The foster care system is a system centralized around providing temporary care for children who are unable to live with their families. Children under the care of this system are looked after by foster parents or caretakers who make sure that they receive the necessities they need to thrive (more information on the foster care system can be read in a previous Caregena blog linked here). With over 400,000 children who are in foster care in the United States, the demand for foster parents is clearly very high, yet there are still many individuals who lack knowledge and insight into how the foster care system works and the impact it makes on our communities and world. The concept of foster care and foster homes evidently brings with it a multitude of benefits, though it is also important to note that it serves not only the foster child, but also foster caretakers, the child’s original family, and even the community around them.
The primary goal of the foster care system is to, at essence, provide support for children who face uncertain living conditions in their original homes. Many foster care children come from backgrounds of abuse and/or neglect from their previous guardians, and giving a child the safety and security that they may not have been able to experience with their parents allows them to be connected to a different kind of family able to provide a stable foundation. Having a child placed in a loving and caring environment can push many positive influences onto their lives; caretakers have the opportunity to be encouraging role models and guide the children under their care. Foster care parents and families can also provide emotional support for the child to lean on; healing emotional wounds and trauma is not something that can be done alone, and so having a pillar of guidance for foster children is of utmost importance.
The children in our world are the people who will grow up and continue to shape the future of our world; placing positive influences on them and ensuring that the child grows up both emotionally and physically healthy strengthens the community. Through teaching foster care children important life lessons and providing a good role model, they could grow up into mentally strong members of society willing to give back to and support their community. As stated before, foster homes are meant to be temporary homes for the child; the ultimate end goal of the process is for the child to be reunited with their parents when it is safe for them to do so. Not all children are in foster care due to abuse; some come from parents facing a variety of different personal issues that would render them unable to properly care for their child. The foster care system allows any parent who wishes to have as much time as they need to recollect themselves and relearn how to care for and look after their children when the time returns.
Finally, foster care allows adults who wish to raise children and experience living in a family but are unable to bear children of their own. Fostering children is another alternative to the idea of adopting a child; though foster care is usually just a temporary placement (in some cases, the child is unable to return to their original parents; foster parents have the option of adopting the child), it is still an extremely rewarding experience to be able to look after and care for a child who has been through hard times.
Bibliography
California Department of Social Services. Foster Care, CDSS Programs, https://www.cdss.ca.gov/inforesources/foster-care. Accessed 8 July 2022.
Children First: Foster Family Agency. Foster Care in Northern California | Who Benefits from the Foster Care Program?, Children First: Foster Family Agency, https://childrenfirstffa.com/foster-care-in-northern-california-who-benefits-from-the-foster-care-program/#:~:text=The%20biggest%20benefit%20of%20the,give%20them%20support%20and%20security. Accessed 29 August 2022.
Gladney Center for Adoption. What Are the Positives of Foster Care?, Gladney Center for Adoption, 29 March 2019, https://adoption.org/positives-foster-care. Accessed 29 August 2022
iFoster. How Does The Foster Care System Work?, iFoster, 22 October 2020, https://www.ifoster.org/blogs/how-does-the-foster-care-system-work/. Accessed 8 July 2022.
Jalkiewicz, Lori, Program Director, Acenda, Kinship, and Adoption Services. 7 BENEFITS OF FOSTERING: 7 Benefits of Being A Foster Parent, Acenda Integrated Health, https://acendahealth.org/7-benefits-of-fostering. Accessed 29 August 2022.
KVC Health Systems. Foster Care in America: Realities, Challenges and Solutions, 30 March 2022, https://www.kvc.org/blog/foster-care-in-america/. Accessed 8 July 2022.
Comentarios