Transition to adulthood: experiences of service providers working with immigrant disabled adolescents and young adults in Norway

Abstract

The demographic landscape of Norway is diversifying. These changes present challenges for frontline professionals working with immigrant parents raising children with disabilities. This article explored service providers’ perspectives on the challenges they face in delivering services to immigrant adolescents and young adults with disabilities aged 16–25. The study generated qualitative data from seven informants from different state institutions using semi-structured interviews. Our findings showed that service providers encountered personal and organisational challenges, including communicating and collaborating with immigrant parents. Service agencies experienced underfunding, making them unable to cope with growing demands. Additionally, service providers experienced inter-agency cooperation and collaboration difficulties such as a lack of information sharing, even when they served the same clients. Increasing funding, staff training, and strengthening formal and informal communication with immigrant parents of children with disabilities can provide opportunities to improve service delivery.