Reentry of elementary aged children following reunification from foster care

Abstract

A recognized goal of family reunification programs is preventing the reentry of children into foster care. Using data from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being, this study examined reentry for 273 children between the ages of 5 and 12 years. In multivariate models, reentry into foster care was associated with higher Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) scores and higher numbers of children in the household when the child is living at home. Although these are not the only risk factors that should be considered in deciding whether to reunify a child, these characteristics appear to be high valence problems for families and their children who are reunified. Future research on reentry and on placement disruptions from foster care should routinely include information about the number of children in the family and behavior problems when endeavoring to explain caseload dynamics.

Facilitating mental health service use for caregivers: Referral strategies among child welfare caseworkers

“…These factors were caregiver age; caregiver race/ethnicity (Amaro et al, 2005; Chow, Jaffee, & Snowden, 2003); whether the caregiver had co-occurring mental health and substance abuse problems (Watkins, Audrey Burnam, Fuan-Yue Kung, & Paddock, 2001); the most serious type of maltreatment experienced by the child (Barnett, Manly, & Cicchetti, 1993); a 3-point global measure of cumulative family risk, with values ranging from “1” = “low family risk” to “3” = “high family risk”, that was based upon investigative caseworkers’ assessment of the presence of 21 risks, e.g., previous child welfare service use history, child special needs, high family stress, or history of domestic violence (Barth et al, 2008; McCrae & Barth, 2008; Mersky et al, 2009); child age; whether the child was placed out-of-home; and whether the family had received any child welfare services after the close of the investigation/assessment.…”

Reunifying abused or neglected children: Decision-making and outcomes

“…Rates of re-entry to care are difficult to compare, as samples vary in terms of age, reasons for admission to care, time in care and length of follow-up. Studies from the USA have reported rates of re-entry ranging from 13-28%, (Barth, Weigensberg, Fisher, Fetrow, & Green, 2008;Courtney, 1995;Festinger, 1996;Goodman, 1997;Shaw, 2006;Wells & Guo, 1999;Wulczyn, 1991Wulczyn, , 2004. In Scandinavia, a Danish study found a re-entry rate of 22% within two years of reunification and cited a rate of 25% in Sweden over the same period (Ubbesen, Petersen, Mortensen, & Kristensen, 2012;Vinnerlung, Oman, & Gunnarson, 2004).…”

Incremental net benefit of early intervention for preschool-aged children with emotional and behavioral problems in foster care

“…Group supervision occurred weekly, with individual consultation as needed. Treatment fidelity for all MTFC-P components was monitored via progress notes and checklists completed by the clinical staff (for more detail see Fisher, Ellis, & Chamberlain1999; Fisher et al 2005). …”

“…This lack of stability and the associated stresses of disrupted relationships and entering new environments greatly increase a child’s risk of serious long-term emotional and behavioral problems. In addition, instability and its related stress can result in many negative health, psychosocial, and developmental outcomes (Barth et al, 2008; Rubin et al, 2007; Fisher et al, 2006); for example, there is emerging evidence that instability negatively impacts areas of brain development involved in executive functioning (Lewis et al, 2007; Pears et al, 2008). …”