The “profound and tragic” deaths of six young people in 2018, all in the process of transitioning out of government care and into adulthood, demonstrates the ongoing need for these important services to be continued and strengthened, says Alberta’s child and youth advocate.
Del Graff’s report, released Monday, tells stories about each of the six. One of them, referred to as Ian, was a young man with a good sense of humour who enjoyed video games, cards, drawing and playing guitar.
Ian was taken into Children’s Services care when he was 14 after his great-grandmother, his only guardian, could no longer care for him due to dementia.
After Ian turned 18, his mental health started to decline and he was suicidal. He had trouble with daily living skills and was often homeless.
Ian killed himself two months before his 23rd birthday.
He is one of six young Albertans in Graff’s latest report, identified only by pseudonyms, who died last year after aging out of Children’s Services care.
Graff investigated the deaths, which happened over a nine-month period, while preparing the 54-page report on young adults who had received Support and Financial Assistance Agreements (SFAAs) from Children’s Services.
185 complaints
Over the same nine-month period, 102 young people contacted the child and youth advocate’s office with 185 issues related to their SFAAs. These agreements are meant to help young people between the ages of 18 and 24 transition out of the child intervention system.
Their difficulties were similar to those of the six individuals who died, Graff said.
“These ongoing, widespread issues with SFAAs tell us that an urgent response is needed,” Graff said.
The most common issues were:
- inadequate supports and services;
- financial supports being reduced or denied;
- concerns with caseworker relationships;
- SFAAs closed;
- issues with housing;
- and denied health-care and mental health supports.
The report comes one month after the Alberta government announced its decision to roll back the current cutoff age for the program. As of April 2020, post-intervention supports will end at age 22.
Graff`s report and its recommendations were written in advance of the government announcement.
More needs to be done to help young people who have gone through the system as they enter adulthood, Graff said.
He makes three recommendations for Children’s Services to help prevent future tragedies.
- Improve guidelines and provide training and time for staff to support young people 18 to 24 years old;
- Clearly outline supports and services the young adults are entitled to receive and connect young people to adult services before their support agreements are terminated; and
- Provide young adults with access to adequate and safe housing.
“The loss of six young people is profound and tragic,” Graff said.
“Reviewing their circumstances provides an opportunity for us to honour them and to learn, with the hope of improving supports to other young adults.”