Funded Projects

Supporting Developmental Needs of Migrant Children

Project Year

2024

City & State

Oak Park, Illinois

Program Name

CATCH Planning

Topic

Immigrant/Migrant/Refugee/Undocumented

Program Description

THE PROBLEM: Newly arrived migrant children face many barriers to well-being, including lack of housing, food insecurity, limited access to education and healthcare, trauma from migratory journeys, and adjustment to living in a new country (1). These experiences can lead to the accumulation of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), which has been linked to negative health outcomes (2). Refugee and asylum-seeking children are at risk for undiagnosed developmental conditions, compounded by challenges accessing care to address these conditions once detected (3). Since August 2022, over 34,000 new arrivals have entered Chicago, including thousands of children (4). Some families migrated to the United States to seek resources for their children with disabilities and complex developmental and medical needs, but little is known about these needs, how families have been able to access resources, and which needs remain unmet. There are also many families with young children (<1 year of age) who were born just prior to migration, en route to the United States, and while in the United States. With little to no healthcare access, we anticipate that many of these children have not yet been screened for developmental delays. Identifying developmental delays and connecting families to prompt treatment and resources is critical, particularly for newly arrived migrant families.  PRIMARY SETTING: Approximately half of the newly-arrived migrant families are living in city-based shelters, a significant portion (500-1,000 individuals) are unhoused, and several thousand more are living in apartments, some with rental assistance (4).    NUMBER OF CHILDREN AFFECTED: We estimate that there are 150 children with disabilities and complex developmental and medical needs and 1,000 children under the age of one who arrived in Chicago as of August 2022. About half of these families are living in city shelters, the other half in apartments. These numbers are estimated from information provided by the Chicago Committee on Immigrant and Refugee Rights (City Council) and Chicago Public Schools (4).    PROJECT GOAL: The primary goal of this project is to understand the needs and concerns of migrant families with children with disabilities and developmental needs and families with young children in order to design culturally-sensitive interventions to a) help families care for their children’s unique healthcare and developmental needs and b) detect signs of developmental delay and establish clear pathways for community-based resources to address any detected delays.    PROPOSED INTERVENTION: The focus of this planning grant is to explore the developmental needs of newly arrived migrant children, with the goal of identifying potential interventions to increase access to care. A community advisory board will be formed to guide the project and will include newly arrived migrant parents, community organizations, and pediatricians caring for this population. Community asset mapping will be completed to assess current resources and identify gaps. Focus groups and interviews will be conducted with families with children with disabilities and developmental needs to better understand what services are needed and the barriers and facilitators to accessing these services. In addition, focus groups and interviews will be conducted with families with young children (ages 0-3) to understand how to better implement effective developmental screenings and interventions.  ANTICIPATED OUTCOMES: We hope to gain more understanding of the strengths of migrant families, their barriers to receiving healthcare, their struggles in managing disabilities and complex developmental needs, and their knowledge about developmental delay and developmental screening. In addition, we hope to understand the current resources available to newly arrived migrant families as well as the gaps in care, to allow for development of interventions to address this gap.

Project Goal

Understand the needs and concerns of migrant families with children with disabilities or complex needs and families with young children in order to design culturally-sensitive interventions to a) help them care for their children’s unique healthcare needs and b) detect signs of developmental delay.   

Project Objective 1

Within the first month of the project, we will establish a community advisory board, including at least 6 representatives from newly arrived migrant families who have children with disabilities or developmental needs and/or young children (age 0-3), as well as at least 6 representatives from community organizations and/or pediatricians caring for these families. 

Project Objective 2

In the first six months of the project, we will conduct 2-5 focus groups with 30 families with children with disabilities or complex developmental needs, as well as 2-5 focus groups with 30 families with young children under the age of three.    

Project Objective 3

By month 11 of the project, we will complete analysis of the focus groups, interviews, and community asset mapping to develop a summary of findings and potential proposed interventions to present to the community advisory board in both English and Spanish.

AAP District

District VI

Institutional Name

N/A

Contact 1

Sarah Messmer, MD