Parents' experiences of reunification service during placement of their children in child and youth care centres: practice guidelines for social workers

Abstract

Due to the increasing number of children in need of care and protection in South Africa, the majority of these children are removed from the care of their parents and placed at child and youth care centres (CYCCs) for proper care and protection. Little is known about the reunification services for parents whose children are in these centres. Therefore, exploring and describing parents’ experiences of reunification services during placement of their children in CYCCs was of great importance to develop practice guidelines for social workers. This research used the qualitative research approach guided by an explorative, descriptive and contextual research design. A sample of participants was drawn through purposive sampling and data was collected by means of semi-structured interviews assisted by an interview guide consisting of open-ended questions. Data analysis was conducted using Tesch’s eight steps as cited in Creswell (2014:198) and data was verified according to Guba’s model cited in Krefting (1990:214–222). Informed consent, confidentiality and anonymity, management of information and debriefing of participants were considered as ethical considerations. Recommendations were made regarding reunification services, practice guidelines for social workers and future research.