I am responding to a comment left here about what needs to happen with foster children and what foster parents need to be doing.

As soon as the foster child comes into care there is a service plan set up to address the child’s needs. The service plan covers a six month period. The first six month service plans is very basic because no one knows the kiddo and the biological parents are not too helpful in providing information. Mostly it will cover medical care, getting immunizations up to date, allowing the child time to adjust to being in foster care and to evaluate any needs they may have while addressing any other needs that may arise.

I think expecting these foster children not to lose time while they stay in foster care are unrealistic expectations. Yes, in some cases the loss can be minimized to a point. Speaking as a foster parent that has dealt with some difficult behaviors and had foster children living with me for different lengths of time I can say that it is not so simple as it might sound.

First, we are dealing with children that have been removed from their homes without warning and placed into a home that they know nothing about. It does not matter if the children were being sexually abuse, beaten, burned, locked up, neglected with the daily needs, etc on a daily basis, for the most part all they know is they want to go home to their parents even if it means returning to the horrible abuse.

Most foster parents get foster children dropped in their lap’s behaviors and all, leaving us to try to seek the help for the child needs or understand what is going with the child. The training we receive is basic, nor does not even begin to cover the things we see and deal on a regular basis. In a lot of cases the foster parents are learning things along the way with each foster child that comes into their home.

Continued.........

More reading:

Chances, Chances and More Chances

Not Always the Choice of the Foster Parents

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