Objectives of the Center
(1) The objectives of the Center are as follows:
a) To protect, improve, and strengthen child and adolescent development, which constitutes the period during which individuals and society are shaped.
b) To evaluate children and adolescents, who form the foundations of life, through a holistic approach that takes into account the biological, social, cultural, economic, and environmental factors surrounding them.
c) Within the scope of the provisions of the relevant legislation, to establish partnerships with public institutions and organizations, universities, municipalities, maternal and child health centers, schools, guidance and research centers, and police departments; to raise awareness regarding child and adolescent mental health; and to jointly plan, develop projects, and sustain projects that have been implemented for the purpose of protecting and improving child and adolescent mental health.
ç) To work in academic, clinical, and social cooperation with psychiatrists, child and adolescent psychiatrists, pediatricians, nurses, family physicians, sociologists, social service specialists, child development specialists, psychological counselors, law enforcement officers, other relevant specialists, and stakeholders.
d) When addressing child and adolescent mental health problems, to raise awareness within society, healthcare environments, and among policymakers, and to focus on protective and preventive mental health services concerning all relevant factors.
e) To carry out activities aimed at solving problems, such as ensuring access to treatment services for individuals with child and adolescent mental health problems, establishing referral systems to treatment centers, encouraging the establishment of an adequate number and level of units, and organizing training programs to improve the qualifications of the units and the teams that will provide services.
f) In cooperation with the University’s Research and Development Unit, to examine national and international studies conducted for children and adolescents; to remain informed about ongoing local, national, and global research and projects; and to monitor, support, and collaborate on projects being carried out.
g) To make plans in the field of child and adolescent mental health by taking into consideration that protection and treatment approaches may differ on an intercultural and multicultural basis depending on the relevant influencing factors, and to develop programs specific to our culture and to the problems that may arise within this context.
ğ) To conduct studies aimed at facilitating access to resources and increasing support systems in response to changing needs concerning the education of children and adolescents, together with changing social roles and perceptions regarding the concepts of motherhood, fatherhood, and parenthood.
h) To collect data through scientific publications and research in order to identify the current needs of our country in the fields of child and adolescent mental health and autism, and to carry out needs-oriented studies in light of such data.
ı) To train perinatal mental health professionals who possess the competence to provide theoretical and practical guidance, education, and support services regarding problems arising from dysfunctional parent-child/adolescent attachment, problems resulting from the loss of development and quality of life due to mental disorders, and relationship and communication problems.
i) Within the scope of the relevant legislation and protective child and adolescent mental health services, to provide counseling, education, and support services to mothers, fathers, their relatives, and professionals who are in close contact with mothers.
j) To provide guidance, education, and support services concerning the mental health of parents through a holistic understanding that evaluates child and adolescent mental health within the social, cultural, and environmental factors surrounding it.
Fields of Activity of the Center
(1) The fields of activity of the Center are as follows:
a) In line with national and social policies and in parallel with the common objectives and activities of the relevant public institutions and organizations, to conduct activities that support social policies aimed at strengthening child and adolescent mental health, and to implement and/or develop strategic action plans in parallel with these policies.
b) Within the scope of the relevant legislation, to provide protective, preventive, educational, developmental, guidance, rehabilitative training, and counseling services concerning child and adolescent mental health.
c) To offer training programs for healthcare professionals and educators working in the field of child and adolescent health.
ç) To conduct academic studies concerning autism and neurodevelopmental disorders in children and adolescents, and to share the data obtained at national and international levels through publications, training programs, and conferences.
d) To organize training and certificate programs and support groups related to child and adolescent mental health, and to provide online or telephone counseling services on specified days and at specified times.
e) Within the scope of the relevant legislation, to carry out activities such as implementation, research, and publication studies in cooperation with national and international institutions and organizations.
f) To carry out guidance and social support activities related to autism.
g) To conduct academic research and development activities and clinical practice studies related to child and adolescent mental health and autism, and to train the personnel necessary to carry out similar studies.
ğ) To carry out publication activities aimed at raising public awareness regarding autism; to provide live programs as well as distance education for relevant individuals when necessary; to prepare informative documents within the scope of the website for this purpose; and to provide a question-and-answer platform.
h) To carry out other activities within the scope of the Center that are determined by the Rector and/or the Board of Trustees or decided upon by the University Administrative Board.