Experiences of teenagers residing in a place of care in Zimbabwe

Abstract

This study explored teenagers' experiences residing in a statutory place of care in Zimbabwe. Notwithstanding the effort put by the various stakeholders in support of the teenagers living in places of care for their wellbeing, their psychosocial challenges while in care are escalating unabated. Qualitative research was adopted to explore and describe a detailed understanding of how the teenagers view and describe their experiences at the place of care. The ubuntu perspective formed the theoretical lens which underpinned the study. A purposive sampling method was used to select ten teenage children who have been in place of care for six months to three years to participate in this study. Semi-structured one-to-one interviews were used to collect data on the ten teenage children's experiences, feelings, and perceptions residing in place of care in Zimbabwe.  The findings show that the teenagers in care experiences psychosocial challenges emanating from the interaction with the caregivers and loss of their parents while in care. Finally, recommendations for the strengthening of psychosocial support for children and debriefing of caregivers to safeguard the protection of the children in places of care are offered.