Of 94 teenagers who need intensive support from social workers in Laois and Offaly, only three are believed to have been sexually abused, according to the Midland Health Board.
The figure supports the views expressed by social workers and health board officials elsewhere that the media preoccupation with sexual abuse ignores the fact that other types of problems are far more common.
The Midland Health Board has started an Independent Care Project to help young teenagers who cannot live in their own homes but who would find it difficult to settle in a foster family. The board says it is seeking adults who could provide a mixture of accommodation and support to the young people concerned, without taking on a parenting role.
A survey of social workers in Laois and Offaly last November and December identified 94 teenagers aged 13 to 18 years who, for one reason or another, could not rely on being able to live in their own homes. About half of them had problems relating to their parents and half had behavioural problems in school.
The Independent Care Project has been designed specifically to meet the needs of these young people, a senior social worker, Mr Bernard Morrin, said.
"Young, homeless teenagers can find foster care difficult in the conventional sense. A lot of adolescents have difficulty settling into a family. Some days they will want to be with the family and other days they won't. Foster carers and their children would find this difficult.
"We are looking for people who might be in a position to offer accommodation and support to children who can no longer regard their own home as a source of accommodation."