2024-11-30
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Director Liao noted that children in care often face physical and emotional trauma due to past child protection cases, making caregiving tasks more challenging. The group-living nature of placement facilities further complicates the arranging of staff and schedules for medical visits. She thanked Jen-Ai Chang Gung Alliance Hospital for spearheading a child placement partnership with the Social Affairs Bureau, delivering services to those who need them most. This partnership ensures stable medical follow-up for the children, minimizes travel and wait times for treatment, and equips caregivers with improved knowledge and skills.
Director Liao noted that during the pandemic, eldercare facilities worked with hospitals to offer on-site rapid testing and vaccinations for seniors. The partnership with childcare facilities this time goes further by facilitating early interventions and thorough evaluations of children’s physical and mental well-being, supporting their healthy development into integral members of society. Liao hopes this partnership serves as a starting point and will be extended to more childcare facilities or even promoted through the Central Taiwan Regional Governance Platform to benefit communities across Taichung, Changhua, and Nantou.
Dr. Kung Chia-te, superintendent of Jen-Ai Chang Gung Alliance Hospital and former head of the Chang Gung Child Protection Center, emphasized that children are the future assets of the country. To support child protection cases and vulnerable families in Taichung, Jen-Ai Chang Gung Alliance Hospital, alongside the Jen-Ai Foundation, is promoting initiatives such as holistic medical care, healthcare for children in placement facilities, and positive parenting. These efforts focus on early intervention, ongoing medical follow-up, and consistent care to offer healthcare services.
Dr. Kung quoted psychologist Alfred Adler, saying, “A lucky person's lifetime is cured by childhood, while an unlucky person's lifetime is spent curing childhood.” The trauma experienced by children affects not only their present but also their future growth. The key to healing lies in creating a network of love that spans from physical to psychological care and from individuals to families and communities. The denser this protective network, the more likely it is to catch the lost “angels.” This effort also aims to inspire more hospitals to take part in protecting children.
According to the Social Affairs Bureau, Taichung City currently has 12 placement facilities, including 3 public childcare institutions run by private institutions, 5 private childcare institutions, and 4 group homes. These facilities offer protective care, daily support, psychological and behavioral counseling, and health services. The Bureau thanked Jen-Ai Chang Gung Alliance Hospital for signing an MOU, creating a two-way communication platform to provide consultation, care planning, and support with medical visits, all working together to ensure the best care for children in placement.
