Att synliggöra de osynliga barnen : En kvalitativ intervjustudie om kommunanställdas upplevelser och erfarenheter av arbete med barn som anhöriga

Sammanfattning: A lot of children grow up in families with a parent suffering from mental or physical illness, a substance abuse or with a diseased parent. Being a next of kin can result in various health risks, struggles in school and in social life. This study aims to examine professionals’ experiences of working with children as next of kin. The study is based on a qualitative, inductive premise with a sample of fourteen people from eight different municipalities in Sweden. The participants were chosen through means of convenience sampling and the analysis was performed using thematic analysis. The results highlight important conditions for municipalities work with children as next of kin: proper framework, organizational prerequisites, and knowledge. The study offering a new perspective on children as next of kin, which is to consider children as carers using Twigg and Atkin’s (1994) model. The study concludes that children as next of kin need to be considered as carers to be properly recognized in their role and in extension offered support. Therefore, there is a need to recognize this group of children both in law and in policies. It requires organizational commitment, intermunicipal cooperation as well as clear routines in different functions of society. Lastly, this study concludes that awareness of and knowledge regarding children as next of kin, and what support they require, need to be more comprehensive in all parts of society.