PLAY TO HEAL - URABÁ (JUGAR PARA SANAR - URABÁ)

Detalles del Proyecto

Objetivo del Proyecto:

Overall Objective
To implement the FAN Foundation’s (Fundación de Atención a la Niñez) “JUGAR PARA SANAR” model in the Urabá region—comprising 11 municipalities in the department of Antioquia— to provide specialized psychological care to children and adolescents, as well as their families and/or support networks, who have suffered violence and/or experienced a violation of their rights. This includes individual care and family support based on a rights-based approach that integrates cognitive, emotional, ethical, recreational, and participatory dimensions. It is also complemented by efforts to promote mental and emotional health, as well as to prevent violence against children and adolescents.

“PLAYING TO HEAL” is a specialized psychotherapeutic model designed by FAN Foundation, which has more than 15 years of experience in providing mental and emotional health care and restoring the rights of children and adolescents who are victims of various types of violence. The proposal calls for the construction and implementation of a Psychotherapy Center in Apartadó, Antioquia (Urabá subregion), featuring six rooms designed and intended for healing through play, equipped with playful, sensory, and experiential tools that stimulate artistic expression, play, and the creation of safe spaces and bonds.
The model’s primary objective is to strengthen individual and family protective factors by reframing painful experiences and developing coping skills, resilience, and life planning. It includes individual care and family support based on a rights-based approach that integrates cognitive, affective, ethical, playful, and participatory dimensions; it is also complemented by a process of promoting mental and emotional health, as well as preventing violence against children and adolescents.
Psychotherapeutic care is delivered in phases that include diagnosis, individual intervention, and family support, with impact measured using standardized tools that employ a mixed-methodology approach—that is, both quantitative and qualitative.
Implementing “JUGAR PARA SANAR” in Urabá promotes emotional healing in highly violent areas where little attention is paid to the effects of violence; it facilitates reframing of trauma, strengthens protective environments and secure attachments, and helps children and adolescents build life plans.
The overall objective of the project is to implement FAN Foundation’s “JUGAR PARA SANAR” psychotherapeutic care model in the Urabá region of Antioquia (a subregion comprising 11 municipalities in the department of Antioquia) to provide specialized care to children and adolescents and their families and/or support networks who have suffered violence and/or experienced a violation of their rights.

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Evaluación de Necesidades:

Urabá is a region characterized by a predominantly young population: 25.3% of its residents are under 18 years of age, totaling 137,400. This implies a high concentration of children and adolescents, and therefore a greater need for services aimed at child protection, psychosocial development, and comprehensive child care.
The adolescent fertility rate stands at 18.9% of births among women under 19, reflecting gaps in access to sexual and reproductive health care, low levels of education, and conditions of poverty.
According to the Institute of Legal Medicine and SIVIGILA (National Public Health Surveillance System), 1,491 cases of domestic violence were reported in the Urabá subregion; with the majority of cases primarily affecting women and minors; the most commonly reported types of violence include physical and psychological abuse, neglect, abandonment, and sexual violence within the family context.
FORENCIS, the National Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences, reported an estimated 485 cases of sexual violence in the subregion, helping to bridge gaps in access to specialized psychosocial care.
Through a process of inquiry and community interviews in towns such as Carepa and Chigorodó, three very important findings were identified. First, there is real demand and perceived value: people want to continue and report positive changes in their daily lives. Second, structural barriers persist—transportation, heavy workloads, and weak institutional coordination—which, if left unaddressed, undermine continuity. Third, there is an asset already present in the region: community leaders capable of scaling up emotional care practices if they are supported and empowered.
This is a region marked by armed conflict, drug trafficking, forced displacement, and a migration crisis. These factors have eroded the social fabric and created unsafe environments for children and adolescents. This has led to violations of the rights of children and adolescents, directly affecting their full enjoyment of mental and emotional well-being. Despite a high prevalence of these violations, the availability of care is limited, revealing a critical gap in access to mental and emotional health services. Furthermore, the administrative processes for the restoration of rights at the ICBF (Colombian Institute of Family Welfare) are significantly underutilized, which points to a lack of progress in restoring rights and preventing further violations.

