Part III: Introduction

PART III: INTRODUCTION
We Look for Connections for the Child-Family
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Taking Action Together

Figuratively speaking, the heart and mind are held together by the body. Similarly, a small group of concerned people brings the heart and mind together within a system. This system can then broker solutions for the benefit of special-needs patients with complex problems. These solutions intend to join families and the community. Links can be found under our Other Resources menu.

Like the body having many organs and systems, the team’s goal is to join pieces into a working system for the family. This care system is formed from a team of helpers. This team can be created from within the family, extended family, and, if needed, outside the family —including friends, pastors, bishops, mentors and teachers. Two or more people working together enable family members to connect and take powerful action. The two-way communication process in teamwork builds resiliency and adds a sense of direction.

Helping teams can offer some instructive feedback in honest non-confrontational ways. But also, we have found that when a group acts as a positive witness, or audience, a positive response can be produced. This occurs when a family tells stories about how they survived tough times and bounced back. The team can act as a mirror, with gentle queries about discrepancies between family goals and current realities. See Guide to Conferencing Handout.

Another purpose in gathering people together is to help the family formulate its needs and goals and possibly to construct a Family Health Plan. This mutually devised plan contains co-constructed goals. These goals are organized and prioritized into a systematic strategy. This concrete assistance to families maximizes child-environment transactions or positive matching of the child with the environment, and provides support and learning opportunities from which parents later solve many more problems for themselves. Parents and children are given the task of choosing the goals they want, talking about making use of their anticipated gains, and making contact with instrumental people. Feedback emphasizes the parents’ volition and agency. In this connective tissue, resilience is born and is promoted using a Family Health Promotion Concept Plan.