The Case for Family-Based Care for OVC

 Family is so central to a child’s healthy development and yet family separation (the separating of a child from his or her family) happens for many different reasons.

There are both “push” and “pull” factors that drive parents to place children in institutional care. Push factors are difficult circumstances—pushing families to consider orphanages as a way out of their hardships. Pull factors are real or perceived benefits—pulling families toward orphanages as a means of providing resources children may not otherwise have access to.

A realistic look at children living in institutions reveals that:

• Between 2 - 8 million children around the world are living in institutions and away from their families and communities. The range of estimates is due in large part to the number of residential institutions that operate outside registration systems or the lack of data systems to track the number of children living in care.
• Evidence suggests that the use of residential care for vulnerable children is on the rise in many countries, even while unnecessary and used in place of supporting family and community-based care.
• Most children in residential care are not orphans; according to the figures up to 80% of children in institutions worldwide have at least 1 living parent and most children who have lost a parent are able to live with the surviving parent, primary family members (such as older siblings), or extended family (such as grandparents).

The Financial Costs of orphanages

Studies have showed that the cost of supporting a child in an orphanage is 5-10 times more expensive than supporting a child within a family. The World Bank found that supporting a child in residential care in Tanzania was about 6 times the cost of supporting a child in a family or foster care. A study in South Africa found that a child in residential care was 6 times more expensive than caring for in a vulnerable family and 4 times more expensive than in foster care or adoption. A study by Save the children Africa found residential care was 10 times more expensive than community based care

The Limitations of orphanages

Impact of Child development.  One study found that for every 3 months a child is in an institution, they lost 1 month of development. The first 3 years of life are a sensitive period for a child where a child really needs that intimate, emotional, and physical contact to be able to develop, and if that is missing, there can be serious impairments. 

Impact on socio development. Orphanages separate children from their families and community which is essential to help create those healthy relationships. Infants can have difficulty forming bonds and healthy attachments that are really cornerstone for having trusting and sustaining relationships throughout their lives. There has been research that shows an Increased risk for children who age out and become adults later in life. They are usually unprepared for independent living. They are usually not able to cook for themselves or understand how to handle money or even follow their own initiatives because they followed an orphanage schedule their whole life. We have seen results of higher unemployment, homelessness, vulnerabilities exploitation, unhealthy adult relationships in marriage or as a parent, a really sad study from Russia came out that showed 1 in 3 who lived in residential care become homeless. 1 in 5 ended up with some kind of criminal record as an adult. And terribly as much as 1 in 10 committed suicide when they aged out.  It is really important that we think about and understand what these studies are saying.

 Are Orphanages ever helpful?

Stepping stone to reunification or other family. It can be as a stepping stone if a child is separated from their family, living in an orphanage or on the streets, this can be used for reunification with their family or another family.

Rehabilitation. Sometimes this is the best place for rehabilitation for children who have had extreme trauma. the best models are temporary and rehabilitative and all efforts should ensure that they are temporary and then support a transition to family care through renewed unification, a kinship care option, adoption, or other ways of long-term permanent care for that child.

Please note that this message is not to sound anti-orphanage. It would be a disaster for OVC if people were to simply step away from their support for orphanages but the focus is to prevent the need for orphanages in the first place and encourage investment in family care by supporting transitions from residential care to family-based care. It is not in the interest of the majority of children to be in residential care but in the care of families or family alternatives.

Source: The Transitioning to Family Care for Children Course of Faith To Action Initiative