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Diseño del Proyecto:

# Activity / Duration
1 Technical preparation: Development of technical specifications for the rooms; adaptation of the “Play to Heal” guide to the local context. 30 days
2 Specialized training: Process of identifying, selecting, and training staff for the implementation of “Playing for Healing” 180 days
3 Infrastructure preparation: Identifying a property and negotiating its use for the launch of the rooms 90 days
4 Equipping the rooms: Construction, renovation, and equipping of the center’s service rooms 180 days
5 Center opening: Launch of the service center 210 days
6 Engagement and mobilization strategy: development and implementation of engagement processes related to the center’s opening, case referrals, and cooperation agreements 90 days
7 Implementation of the care model: case referral and care at the care center 210 days
8 Measurement and monitoring: ongoing process to assess the effectiveness and impact of the project’s implementation 390 days

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Beneficiarios:

The planned provision of care for 768 children and adolescents through the “Play to Heal” model in the Urabá region of Antioquia represents an urgent and strategic response to the magnitude of the emotional and psychological impacts faced by this population. This intervention would cover 51.5% of the 1,491 reported cases of domestic violence and would exceed by more than 170% the 485 cases reported by FORENSIS, estimated cases of sexual violence in the subregion, helping to reduce gaps in access to specialized psychosocial care

NUMBER OF BENEFICIARIES: 768 children and adolescents, which is the center’s potential capacity with its 6 rooms. Number of families: approximately 615 families, representing a life-changing impact on 1,843 people.

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Sostenibilidad:

The project includes a sustainability strategy based on training local professionals using the “Play to Heal” methodology developed by FAN, with the aim of strengthening local human resources in psychotherapeutic care for vulnerable populations and promoting local and community ownership of the model. It will also coordinate with partner institutions that already have a history of working with the FAN Foundation, such as the ICBF (Colombian Institute of Family Welfare) and COMFAMA (Antioquia Family Compensation Fund) and the departments of education, which receive reports of rights violations and are responsible for the care of children and adolescents and the allocation of resources. These entities recognize the urgent need for mental and emotional health care but lack the necessary capacity to meet this need. This enables the direct referral of cases requiring care and the development of inter-institutional pathways for the protection and restoration of rights.
Inter-institutional care pathways will be established based on case referrals for care and the integration of the JUGAR PARA SANAR center into local pathways for mental health protection and the restoration of rights.
Positioning the center as a safe space to provide tools for building relationships, reframing the harm caused by violence, fostering positive changes in the mental and emotional health of the affected community, and restoring the social fabric will strengthen community ownership, ensuring the center’s long-term viability with additional financial partners.

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Colaboradores:

FAN Foundation, ICBF (Colombian Institute of Family Welfare), Comfama (Antioquia Family Compensation Fund), Sura.

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Monitoreo y Evaluación:

Indicators / Method of data collection / Frequency of measurement / Beneficiaries
1. A physical facility that is suitable and equipped for implementing the “Play to Heal” care model / Photographic record of the interior and exterior of the facility.
Inventory of furniture and materials available in the rooms / Every six months. / Community in the Urabá region with a fully equipped facility featuring 6 operational rooms. The facility is located in the municipality of Apartado.

2. Number of clients receiving psychotherapeutic care through the JUGAR PARA SANAR model / Records of care provided to clients of Jugar para Sanar - Urabá / SEMIANNUAL / Potential 768 children and adolescents, with up to 499 served during the semester.

3. Number of psychotherapy sessions for children and adolescents through the “JUGAR PARA SANAR” model / Records of client care for “Jugar para Sanar” – Urabá / Every 2 months since the center’s renovation and opening. / Potential of 11,520 sessions for children and adolescents.

4. Changes in the level of symptoms related to post-traumatic stress, resilience, anxiety and depression symptoms, and depressive symptoms (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) / Pre- and post-psychotherapy quantitative instruments such as the CPSS (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder), CD-RISC (Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale), RCARDS-25 (Revised Children’s Anxiety and Depression Scale — Revised Children’s Anxiety and Depression Scale), PHQ–9 (Depression Scale, Patient Health Questionnaire). Therapeutic Change Survey).
Focus groups, semi-structured interviews / Annual. / Potential 768 children and adolescents.

5. Number of professionals in the region trained in the PLAY TO HEAL model / Records and reports on attendance at training sessions. /
Direct observation. Assessments and knowledge tests based on the model / Every 6 months. / 7 psychosocial professionals

Host Partner (Club Local)

International Partner (Opcional)

Feria de Proyectos (Opcional)

Resumen del Estado del Proyecto