August 25, 2013, 6:46 p.m.
...Between May 28 and July 5, nearly 600 children were diverted to
holding rooms as social workers scrambled unsuccessfully to find them
homes, according to data obtained under the California Public Records
Act.
Stays exceeded a
state-imposed 24-hour legal limit in 117 cases, and dozens of children
spent multiple nights in the holding centers before being placed in
foster homes. By comparison, last August only one child remained in a
holding room longer than 24 hours, and overall about a third fewer
children were diverted to the centers....
Children with questionable health need to be placed in pediatric wards for health evaluations. It is unreasonable to ask a Foster Parent to place ill children among healthy ones.
...Placing a child often requires more than 100 calls by social workers, records showed....
This is child endangerment, the city is going to have to hire people and stop relying on volunteers.
...Officials acknowledged they don't always have enough personnel to promptly feed
children or change diapers. The department recently issued an emergency
plea for community volunteers to help in the holding rooms....
There is the issue of school age children becoming settled into classrooms so they have an opportunity to actually learn and all sorts of adjustment has to begin when a child is removed from circumstances of chance rather than assurance.
...The rate for children younger than 4 was recently boosted to about
$680 a month, which is still hundreds of dollars below the estimated
costs for foster parents.
"We need more homes and we need to pay them more," Browning said.
"But the rates are set by the state, not the county, and that constrains
us." The department is exploring ways to ease the financial burden of
young children, such as providing free child care, diapers and
transportation.
Browning said the county is entering new contracts with private,
nonprofit foster care agencies to accept children 24 hours a day.
Officials also recently agreed to pay the county's probation department
$400,000 to speed up criminal background checks on relatives who are
willing to take children removed from homes....
The county needs to evaluate all the 'qualifications' of becoming a Foster Parent as necessary to the mission of the program. I would think as long as a family member can provide protection and stability for a child, other than a history of substance abuse or violent crime, criminal background checks maybe unnecessary. Misdemeanors vs Felonies, etc. It is the home environment and the level of stability a family member can contribute as best. I would think a simple urine test at the time a child is placed might be a good measure until further qualifications can be carried out.
...There is one advantage to children passing through holding rooms, she
said. With her program on site, for example, the USC center provides a
venue for formal medical and mental health assessments of young
children, which help ensure placements are appropriate and reduce return
visits, she said. But her team isn't always given the time to fully
assess foster children, particularly in complex cases that require extra
resources, she said....
There is no reason why a child can't be admitted for medical observation and kept there until discharge. A Foster Child has medical coverage provided for them from the beginning. If upon the first 24 hours medical staff have sincere concerns for the well being of the child or the household the child will be placed in it demands further evaluation. It seems the LA system is a bureaucratic nightmare than a facilitated system of stability in placing the child.
Most of the placement by Child Welfare Agencies don't happen overnight, that is what surprises me. Most of the families have a history of concern. There needs to be that reality built into the system. When a case opens that could mean it will receive further action and should have planning built into it from the start.
Any family member available and interested should be given the opportunity to become part of the families record for possible placement right from the start. If the Grandparents are the next venue of home stability for the child or children that should already be in the record and the Hospital Center isn't even necessary at that point.
