170 Caregivers at Residential Facilities Benefit from Training

A total of 170 caregivers at residential childcare centres have been equipped to respond more effectively to the needs of wards at those facilities.

This follows training conducted by the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) under its Capacity Building Workshop for the Residential Child Care Sector (Phase II).

The initiative aims to improve service delivery in the residential child protection sector through best practices, as well as strengthen stakeholders’ knowledge of the protocols, policies, standards, and regulations that govern the childcare sector.

It is in keeping with the CPFSA’s thrust to standardise the operations and the education of management and staff within the sector.

“These sessions would have equipped you with the necessary tools to increase the value of care that you provide for our children,” said Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the CPFSA, Rosalee Gage Grey.

She was addressing the closing ceremony at the Chinese Benevolent Association in St. Andrew on July 7

The training was executed between February and May 2022, targeting approximately 248 care staff from over 50 residential facilities island-wide, with 170 successfully completing the training and receiving certification.

The virtual training sessions covered productivity and incentive services for children in care; dietary services; personal self-care for both children and staff; safety and security practices; mental health management; child restraining techniques; understanding, preventing, and responding to child trafficking; and understanding the development cycle of children.

Other topics included helping children with homework and exam preparation, relationship building and bonding with children, COVID- 19 safety measures, parenting, understanding and responding to bullying (including cyberbullying), standards of care, protocols/guidelines of the residential child protection sector, institutional abuse, and conflict resolution. Director of the CPFSA’s Policy Planning and Evaluation Unit, Newton Douglas, urged the participants to utilise all the techniques they garnered in training.

“It is our hope that the knowledge imparted during this training programme will directly improve the capacity of the staff to provide holistic care and well-being services to all children,” he said.

The presenters included members of the CPFSA’s monitoring services team/ placement services and its legal services division, National Children’s Registry, Ministry of Health and Wellness, Ministry of Education and Youth, Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, Ministry of Labour and Social Security’s Early Stimulation Programme, Dispute Resolution Foundation, National Parenting Support Commission (NPSC), Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), Jamaica Fire Brigade (JFB), among others.

More than 100 managers and senior officers had benefited from the first phase of the Capacity Building Workshop for the Residential Child Care Sector conducted between September and December 2021.