Permanency Tip of the Week: The Post Adoption Blues
When people hear about Adoption, they often like to focus on the positive aspects of it and expect everyone involved to be happy and joyous. Just like Postpartum Depression is a real phenomenon, so are the post-adoption blues. This can be experienced by anyone in the Adoption Constellation and can have a profound impact on the quality of life for everyone involved. No matter what role we serve in the Adoption Constellation, it is important that we acknowledge this phenomenon and actively work to address it by creating a safe and supportive environment to work through this challenge.
Permanency Success Story of the Week: Ohio Man, Former Foster Child Adopts 5 Siblings as His Children
WTHR – Hamilton County, OH – When he was 12, Robert Carter went into foster care in Hamilton County, Ohio, and didn’t see some of his younger siblings for years. But when he was old enough, Carter reconnected with his family. He was granted custody of his sister and became the guardian of his brother. Carter wanted to make sure his family was together.
Friday, Carter kept another family together when he adopted siblings Marionna, Makayla, Robert, Giovanni and Kiontae in Hamilton County. He said he didn’t want the siblings to be separated…Barton said Carter’s background made him aware of the importance of keeping siblings together.
Carter was already fostering the three boys when he and the foster mothers of the girls met so the kids could see each other for the first time after being separated six months before. “I understand how they feel,” Carter said. “I understand what they went through, so it really touched me. I was already thinking about adopting all of the kids but when I saw them crying, I was like, ‘Ok, I’m going to take all five to keep them together.’”
Now he tells them, “I’m your dad forever.”
Permanency Related Articles:
National Adoption Month 2020 – Engage Youth: Listen and Learn
Children’s Bureau – November is National Adoption Month, a month set aside to raise awareness about the urgent need for adoptive families for children and youth in foster care.
The history of National Adoption Month dates back to 1976 when Massachusetts Governor Mike Dukakis announced the first Adoption Week. Governor Dukakis’ idea grew in popularity and quickly spread nationwide. In 1984, President Ronald Reagan proclaimed the first National Adoption Week, and in 1995, under President Bill Clinton, the week was expanded to the entire month of November.
Every November, the Children’s Bureau leads this initiative by way of a collaborative partnership between Child Welfare Information Gateway and AdoptUSKidsVisit disclaimer page that supports activities that promote the adoption of children and youth from foster care into permanent, loving families.
For current information and resources about adoption, visit Child Welfare Information Gateway, a service of the Children’s Bureau, to view the National Adoption Month website.
The Unlearning of Child Welfare – A National Conversation to Advance Child and Family Well-being
Institute For Family – Igniting a movement to elevate family well-being. At the Institute for Family, we believe family is the foundation for healthy children and strong communities. So, when families are at their strongest, everyone benefits. Therefore, we are part of a growing movement to promote family well-being, ensuring all families have the opportunities they need to thrive. Join us in our mission as we listen to families, hear their authentic stories, and learn from their expertise. Help us create a future that strengthens and celebrates family.
The Unlearning of Child Welfare – A National Conversation to Advance Child and Family Well-being – 3-Part Webinar Series
When Volunteers Provide Consistency in a Foster Child’s Inconsistent World
M/Oppenheim – One of the toughest challenges that a child in the foster care system must face is inconsistency: inconsistency in their schools; inconsistency in their homes; and the inconsistency of the people in their lives. “A child in foster care could have up to seven different homes, seven different social workers, and attend more than nine schools before they are adopted or age out of the system,” says Renee Espinoza, Executive Director of San Francisco CASA (San Francisco CASA).
“The only thing that is consistent is inconsistency in their lives,” she says. To help solve that problem, the nonprofit San Francisco CASA connects children in foster care with volunteers in the San Francisco community, who will serve as their advocates and stand by their side in the long process of navigating the foster care system.
Because the foster care system poses unfamiliar terrains for every child, volunteers are immersed into the lives of their assigned youth in order to understand and identify their needs. They learn about their lives through one-on-one meetings and connect with the entire network of professionals assigned to that child, including attorneys, social workers, educators, and so on. “It can be very overwhelming and traumatic for a child,” says Espinoza, explaining that the volunteer will become that constant in the child’s life, who will champion for their rights.
Supporting Child, Caregiver, and Family Well-Being in Times of Crisis
Children’s Bureau – Anyone who interacts with children, caregivers, and families has an opportunity to reach out and provide encouragement, support, and information that can strengthen a family’s ability to meet both the challenges of daily life and the added stressors that come in a time of crisis. Families develop and cultivate resilience through adversity, and often they just need some additional resources to thrive.1 There are many ways that professionals outside of child protective services can act to support children and their caregivers and connect them with appropriate resources that may mitigate any risks for harm.
This document is organized by the five protective factors2 that build on family strengths to foster child and youth well-being and development. Each section contains questions that professionals can address with parents/caregivers and with children/youth in the course of their work with families, with an emphasis on content appropriate for virtual visits.
How Do Children of Different Ages Experience Trauma?
Casey Family Programs – National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) – It is important for everyone in the child welfare system — including frontline caseworkers, foster parents, supervisors, and court personnel — to understand that not all trauma looks the same. Children of different ages and stages of development may show very different signs of trauma, and they may have very different needs as a result.
The child welfare field is learning more about how children are affected by trauma, including the effects of child abuse and neglect, and the trauma that may be caused by investigation, removal, and placement — the very interventions created to protect children from harm…
The Need to Improve Care in Foster Care
Foster Today – As a child-welfare caseworker, it was pleasantly surprising to see the issues surrounding health care for youth in care (children and young adults that the state has guardianship of) brought to the local-media main stage. Society often thinks of foster care when we imagine where youth in care are placed. However, substitute care is the more accurate term that encompasses many types of placements.
These placements include but are not limited to residential facilities, shelters, transitional living programs, and various types of foster care. It is important to note that the majority of these young people have endured extensive trauma. For far too long, the insurance provided to youth in care by the state has been inadequate. Medicaid is an excellent resource for basic health care, but unfortunately, the same cannot be said for dental, vision, and any sort of specialty medical need. Youth in care with specialty dental needs like advanced orthodontic, endodontic, or oral surgery face rigorous approval processes.
As a result, caseworkers become the primary advocates for these children and adolescents. When you get into specialty medical needs, there are very few providers that will take Medicaid. These young people are often forced to travel great distances to get the care they need. I hope the new managed-care approach within the Medicaid system will provide adequate and equitable health care to this vulnerable population.
T.J. CALVIN
Click here for the letter to the editor about foster care at www.news-gazette.com
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Sincerely,
Dr. Greg Manning