The Vorarlbergse Kinder- en Jeugdadvocaat (KiJa) is confronted with increasingly complex questions and the number of young people with psychological problems is also increasing. In terms of personnel, the KiJa is reaching its limits.
Since the corona pandemic was officially declared over, the situation of children and young people in Vorarlberg has not necessarily changed for the better. Young people are particularly plagued by fears about the future, caused by wars, environmental issues and exploding costs, but also by school pressure and pressure on their appearance, which is especially fueled by social media.
“Mental problems play an increasingly important role in our work,” reports child and youth lawyer Christian Netzer at the presentation of the activity report 2022. According to a study by “UNICEF”, 18 percent of children and young people in Austria now suffer from mental health problems . This is reflected in the figures from the Ombudsman Service for Children and Youth (KiJa): In 2022, 227 individual cases will have been settled. However, the complexity of the questions increases considerably: “A lot can no longer be done with a telephone call.”
According to Netzer, KiJa covered 75 such complex topics last year. The focus of the investigations would be on topics such as child custody, divorce, contact rights and other legal issues. For young people with mental health problems who need outpatient care or need to be accommodated in the inpatient department, the waiting time has increased due to the increasing number of cases.
Tight human resources have an impact
KiJa is concerned about the limited human resources. In 2022, even pre-emptive offers should have been suspended in individual regions, Netzer lamented. He advised strengthening the prevention room and investigating whether the available places in the nursing room are actually sufficient.
The results of mystery shopping are alarming
Also alarming are the results of mystery shopping in 2022. Alcohol was sold to 14 to 15 year olds in 42.7 percent of cases. By way of comparison: in 2019 this was still 13.1 percent. A total of 253 alcohol test purchases were made in shops and at petrol stations.
The advocate for children and young people could not give a reason for the strong increase, mainly because the fluctuations per region were very different. The test buyers received liquor least often in the Bregenzerwald, while the percentage was highest in the district of Bregenz (excluding the Bregenzerwald).
In the case of nicotine test purchases, on the other hand, the balance has barely changed. In 33 of the 108 cases (33.1 percent), the young people were able to buy tobacco or nicotine products without any problems. Compared to previous years (2020 and 2021: 35.9 percent), the rate has hardly changed. In this context, Netzer spoke out in favor of repeated training for sales personnel and the introduction of an administrative criminal procedure.
No understanding for “multiple offenders”
In principle, the delivery rules are relatively simple: “I just have to show my ID if there is a vodka bottle on the conveyor belt,” the child and youth lawyer summed up the minimum requirement. In individual cases, he could imagine that the check would fail – possibly also due to a lack of staff. However, in the case of a repeat, my understanding is limited.”
Source: Krone
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