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Community-based interventions for hoarding: Impacts on children, youth and families

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 May 2020

Christiana Bratiotis Open the ORCID record for Christiana Bratiotis [Opens in a new window]
Christiana Bratiotis*
Affiliation:
School of Social Work, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
*
Author for correspondence: Christiana Bratiotis, Email: christiana.bratiotis@ubc.ca
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Abstract

Hoarding is a complex and persistent mental illness that may pose significant threats to the health, safety and optimal functioning of the sufferer and their family members. Children and youth who live in hoarded environments are especially vulnerable to safety hazards and the negative social and developmental impacts that can result from this challenging behaviour. Some educational, health and protective service organisations are compelled to act on legal and regulatory mandates that necessitate interventions for hoarding in cases where children and youth are residing and may be at risk. Striking the balance between individual rights and protection of some of society’s most vulnerable citizens is a significant challenge. Carefully executed multidisciplinary interventions grounded in an ecological system’s approach offer some hope for minimising adverse impacts on youth and families while reducing the potential for harm caused by hoarding behaviour.

Keywords

Hoardingcommunity interventionsyouthharm reduction
Type
Practice Commentaries
Information
Children Australia , Volume 45 , Special Issue 3: Special Issue: Hoarding , September 2020 , pp. 193 - 195
Copyright
© The Author(s) 2020. Published by Cambridge University Press

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