title: Programmes for the children of illicit drug-using parents: issues and dilemmas.
abstract: Concern about the health and general well-being of children whose parents use illicit drugs has contributed to an increased interest in intervention programmes, but the number of such services is still limited. We review published papers about residential, home-visiting and non-residential programmes and use these and our experience in studying playgroup-based clinics to outline issues and dilemmas they face. These include balancing trust and acceptance with intervention when problems are identified, harmonizing accessibility and flexibility with the provision of child-focused activities and adult education, finding a location that is both suitable and affordable, appropriately supporting staff, collaborating with other services and securing adequate funding, including for ongoing evaluation and monitoring.
authors.affiliation: National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia
authors.forename: Cathy
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Banwell
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Denton
authors.forename: Gabriele
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bammer
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D002662:Child Health Services / Q000639:trends*; D006801:Humans; D013287:Illicit Drugs; D010290:Parents; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000628:therapy
chemical_list: D013287:Illicit Drugs