Integrating Care for Children Young People and Their Families SIG - Part 2: Service Policy and System Approaches

Background: We have called for the establishment of a special interest group for “Integrating Care for Children Young People and their Families. Our argument is based on the truism that “children are our future” and the observation that at the heart of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals is the Global Strategy for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health 2016-2030. That strategy “envisages envisions a world in which every woman, child and adolescent realizes their rights to physical and mental health and well-being, has social and economic opportunities, and is able to participate fully in shaping prosperous and sustainable societies”. .The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Children and the Sustainable Development Goals SDGs provide the global platform to addressing the needs of children young people and families. Building on the SDG goal of achieving universal health coverage, WHO developed a global strategy and framework for people centered and integrated health services, recommending that countries consciously consider the perspectives of individuals, families, and communities, and respond to their preferences and needs. The framework proposed five interdependent strategies for health services to become more integrated and people-centred.empowering and engaging people and communitiesstrengthening governance and accountabilityreorienting the model of carecoordinating services within and across sectorscreating an enabling environment.The integration of system-wide policies and services has long provided the foundation for promoting and protecting the health, development and wellbeing of children, young people and their families. The proverb “it takes a village to raise a child” provides the underlying ethos whereby all members of society work together to raise healthy and resilient children and young people. Building on the “Global Strategy for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health 2016-2030” a draft “Nuturing Care Framework” is under development by WHO. That draft Framework contains ...