Family support

This part of the project aims at children and adolescents and their families which take part in the aforementioned projects. Cases occur where families cannot guarantee a dignified life for their children, nor can they support them adequately in their development. This can lead to serious consequences for the children’s psychological health and can manifest itself in the physical and psychological efficiency of the children and adolescents. As soon as the development of the children and adolescents is in danger, the foundation takes action with its project “family support”. The aim is the following:

• To ensure the right of the children and adolescents to live a dignified life and to allow for them to have an integral development under the necessary socio-economic conditions.

Depending on the social and psychological problems, the foundation comes forward with proposals to improve the general living conditions of the children and adolescents. In so doing, it is of high importance that the well-being of the children and adolescents comes first. The course of action is implemented in several steps. First, it is necessary to engage in the family structure and to achieve changes. These include the support of close family members as well as changes in the methods of education, nutrition and hygiene. If these attempts are of no avail, the next stage would involve taking legal steps. Thereby, it is attempted to separate the child from its family in order to integrate it in another close family, which can give the child a more healthy family setting. If this measure also does not improve the situation of the child, the last step is to find an adequate foster family or children’s home, which means a physical distance to the initial family setting.

           

Medical supply and habits of hygiene

In Ecuador, the health social system is very expensive and thus, for the class of population of the neighborhood “Rancho Los Pinos” not accessible. Although an early diagnosis and treatment of diseases is crucial, families often avoid medical consultations due to their poor financial position. Therefore, it is intended that a doctor comes regularly to the neighborhood to hold consultation hours. Also, it is important that traditional and modern knowledge are combined. Ecuador comes with a great amount of diverse medical plants and herbs and can therefore offer a great supply on alternative medicines.

At the moment, if emergencies occur, we accompany children to a nearby doctor. We believe that health is a result of hygiene and habits. Therefore, we pay attention to:

• Guidelines for physical hygiene (washing hands, clothes, etc.)
• Guidelines for hygiene in the household (washing fruits and vegetables, cooking water, etc.)