Or. Admin. Code § 416-550-0040 - Treatment Foster Parents

Treatment foster parents serve as in-home treatment agents implementing strategies specified in an adjudicated youth's treatment plan including support of the adjudicated youth's family relationships:

(1) Qualifications and Selection:

(a) Treatment foster parent(s) must be certified as an OYA foster home as defined in OAR chapter 416, divisions 530 and 800; and assume the responsibilities outlined in OAR chapter 416, division 530 in addition to the those in this rule.

(b) Treatment foster parent(s) must be employees of, or have a contract with, a treatment foster care program;

(c) Prospective applicants, foster parent(s) and members of the household 18 years of age and older will consent to a criminal record check by the agency. OYA may require a criminal record check for any employee, volunteer, or other adult having regular contact with adjudicated youth placed in the foster home. OYA may require a criminal history on members of the household under 18 years if there is reason to believe that member may pose a risk to adjudicated youth placed in the home. OYA may require that the applicant(s)/foster parent(s)/member(s) of the household provide fingerprints and processing fees for the purpose of a criminal record check following procedures outlined in OAR chapter 416, division 800.

(d) Language. At least one treatment foster parent must demonstrate effective communication in a language of the adjudicated youth in the treatment foster parent's care, and in a language of the program/treatment team with which they work;

(e) Age. Treatment foster parents must be at least 21 years of age;

(f) Health. The physical health of treatment foster parents must be equal to the stress inherent in the care of a special needs adjudicated youth as evidenced by a physician's statement to that effect;

(g) Transportation. Treatment foster parents must have access to reliable transportation. If using a car, they must have a valid Oregon driver's license and document ownership of liability insurance as required by law;

(h) Physical Discipline. Treatment foster parents must agree not to use physical discipline with adjudicated youth placed in their care and to adhere to the agency's policies regarding the use of discipline generally.

(2) Responsibilities:

(a) List of Responsibilities. Prospective treatment foster parents must be provided with a written list of duties clearly detailing their responsibilities as treatment foster parents prior to their approval by the program;

(b) Treatment Responsibilities:

(A) Treatment Planning. The treatment foster parent will assist the Treatment Specialist and other team members in the development of treatment plans for the adjudicated youth or adjudicated youth in their care. These treatment plans must be congruent with the case plan developed by OYA;

(B) Treatment Implementation. The treatment foster parent will assume primary responsibility for implementing the in-home treatment strategies specified in the adjudicated youth's initial and comprehensive treatment plans and revisions thereof;

(C) Treatment Team Meetings. The treatment foster care parent will work cooperatively with other team members under the leadership of the Treatment Specialist and attend team meetings, training sessions and other gatherings required by the program or by the adjudicated youth's treatment plan;

(D) Record Keeping. The treatment foster care parent will systematically record information and document activities as required by the agency and the standards under which it operates.

(E) Contact with Adjudicated youth's Family. The treatment foster care parent will assist the adjudicated youth in maintaining contact with their family and work actively to support and enhance these relationships, unless contraindicated in the adjudicated youth's treatment plan;

(F) Community Relations. The treatment foster care parent will develop and maintain positive working relationships with service providers in the community such as schools, departments of recreation, social service agencies, and mental health programs and professionals;

(G) Advocacy. The treatment foster care parent, in concert with the treatment foster care program Treatment Specialist and other staff, will advocate on behalf of the adjudicated youth to achieve the goals identified in the adjudicated youth's treatment plan, to obtain educational, vocational, medical and other services, and to assure full access to and provision of public services to which the adjudicated youth is legally entitled.

(H) Notice of Request for Adjudicated youth Move. Unless a move is required to protect the health or safety of the adjudicated youth, other treatment foster care family members or other adjudicated youth in the treatment foster home, the treatment foster parent will provide at least 14 days' notice to program staff if requesting an adjudicated youth's removal from the home so as to allow a planned and minimally disruptive transition. OYA will be notified of such change.

