A taxonomy of care for children and adolescents with behavioural and emotional problems: development and application

Characteristics of care for youth with behavioural and emotional problems are of growing interest. Statements about the effectiveness of care are hard to make, because of a lack of standardized instruments for recording and classifying care. The aim of this study was to partly open the black box of care and treatment provided to children and adolescents with behavioural and emotional problems by developing, testing and applying a Taxonomy of care for Youth (TOCFY). This study was conducted within the Collaborative Centre on Care for Children and Youth with behavioural and emotional problems (C4Youth). TOCFY consists of six domains, namely ‘contents of care’, ‘judicial context’, ‘duration’ and ‘intensity’ of care, ‘recipients’ and the ‘professional expertise’. TOCFY is a reliable and feasible instrument for gathering meaningful information on the care provided. Applying TOCFY within the province of Groningen showed that within primary health care it mainly concerned short-term care aimed at the parents, that within mental health care it mainly concerned longer-term care aimed at the child and within child, youth and family care the care offered was often longer-term care aimed at the child and their environment. Boys more often received care that was aimed at supporting their parents than girls. Over one quarter of the care that was offered is ´theoretically founded´, according to national standards. Using this method creates opportunities for more research into the pivotal question of how and why care works or does not work for youth and their families.