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Children most concerned about issues in the home, OCA report finds

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Diahann Gordon Harrison
By Racquel Porter
 
A recent report from the Office of the Children's Advocate has revealed that the home continues to be a place of conflict as children across Jamaica grapple with mental health issues.
 
The OCA disclosed that of the more than 2,000 children who contacted its Safe Spot helpline seeking guidance, support and conversation last year, 1,100 lived with their parents.
 
The report also revealed that mental health was the most common issue among female children aged zero to 18 years who required support from Safe Spot. 
 
"We had one 1,936 of the 2,345 children saying that they had mental health challenges, not necessarily in those words, but when we got into the discussion with them, we recognised that those were the issues they were having. We also had 582...indicating that they were having issues with members of their own family," Children's Advocate Diahann Gordon Harrison revealed. 
 
Mrs Gordon Harrison said most of the calls to Safe Spot last year came from female children - 603 of them - while there were calls from 148 boys. 
 
"They indicated that they had required support with was an issue that manifested in their own home. It wasn’t what was happening in their own community, it wasn’t what was happening in the church or at school; it was an issue that they were concerned about in their own home," she reiterated. 
 
The Children's Advocate noted that the majority of the children who reached out described themselves as being from poor backgrounds and living in poverty.
 
She further noted that children in conflict with the law also contacted the helpline seeking guidance and support.
 
Mrs Gordon Harrison presented the findings on Wednesday in observation of International Child Helpline Day.
 


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