Case Management: The Glue of RefuSHE's Holistic Model
Every refugee girl who arrives on our campus has a unique origin story and set of needs. It is up to RefuSHE’s Case Management team to assess and implement a care plan tailored to each girl. We receive referrals from organizational partners, community members, and other girls on campus. Once a referral is received, the Case Management team assesses the referral in line with the criteria for admission into our Girls Empowerment Program (GEP). Those who are eligible are forwarded to the GEP where they are interviewed to assess their education and skill levels. The girls who meet the criteria for GEP take a basic mental health assessment and are visited by the Case Management team as part of an official home visit. The home visit is crucial as it gives our team insight into the living arrangement of each girl and the ability to collect caregiver information. Once this process is completed, a highly-trained caseworker is assigned to each girl who then conducts intake assessments and creates an Individual Service Plan based on her unique set of needs.
The Case Management team supports a girl throughout her entire journey at RefuSHE. Once intake assessments are conducted, the case manager can ensure the girl’s needs are met on and off campus through consistent follow-ups, home visits, and referrals to partners for external services like documentation support, legal counseling, and resettlement aid. Case managers also connect girls in RefuSHE’s care to appropriate health and medical care through referrals to our Mental Health team for counseling and the provision of sanitary towels and diapers for young mothers. Recently, we also introduced quarterly caseload meet-ups which allow the girls to collectively highlight issues and share challenges that they face. This helps our team improve the services we provide and ensure that the girls are secure and protected so they can thrive in both their school and home environments.
The biggest challenge that our Case Management team faces is navigating the sociocultural nuances of the girls and young women we serve. For example, many of these young women come from cultures where they are expected to marry at a young age and start a family. This can pose a challenge when trying to prioritize access to education and economic prosperity. Another challenge our team faces is creating sustainable Income Generating Activities (IGA) for the girls once they reach legal working age, a barrier that displaced persons and refugees face at large. We do not want the girls and young women in our care to become dependent on short-term financial assistance from RefuSHE or our partner organizations. Our collective goal is to connect girls to sustainable, longer-term solutions.
“Despite what they have come from and what they have lost along the way, their resilience to keep going and thrive amidst it all is truly inspiring. The girls and young women have a voice to speak up for themselves, are aware of their rights, and have the courage to face yet another day in a country of asylum, even with the barriers, challenges and limitations that come with it.”
Shirley Kieti, Case Management Coordinator
The Case Management team’s ultimate goal is to have girls in the community who are educated and empowered both socially and economically. We would like to see our girls become brand ambassadors of RefuSHE, getting involved and participating in community forums that speak to the importance of empowering refugee girls and young women, and supporting and engaging their broader community in rebuilding what they lost through conflict and displacement. The newly regulated Kenya Refugee Act 2021 prioritizes local integration by setting out new provisions for the social and economic inclusion of refugees in Kenya. This will help create economic opportunities for refugee girls and young women in their new communities and hopefully aid in the creation and maintenance of durable, long-term solutions for this unique population.
Our hope is that when girls leave RefuSHE they will be economically independent advocates for their own human rights and able to engage in income-generating activities that allow them to build healthier and more resilient lives.