Foster+Children--Amanda+Cofield



=**__What is Foster Care?__**=

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“ Foster care is a temporary living arrangement for abused, neglected, and dependent children who need a safe place to live when their parents or another relative cannot take care of them. Often their families face issues such as illness, alcohol or drug addiction, or homelessness.”- //North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services// ======

=**__ Fast Facts __**= >
 * ======Each year over ½ million children are placed into foster care (Stovall-McClough)======
 * ======According to the “Administration for Children and Families” there were 408,425 children in foster care in September 2010======
 * ======Ages range from infants to 18 years of age======
 * ======According to the “Encyclopedia of Children’s Health” the average stay for a child in foster care is 33 months======
 * ======Reasons for most placement: neglect, physical/emotional abuse, abandonment, and/or sexual abuse======
 * ======Children in foster care have higher rates of behavioral problems, mood disorders, and personality disorders compared to other children with their similar socioeconomic status (Stovall-McClough)======

=**__Forgotten Kids__**= Foster children’s feelings and emotions are sometimes forgotten about. When a case worker is told to remove the children from the home, most of the time they do not have time to stop and talk with the children and ask them how they are feeling, until after the removal has happened. These children are being removed from the only secure place they known and sometimes are not told why. Especially when small children are removed and placed into foster care, they are too young to understand what is happening. Many times these children just need someone to listen and take time with them to help them adjust to the new home.

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“//Unfortunately, many children in foster care are not provided with therapeutic grief interventions and secure attachment opportunities during or after placement, and instead often develop complicated grief reactions and frequently labeled with a mental disorder such as reactive attachment disorder, depression, or oppositional defiant disorder (Walsh, 16)”//====== media type="youtube" key="sFBa9cK52vM" height="315" width="420" align="center"

Quotes from Children (Mitchell)
 * It really sucks and it gets easier with time. (female, 14–15)
 * If they’re being taken away from their mom or dad, or both of them, right, cause they did something wrong, I’m sure they’re sad cause they love them and they don’t think they did anything wrong but, in reality, they did, so of course they’re going to want to cry and think they are just these mean people taking you away, but it’s actually for a reason and it’s okay to cry. Like, you should cry ‘cause that makes you a better person when you cry . . . It’s better to let it out than to just keep it inside of you because then you are a very unhappy person, and that’s not very good. (female, 12–13 years)
 * Make as many friends as possible. If there’s nothing to do, try to find something to do. (male, 12–13 years)
 * Find a kid or something. Hang out with some kids. (male, 12–13 years)





**__Primary Loss:__** Loss of family which can include siblings and almost always extended family **__Secondary Loss:__** The children usually have a loss of their personal belongings, privacy, security, pet, their comfort zone, friends, school mates, and church family


 * ~ GRIEF STRESSORS ||~ PROCESSES ||
 * = GUILT ||= withdrawal, running away, acting out behaviorally ||
 * = SADNESS ||= crying, quite, withdrawal ||
 * = ANXIOUS ||= loss of sleep/appittite, isolated, withdrawal ||
 * = ANGER ||= yell, screaming, threating ||




 * ~ LIFE STRESSORS ||~ PROCESSES ||
 * = ATTACHMENT ||=  ||= talking with other kids in placement, talking with foster parent and case manager ||
 * = UNPACKING ||=  ||= deciding if placement is longterm and safe ||
 * = NEW FRIENDS ||=  ||= talking with new kids at school ||

"Children in out of home placements are at increased risk for a multitude of poor educational outcomes" (Noonan). This is not only because of the anxiety, sadnss, and lack of attachment but also because of having to move around so much. A child on my current caseload has been in 4 different schools this school year alone.

302 Chidren ages 6-12 were interviewed along with their teachers and the results are as follows (Zima):
27%-clinical range for a behavioral problem 24%-having at least one behavior problem in classroom

23%-severe delays in reading and math 13%- repeated a grade 14%- history of school supension/expulsion

"Painful experiences associated with maltreatment and the tramua of being removed from one's parents may affect the development and mental haleth of children (Bruskas).


 * ~ ADDAPTIVE ||~  ||||~ MALADAPTIVE ||
 * = WRITE IN JOURNAL |||| EXPERIMENTING WITH DRUGS AND ALCOHOL ||
 * PEN PAL |||| ACTING OUT SEXUALLY ||
 * DEVELOPING HOBBIES |||| BECOMING A LONER ||

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=REFERENCES:=


 * Bruskas, Delilah. //Children in Foster Care: A Vulnerable Population at Risk.// Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing 21. 2 (May 2008): 70-7.
 * Mitchell, M.B., Kuczynski, L., Tubbs, C., Ross, C. //We Care About Care: Advice by Children in Care for Children in Care, Foster Parents and Child Welfare Workers about the Transition into Foster Care.// Child & Family Social Work, 15.2 (May 2012): 176.
 * Noonan, K., Matone, M., Zlotnik, S., Hernandez-Mekonnen, R., Watts, C., & al, e. //Cross-system Barriers to Educational Success for CHildren in Foster Care: The Front Line perspective.// Children & Youth Services, 34.2 (Feb 2012) 403.
 * Stovall-mcclough, K CHASE; Dozier, Mary. //Forming attachments in foster care: Infant attachment behaviors during the first 2 months of placement.// Development and Psychopathology 16. 2 (Spring 2004): 253-71.
 * Walsh, Katherine. //Grief and Loss: Theories and Skills for the Helping Professions.// Pearson Education, Inc. 2012, 16.
 * Zima, B. T., Bussing, R., Stephanny Freeman, X. Y., & al, e. //Behavior problems, academic skill delays and school failure among school-aged children in foster care: Their relationship to placement characteristics//. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 9.1, (2000) 87-103.

http://www.ncdhhs.gov/dss/fostercare/index.htm

http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/stats_research/afcars/tar/report18.htm

@http://www.healthofchildren.com/E-F/Foster-Care.html

Along with interviews with Debbie Liggett, CSM, Tift County DFCS