When help is close

Olya and Oksana (names are changed for sake of privacy) met at the training session “Let’s Be Friends! How to Feel Confident in Any Group and Easily Make Friends in a New Environment”, which was held at one of the Youth-Friendly Health Centers (YFHCs)*. For both girls, participating in the training was a real challenge: the fear of speaking up first, the awkwardness around unfamiliar people, and the uncertainty about being accepted. But with the support of professional psychologists, they overcame their fears, connected with their peers, exchanged phone numbers, and now stay in regular contact. 

They found out about the training thanks to the work of the outreach team — professionals who don’t wait for adolescents to seek help on their own but go to where young people are: schools, public spaces, youth groups. What is outreach work, who carries it out, and why simply informing adolescents about available support services is not enough? 

* Youth-Friendly Health Centers (YFHCs) are services based at children's polyclinics where adolescents can seek help with any concerns — free of charge, confidentially, and anonymously. Here, they can consult a psychologist, an obstetrician-gynecologist, an addiction psychiatrist, a health education specialist, or a pediatrician, and get tested for HIV. The system of adolescent support through YFHCs is being developed by the Ministry of Health with the support of UNICEF in Belarus. Addresses and contact numbers for appointments can be found at: https://junior.medcenter.by/ 

What Is Outreach Work? 

Outreach is the practice of professionals stepping outside their offices and consulting rooms to meet people where they actually spend their time — in so-called “field settings.” Outreach workers go by many names: street workers, mentors, peer mentors, peer educators, and others. 

These specialists engage with vulnerable groups who, for various reasons, do not seek help on their own — due to fear, mistrust of professionals, stigma, or simply a lack of information about available services. Around the world, outreach workers and volunteers support populations such as people experiencing homelessness, refugees and migrants, and individuals who use drugs or alcohol. 

What About Belarus? 

In Belarus, this approach is actively used to reach adolescents in need of psychological support — especially those in vulnerable situations: children from families classified as being in socially dangerous situations, refugees and migrants, adolescents living with HIV, children with chronic illnesses, children in crisis, those affected by violence, and adolescents who use psychoactive substances. 

These young people are often overlooked by traditional support systems. For example, adolescents living with HIV face double stigma — both due to their diagnosis and the emotional toll of social rejection. Refugees and migrants struggle with adaptation, isolation, and traumatic experiences. Adolescents who have experienced violence require long-term psychological support and care. 

Unlike the traditional model, where young people must visit an Youth-Friendly Health Center themselves, outreach teams operate where adolescents actually are — in schools, sports clubs, public spaces, even on the streets and in courtyards. This approach not only informs adolescents about available services but also helps build trust-based relationships. 

Outreach work is not just about sharing information — it’s about engagement, about building bridges of trust, especially with those who are most afraid to ask for help. It was the outreach workers who told Olya and Oksana about the Center and explained that it’s a safe space where they could find support, understanding, and new friends. 

About the Project and Systemic Work   

This is just one of many examples of successful collaboration among specialists from various fields within UNICEF’s project in Belarus, aimed at building outreach systems through Youth-Friendly Health Centers in the Brest and Gomel regions. 

The goal of the project is to create an informal yet effective support network for young people — a space where adolescents can receive help in a safe and welcoming environment. The focus is on prevention and early identification of problems. 

The project brought together professionals from different sectors: the health and education departments of the Brest and Gomel regional executive committees, district and city administrations, social-pedagogical centers, juvenile affairs commissions, healthcare facilities, doctors, psychologists, teachers and social workers, as well as civil society organizations and volunteer groups. Instead of fragmented efforts, a unified support system was created — one in which every adolescent can access the help they need, whether medical, psychological, or social.