Short-Term Intervention with LGBTQ Adolescent at Risk and Their Families

In the proposed paper we will present a preliminary integrative model of a short-term intervention with LGBTQ youth at risk and their families, in the context of shelter for LGBTQ youth in Israel. The model was developed based on a work being done with LGBTQ youth and their families in a unique “Beit Dror” shelter for LGBTQ youth. “Beit Dror” of "Otot" organization is a unique center for gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transgender adolescents, who experience rejection and alienation based on their sexual orientation. The center is a part of the unique solutions system of “Hassut Hanoar” authority, in the Ministry of Labor and Welfare. “Beit Dror” is a temporary shelter, which provides basic home conditions for 14 male and female adolescents, for a period of no longer than 6 months and a long term solution for transgenders. Based on case examples we will present a model that adopts a systemic standpoint of different levels: the adolescent and his/her family system, the family’s community, the professionals in and outside the shelter, and the wider socio-political macro level. Dilemmas and challenges arising from working with the family unit, especially in cases where there are child-parent cut offs, will be discussed.