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Since the 1980s, the family-centered approach has been widely adopted in the west (e.g., the United States) as an approach to serving children living in an out-of-home care context. In comparison, in Hong Kong, out-of-home care services tend to be child-centered and child-protection oriented. This article (1) examines the child welfare service, specifically out-of-home care services, in Hong Kong and (2) makes the case for integrating family-centered out-of-home care services for children. Three vignettes are presented that demonstrate the use of Multiple Family Group Therapy (MFGT) to promote family-centered practice. The article concludes with a discussion of challenges and recommendations related to a shift to family-centered practice. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Children with special needs have posed a great challenge to parenting. The multiple family groups developed in the 1960s in Western societies have become an increasingly acceptable intervention approach to help families with special needs, but its application in Hong Kong has been limited. The authors launched a one-year project in March 2008 to examine the applicability of this model in resolving parenting difficulties in a Chinese context and, through the use of in-depth posttreatment interviews, to assess if the participants viewed this approach as beneficial. Parents who were interviewed reported positive changes at intra- and interfamilial levels. The implications of the study are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]