International Contact Part II

The podcast participant that I listened to was Delfena Mitchell the director of Liberty Children’s Home. The children’s home is in located in Belize in Central America as which has the number one cases of child abuse. Physically, and sexually abused children as well as abandoned or neglected children reside in Liberty Children’s Home. The home is a place that is committed to giving children time to heal before going to school like other children. Ms. Mitchell discussed a child who needed time to heal before going back into the school system. The child had not spoken in over a year but when he came to the school he was home schooled then enrolled in school in town. The child was unfortunately kicked out in first week but with more time at the children’s home he progressed. Ms. Mitchell spent time with this child and took him horse back riding where he began to open up about the abuse he had encountered such as getting beat with a stick and having to eat under his bed so others would not take his food. In the course of speaking with the child Ms. Mitchell noticed that the child was regressed in his age and she found it hard to understand what he said. Over a period of weeks the child said a few words and enjoyed spending time in the garden because he enjoyed being there and he was taught at the Children’s Home. The child was placed on medication and after time there was a difference in him and he began to talk more and was able to move into the traditional school setting with the other children in town. Ms. Mitchell’s work with children that have been abused is much needed and the special attention and time allowed for children to heal in a safe place is crucial to their development and recovery.

One of the initiatives that the Harvard University Center on the Developing Child is involved in globally is children mental health. The website stated, “There is an urgent need to identify the scope of the problem within and across countries and to develop evidence-based approaches in policy and service delivery that are responsive to diverse cultural contexts. To respond to this challenge, a working group of Harvard faculty is developing a focused agenda in research, education, and public engagement to address significant gaps in knowledge and service delivery” (Harvard University, 2013). Not only is the Harvard University focusing on children’s mental health but also on children who have experienced a crisis. The organization also has initiatives by states in Washington there is an initiative called Innovation by Design (IBD) “at a state or provincial level which aims for policy change that benefits young children and their families on a population basis by reducing barriers to learning and strengthening the foundations of health” (Harvard University, 2013).

Harvard University Global Children's Initiative website : http://developingchild.harvard.edu/initiatives/global_initiative