5 Things Digest: Youth & Young Adult Team (Aug 2021)
Source: National TTA Center for Child, Youth, and Family Mental Health (NTTAC)
Resource Type: Document or Publication
Transformation Team Subjects: Youth & Young Adults of Transition Age
Key Topics: Family, Positive Youth Development, Systems Collaboration
“This NTTAC Youth & Young Adults Team’s 5 Things Digest focuses on families in transition.
Transition begins in mid-adolescence and typically occurs when youth are 18 to 25 years of age, coinciding with developmental milestones for emerging adults and changes in legal status that affect parental rights. While it is widely accepted that positive outcomes are more likely to be achieved when families and caregivers are meaningfully engaged in the lives and treatment of their children and adolescents with mental health conditions, family involvement is often not considered a key component for youth transitioning to the adult system.
Parental involvement does not end when a youth turns eighteen or even when they move out of the home. Parents and caregivers have an ongoing role of providing social, emotional, psychological, and financial support until their young adults are safely and securely launched, whenever that may be. Parents and caregivers are also sources of vital information on a youth’s medical and educational history as well as the family culture. Maintaining and strengthening a connection to family throughout the transition period is a key protective and promotive factor of a positive outcome for youth and families.”