The Three R’s: Responsibilities, Rights, Role
Many foster parent responsibilities will closely resemble those of any parent providing day to day supervision and support in a stable and loving home environment. And yet, foster parenting is different than parenting your own child. The foster parent education provided prior to approval is intended to give you a clear understanding of the role you will assume and to provide you with some tools for dealing with this new experience. Special workshops and seminars are also available for foster parents on a regular basis.
As a foster parent, you are a vital member of the foster care team in providing input for your foster child’s case plan. The foster care team consists of the court, the agency, the foster parents, the biological parents and the Foster Care Review Board (FCRB). Foster parents have the right to attend court hearings, review board hearings and family team meetings concerning the permanency planning for the foster child. While foster parents must cooperate with the agency’s plan for parental visitation, the agency respects your privacy and will not release your name, address, or telephone number without your permission. However, developing a relationship with the birth family is encouraged.
Foster parents, of course, will decide what race, sex and age range of children they can best provide care for as well as what types of problems or handicaps they can or cannot deal with. Foster parents also have the right to accept or reject any child offered for placement. If you are unsure of whether you can care for a particular child, you may also request a pre-placement visit to give you an opportunity to get to know the child before he or she is placed in your home. Sometimes, even with the most careful preparation, you may find that you will need to request the removal of a foster child from your home. It is important not to be overly harsh with yourself or the child and to work closely with the agency to insure a smooth transition from your home to another placement.
Agency workers recommend that foster parents become familiar with support groups in their area because often times your friends and neighbors are not in a position to understand the difficulties you may encounter in this new role. Some of these include the:
- National Foster Parent Association
- National Action for Foster Children
- Maryland League of Foster Parents Inc. and several local county/city organizations
In addition, some of the agencies regularly hold workshops and neighborhood groups for foster parents to become acquainted with each other and to provide a forum for sharing experiences. Maryland regulations state: any specific information that a foster parent has about a foster child or that child’s birth family is to be kept confidential and cannot be shared with anyone.
A foster home worker visits each foster home regularly to assist in obtaining and/or providing needed services. Most of the agencies also provide a 24-hour emergency phone number for the use of foster parents. Each agency places tremendous importance on being accessible to foster parents to provide the support that they often need.