(3) Treatment Foster Parent Training:

(a) Training of treatment foster parents will be a systematic, planned, and documented process which includes competency-based skill training and is not limited to the provision of information through didactic instruction;

(b) Pre-service Training. Prior to the placement of adjudicated youth in their homes, all treatment foster parents must satisfactorily complete 20 pre-service hours of primarily skill-based training consistent with the agency's treatment methodology and the service needs of the adjudicated youth;

(c) Annual Inservice Training. A written, agency-approved, professional development plan will be on record in each agency which describes the content and objectives of in-service training for all agency treatment foster parents. All treatment foster parents must satisfactorily complete a minimum of 40 hours of inservice training annually based on the training needs identified in the agency's professional development plan and the specific services treatment foster parents are required to provide. Inservice training should emphasize skill development, as well as knowledge acquisition, and may include a variety of formats and procedures including in-home training provided by agency casework staff;

(d) Evaluation of Training. All treatment foster parents must be provided an opportunity to evaluate mandated training.

(4) Treatment Foster Parent Support:

(a) Information Disclosure. All information the treatment foster care program receives concerning an adjudicated youth to be placed with a treatment foster parent will be shared with and explained to the prospective treatment foster parent prior to placement. Agency/treatment foster care program staff will discuss with the prospective treatment foster parents the adjudicated youth's strengths and assets, potential problems and needs, and initial intervention strategies for addressing these areas. As full treatment team members, treatment foster parents have access to full disclosure of information concerning the adjudicated youth. With this access goes the responsibility to maintain agency standards of confidentiality;

(b) Respite Care. Treatment foster parents will have access to both planned and crisis respite care by providers who have been selected and trained by the program in providing respite care. Respite providers must be informed of the adjudicated youth's treatment plan and supervised in their implementation of the in-home strategies it specifies;

(c) Counseling. Treatment foster parents and other family members in the home will have assistance in finding counseling when requested for personal issues/problems caused or exacerbated by their work as treatment foster parents. Such issues may include, for example, marital stress, or abuse of their own children by an adjudicated youth placed in their care by the treatment foster care program;

(d) Support Network. The treatment foster care program will facilitate the creation of formal or informal support networks for its treatment foster parents as, for example, through the coordination of parent support groups or treatment foster parent "buddy" systems;

(e) Financial Support. Agency financial support to treatment foster parents must cover the cost of care as well as payment for the difficulty of care associated with their treatment responsibilities and the special needs of the adjudicated youth they serve;

(f) Damages and Liability. The agency must have a written plan concerning compensation for damages done to a treatment foster parent's property by an adjudicated youth placed in their care. This plan must be given and explained to prospective treatment foster parents as part of their pre-service orientation. The agency must provide or assist treatment foster parents in obtaining liability coverage. Treatment foster parents are required to document that they carry home/apartment, automobile (if they have a motor vehicle), property and liability insurance themselves in addition to any liability and damage coverage provided by or through their treatment foster care program.

(5) Treatment Home Capacity. The number of treatment foster care adjudicated youth placed in one treatment foster home will not exceed two, but preferably will be one. The total number of youth living in a treatment foster home, including the foster parents' own children, will not exceed five. Treatment foster parents have the right to refuse placement of any adjudicated youth they feel is inappropriate for the home, endangers the safety of adjudicated youth currently in the home, or treatment foster care family members. On a case-by-case basis, a treatment foster care adjudicated youth may be eligible to remain in the treatment foster care home as an on-going foster care placement upon completion of the treatment foster care program if there is special justification and it is in the best interests of the adjudicated youth. At no time will there be more than one on-going foster care placement in a treatment foster care home with two treatment foster care adjudicated youth.

Notes

Or. Admin. Code § 416-550-0040

OYA 2-1995, f. 12-19-95, cert. ef. 1-2-96; OYA1-2000, f. & cert. ef. 4-4-00; OYA 7-2002, f. & cert. ef. 1-18-02; OYA 7-2005, f. & cert. ef. 3-25-05; OYA 11-2023, amend filed 01/10/2023, effective 1/10/2023

Statutory/Other Authority: ORS 420A.025

Statutes/Other Implemented: ORS 420.810, 420.815, 420.821, 420.825, 420.835, 420.840, 420.888, 420.890 & 420.892