By Canadian Press

Quebec’s youth protection agencies need help, managers say after girl’s death

May 13, 2019 | 9:20 AM

MONTREAL — Quebec youth protection managers say the province has a shortage of qualified case workers, and the system must change to meet the realities of 2019.

They have issued an open letter amid widespread criticism after a seven-year-old Quebec girl who was on the radar of youth protection officials was found badly injured in her family home in Granby, about 80 kilometres east of Montreal.

She died in hospital on April 30 and the girl’s father and stepmother are charged with unlawful confinement, while the woman was also charged with aggravated assault before the girl’s death was confirmed.

Their identities are under a publication ban to protect the girl’s identity.

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In the open letter, issued today, the province’s 20 youth protection directors say they and their staff are affected and upset by the girl’s death.

The heads of the regional youth protection agencies add the Quebec government must make an renewed commitment to prioritize youth protection, 40 years after the Youth Protection Act came into effect in 1979.

They say such a commitment means ensuring agencies devoted to protecting children have the means to intervene quickly.

The directors say every child must have the chance to grow up in a safe environment.

The Canadian Press