Support groups for children in alternate care: a largely untapped therapeutic resource

Children in alternate care often have adjustment problems that manifest in various aspects of their lives. Individual therapy is often assumed to be the desired intervention, but resources seldom permit one-to-one therapy for these disturbances. The authors argue that groupwork should be considered as a possible treatment of choice. Not only is it likely to be more economical than individual therapy, it has the inherent advantage of telling children in care that they are not alone, and that other children have similar experiences and feelings. It also allows them to develop their own support network. Such groups appear to have been underutilized in work with children in out-of-home care. This article describes such a group and its outcome. Various techniques were developed to achieve specified aims. The techniques appeared to be successful. Further work on such groups and more specific evaluation is called for.