Reforming Child Welfare Regulations (Research Paper Sample)

Reforming Child Welfare Regulations LaKesha Oden-Claud Professor Robin Evans ENG 215- Research and Writing November 21, 2013 Reforming Child Welfare Regulations The purpose of this paper is to investigate the deficiencies in the child welfare regulations to determine the appropriate action of reform. This topic was chosen because of its paramount importance to the well-being of all children. As it stands, the system is highly incapacitated to deliver the recommended services to the various stakeholders namely; the foster families, child welfare agencies and social workers. It lacks proper funding and structure to effectively serve its purpose. According to Bass, (2004), the welfare system has become very unpopular in many States in the U.S...Governors think that the federal law is overly prescriptive and are willing to reduce their federal budgets in exchange for more flexibility. Public opinion indicators suggest that the public want welfare reformed in ways that will not punish children. The system is deemed to be demoralizing and demeaning to majority of the welfare recipients and would prefer to work instead. Furthermore, experts believe that welfare has not done enough to discourage the growth of poverty among children since most states have insufficient welfare benefits to lift families above poverty line. Most Americans feel the whole system should be totally overhauled and the reforms should be deep and not superficial. In the past, new innovations were implemented as additions to the existing system instead of changing the whole system. On this regard, the child welfare system should be changed from a crisis-driven system to a total change and renewal. To achieve systemic change, there are several key elements that should be observed: improvement of the federal finance structure, improved ways for better service coordination and integration of systems, enhancing accountability measures and rethinking the roles of the courts and caseworkers; this will transform the way a child and families experience foster care. According to developmental psychologists and researchers, child welfare should be high quality; otherwise, it can be harmful to children (Karageorge & Kendall, 2008). Policymakers have had a considerable interest in improving the quality of child welfare in the United States. Child welfare regulations are the responsibility of states, which seek to reduce the risk of children harm as they get exposed to child care. According to regulations, child welfare providers should be licensed and should meet minimum standards of hygiene, safety and developmental appropriateness. Failure to meet standards can make providers get denied a license or even get fined. In the recent past, policymakers have been coming up with regulations that only serve the needs of the state institutions or even federal interests, and disregard the individual needs of children. (Blau, 2006). In this respect, encouraging organizational self-examination and improving public oversight through improved accountability are essential measures of effectively transforming the welfare system. There are two critical tools for enhancing accountability in the system: the external review boards and the CFSRs. As per the 1993 amendments to the Act of Child Prevention and Treatment, states are directed to create external review boards to review foster care policies. However, no evaluations functions or effectiveness of the foster care review boards have been fully implemented. Additional research is needed to ensure the boards are effective in fulfilling their role of public oversight (Bass, 2004). In addition, the CFSRs are a noble way of evaluating states’ performances. The reviews are able to initiate true reform which is linked to the states quality and depth of performance- improvements plans which the investment states need to implement effective reforms. The framework for the federal financing of the child welfare system is too complex. The funding comes from various sources, each coming with its own limitations and requirements. The largest contribution comes from the Title IVE of the social Security Act. In fact, almost 50% of all the federal expenditure on child welfare is provided by the Title IV-E. Under this structure, the federal government refunds states for portions of the costs associated with out-of-home care, but not costs not those associated with counseling, prevention and drug abuse treatment (Karageorge & Kendall, 2008). In this regard, the flexibility and reach of federal funds for child welfare should be improved to enhance the number of waivers given to the states. Waivers are very useful in establishing whether the new uses for federal funds can enhance outcomes for families and children. The eligibility requirements of the states should also be revised to increase the number of applicants willing to apply for the services. By implementing these changes, the child welfare system will benefit as it will experience increased budgets that will enable them to perform their duties efficiently and effectively. Furthermore, accountability in the whole child welfare system will be improved too (Bass, 2004). Service coordination and integration of web systems of agencies in the child welfare portal should be modified to improve navigation capabilities. As it is, it is very difficult to maneuver the web of most agencies leading to frustration for foster families, social workers and birth families. The lack of proper coordination between various systems limits the efforts put to provide efficiency in the child welfare system. The need for the improvement of the system is very critical in managing efficiency in service delivery to the ever growing number of users of the child welfare services. So far, not so many states have established the infrastructure that is conducive for collaboration. If all the agencies can get to integrate their systems, the level of information sharing will improve and consequently facilitate more comprehensive services to the various families and children (Besharov, 2003). Bass (2004) states that substance abuse and domestic violence are a key component of increased number of children enrolled in the child welfare system. According to recent research, the link between the two variables and child maltreatment is startling. However, this information is not recorded by most child welfare agencies leads to non-detection of this problem. Studies suggest that many children in foster care come from families with domestic and substance abuse problems. Failure to detect and treat families affected by substance abuse and domestic violence issues can lead to an elongated stay in the foster homes for children. According to one study, lack of treatment for substance abuse is an obstacle to making of prompt permanent decisions. Moreover, if these problems are not identified and acted upon in time, they can lead to reentry of a child into the foster care system soon after reunification with his/her family (Bass, 2004). The families and children in the welfare system should have a positive experience while still in it. Currently under the system, children and families are given the same solutions yet they have different problems. In same breath, birth families are offered the identical case plans with total disregard of the specific challenges they are facing. In this regard, the system should be reformed to address this issue. Unique solutions should be offered to unique problems; the one-size-fits all mindset of the welfare system should be abolished (Blau, 2006). The child welfare system should be transformed to one that focuses on flexibility and individual treatment for families and children from one that focuses on process, procedure and compliance. Goals should be re-imagined to focus on broadening the vision of the child welfare system. The new vision should be that of improving the life experience...