A.
Medical/Treatment Resource Homes
A licensed Resource Family home specializing in the care
of medically fragile children shall comply with all foster home requirements as
well as the following conditions:
1.
Provide a specialized license, degree, certification, training or experience
that documents and demonstrates an expertise to work with children with special
medical/treatment needs, (i.e. doctor, registered nurse, licensed practical
nurse, emergency medical technician, special education teacher, clinical
therapist, etc.);
2. Demonstrate
the ability to care for children with special needs such as feeding tubes,
heart monitors, oxygen, fetal alcohol syndrome, cerebral palsy, diabetes,
diagnosed emotional or behavioral illnesses or disorders, etc.;
3. Agree to be licensed for no more than two
(2) medically fragile foster children at any given time. Placement of more than
two medically fragile foster children may be considered in cases of sibling
groups or other extraordinary circumstances. Approval must be
requested from the Licensure ASWS and RD prior to any placement. If the
specialized home is caring for the siblings of a medically fragile child, these
siblings will not receive the special care board rate unless they have also
been certified as eligible for that benefit;
4. Understand that specialized Resource
Parents shall provide transportation and accompany the foster child with
special needs to all school, treatment, and medical appointments, as well as
ensuring that any follow-up visits are kept;
5. Agree to stay in the hospital with a child
placed in their home should the child be hospitalized;
6. Maintain the child's important records,
including medical documents, immunization records, and a health journal for
each child with special needs placed in their home;
7. Maintain adequate school/educational
records on each child with special needs placed in their home;
8. Participate as a member of the service
team through at least one of the following methods:
a) Personal attendance at Family Team
Meetings (FTM)s, County Conferences, Court Hearings, IEP Meetings, etc.
b) Telephonic conference calls.
c) Provision of a written report
on the child's progress including any recommendations for service
1.
Training Requirement for
Medical/Treatment Resource Homes
In addition to the 27 hours of pre-service training
requirements, prior to providing a specialized license, the Licensure
Specialist will verify eight (8) hours of specialized training, by a certified
provider, specifically addressing the medical needs of children who meet
medically fragile criteria. If a specific child has been identified for a
specific home, the parent's 8 hours of specialized training should reflect the
individual medical needs of that child.
In order to maintain Medical/Treatment Resource Home
status, specialized Resource Parents for medically fragile children must
complete 12 hours of in-service training annually. These hours must be relevant
to the specific child(ren) in their home.
Additionally, specialized Resource Parents must show
documentation of ongoing knowledge and ability to care for the special medical
needs of the child(ren) placed in their care. If no medically fragile children
are placed in the home, in-service training hours must specifically address the
medical needs of children who meet medically fragile criteria. CPR and First
Aid Certification must be maintained.
B.
Teen Parent Resource
Home
A Resource Parent may seek and obtain a license for up to
two (2) foster children who are pregnant or foster children who have parental
responsibilities for their own child. The teenager's child may or may not be in
DFCS custody. This Resource Parent shall comply with all Resource Home
licensure requirements including the following:
1. n teenage parents. These 8 hours will
include:
a. Parenting the Teenage Parent (2
Hours)
i. Setting Boundaries
ii. Appropriate House Rules/Expectations
iii. Contracting and Consequences
iv. Communicating with Teens
b. Teaching the Teen to
Parent (4 Hours)
i. Teaching Financial
Responsibilities
ii. Teaching
Parental Sacrifices
iii. Teaching
the Roles of a Parent
iv. Teaching
Values
v. Teaching Child Growth
and Development
vi. Teaching
Appropriate Discipline
vii.
Teaching Communication
c. Transitioning to Independence (2 Hours)
i. Training with the Independent Living
Specialist to receive Independent Living curriculum.
ii. Overview of the Independent Living
Services
2.
Agree to foster no more than two teen parents at any given time.
3. Agree to provide transportation, accompany
and support the teen parent in meeting parental responsibilities for her
child(ren) including child care/day care, school enrollment or meetings,
treatment or medical appointments, and other services based on the teen parent
or child;
4. Assist pregnant teens
residing the Resource Family home with arrangement for prenatal care, doctor
appointments, follow-up medical visits and hospital arrangement for delivery in
coordination with the COR Worker;
5. Model appropriate parenting methods for
the teen parent and work with her to adequately care for and nurture her
child(ren);
6. Teach and assist
the teen parent in obtaining and maintaining necessary documentation and
important records, including but not limited to: birth records, medical
documents, immunization records, and other relevant information for both
herself and her child;
7.
Demonstrate the ability not to undermine the teen parent's care for her child,
nor initiate any legal proceedings (i.e., termination of parental rights or
adoption proceedings) involving the teen parent's child;
8. Participate as a member of the service
team through at least one of the following methods:
a. Personal attendance at FTMs, County
Conferences, Court Reviews, etc.
b. Telephonic conference calls.
c. Provision of a written report on the
progress of the teen parent and child including any recommendation for service.
The Licensure Specialist must upgrade the license status
of each specialized home. During the one year re-evaluation period, these
families must receive a total of 12 hours of in-service training.
A minimum of two (2) of these hours will be participation in the Independent
Living Program with the teen parent.
C.
Respite
Respite care is provided through referrals to private
agencies. All respite homes must be licensed Resource Homes or licensed respite
homes.
These providers must have obtained additional training in
respite care through the private agency who licensed them for respite care.
Respite care providers must have extra bed space available for a child to be
placed for respite care and can have no more than 3 foster children and a total
of 5 children placed in their home regardless of the status of the children's
placement (foster, respite, adoptive, biological children.) Respite services
are paid for through the grant(s) awarded to the private agencies.
All children in foster care and children who have been
adopted from foster care are eligible for respite care. Additional information
regarding respite care may be requested through the permanency unit at the DFCS
State Office.
