of those who are in state care grow from one day to another. Because the state does not care about their lives, about their needs, about their torment.
But we are the state. All of us. This is my fault. And your fault. Because we just sit and accept the ignorance of some who happen to decide laws, and emergency ordinances who turn the lives of the children upside down.
In the meantime, more and more children have challenging behaviour. They are more and more neglected, desperate, angry. More and more youngsters with disabilities become more disabled, and those who kept in the safe zone, break the line day by day, more and more, due to neglect and lack of stimulation.
We got used to tolerating cruelty, suffering. We got used to people tied around us, in straight jackets, or tied to their beds and chairs. What we become frightens me more and more.
Child poverty is blatant in Europe. It prevents children from achieving their full potential and it denies them their basic rights. Child poverty is growing in the current crisis and governments should take action now. The European Commission Recommendation "Investing in Children: Breaking the Cycle of Disadvantage", led by László Andor, European Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, recognises that tackling child poverty is central to achieving Europe"s 2020 "smart, green and inclusive growth strategy".
Over 25 million children in the European Union (more than 1 in 4) live in poverty and material deprivation. They live in households with adults who do not have a job. The degrees of severe material deprivation are on the grow, as well. Children in Bulgaria and Romania are 60% and 55% likely to experience material deprivation, compared to an average of 20.7% in EU27.
The European Commission Recommendation helps Member States tackle child poverty. It calls for a childrens rights approach and integrated strategies.
It relates to the implementation of Europe 2020 Agenda, and to the EU financial mechanisms, which are to ensure monitoring on implementation. Member States and regional governments have no excuse not to invest in children. Austerity measures resulted in cuts to enabling services such as childcare, education, family, parenting support, and youth work. The Recommendation and the broader Social Investment Package underline that social investment is an integral part of the exit strategy to this crisis.
General Directors, Deputy Directors and Managers from 21 counties take part in a discussion on Social Audit, in a training course organised by HHC Romania. The purpose is to analyse the area of social audit, and the concept of social auditors. In the next period of time, the domain of external audit of social services is to be developed, as public services in social care do not currently have such systems of control. For the children in social services, for their families, but also for the employees in the state system, the social audit is to be a barometer for quanitfying the quality of care and services.
TASIS, The American School in England, comes twice a year to HHC Romania. Up to now, we have had 270 students visiting and working with children in Romania. Each student pays for his/her own trip, accommodation and meal and, in addition to this, they also donate an amount of money, organising fundraising events: they sell cakes, do raffles, wash cars, or sell their own art work. The funds are used for the work in Romania, or for other special projects, needed for project work: cars, karate clubs, families in our prevention programme. The activities take place for the entire school year. In addition to this, they donate clothes, shoes, school supplies, sports gear, and also funds for holidays to the seaside. The students are aged between 12 and 18. This time, they work in the Mother and Baby Unit, in the Day Centre and in the Emergency Reception Centre. Also, in two Family Type Homes, where they do redecoration work.
The youngsters in TASIS get along very well with the children here, and in the afternoons, they do all sorts of activities with them.
This is an example of how social responsibility education should start in childhood. And of how those who are lucky should also care about those less lucky.
Thank you, TASIS!