Family Preservation Services Against the Adverse Effects of Out-of-Home Placements

Child Welfare
Student Name
Institutional Affiliation
Date
Child Welfare: Family Preservation Services
Why did you choose this particular issue? What is the main type of maltreatment it addresses?
The chosen child warfare program is family preservation services (FPS). The FPS was selected to mitigate against the adverse effects of out-of-home placements where children unable to live with their parents are taken away from home to another place (Bezeczky et al., 2020). Children could be placed under foster care, relative care, family group homes, residential care, or independent living in this arrangement. The out-of-home placements are meant to mitigate against maltreatment of children by removing them away from parents or relatives abusing them. Children under out-of-home placements are likely to experience a life disruption and loss (Clemens, Klopfenstein, Lalonde & Tis, 2018). They need extensive support to catch up with some developmental stages since they are outside their home environment. For young children, attachment to parents is critical in ensuring that they have smooth growth. Staying with parents provides an opportunity for children to bond with their parents and establish a relationship with them. With out-of-home placements, such a bond is broken, which may affect the developmental process of some children.
FPS provides an in-home intervention where children can be protected while still under the custody of their children. Instead of removing the affected child from the home setting, FPS facilitates the child's care at home. The approach allows children to be safe with their parents, unlike in out-of-home placements where safety is away from the home setting. At the same time, FPSs will strengthen parenting and improve the functioning of the family (Đurišić & Bunijevac, 2017). It would benefit not only the affected children but also the parent or parents. Focusing on addressing the issues leading to the abuse is an effective measure of ensuring that the same does not happen in the future. Because of its ability to allow children to have normal lives at home, FPSs are more appropriate for dealing with children experiencing maltreatment which can be rectified.
In order to understand which types of maltreatment FPS addresses, it is crucial to establish what the four major maltreatments entail. The first one is neglect in inadequate healthcare, learning, protection from hazardous surroundings, and inability to get basic needs like food and clothing (Evans & Burton, 2013). It is usually the most common type of child maltreatment. Secondly, physical abuse entails beating, burning, and biting. It can manifest in fractured ribs, swollen body parts, and other damages to the body. Thirdly, emotional abuse involves verbal abuse and any acts that demean a child. Psychological has adverse effects on the future emotional being of children (Evans & Burton, 2013). It makes them vulnerable to psychological illnesses like depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts. The final form of maltreatment is sexual abuse, where children are involved in sexual activities that they cannot consent to or comprehend (Evans & Burton, 2013). It does not need oral, vaginal, or anal penetration since acts like exposure to explicit content and genital fondling are equally sexual abuse.
FPSs will address mild forms of physical abuse, emotional abuse, and neglect that do not require an out-of-home placement method. However, it would not be applicable in instances of sexual abuse, which would ordinarily require the affected child to be taken elsewhere. For cases that involve extreme examples, the out-of-home placement method would be more suitable. The use of FPSs arises from the idea that some forms of child maltreatment result from the challenges the parents are facing (Katz & Fallon, 2020). Finding a way of addressing such issues produces an effective way of preventing maltreatment from the same parents. For instance, if a couple has no job and is suffering from financial challenges, the parents are likely to transfer the hurt to their children in the form of emotional abuse. However, if such parents are supported to cope with the challenging situation, they can recover and avoid any form of psychological abuse towards the children.
Describe a program/or services provided in the issue/area you have chosen above.
FPSs are grounded on crisis theory. In a crisis that emergences from a sudden disturbance of balance, the family operation is usually disturbing. The usual family coping mechanisms, together with the available social support systems, are typically insufficient. In such instances, crisis intervention seeks to address the crisis and enable the family to acquire new coping forms that minimize the chance for another crisis. PFS gained its popularity since the introduction of the attachment theory by Bowlby in 1969. The theory indicated that separating children from their biological parents led to attachment challenges (Hardy, 2007). As a result, having in-home intervention was a more preferred approach than the out-of-home placement method.
What related legislation, policy, and laws affect the provision of the services meant to address the issue you chose?
The Family Preservation and Support Act of 1993 remains critical in enhancing FPS. The act offers finding meant to boost child welfare preventing services. As a result, the act facilitates the provision of funds intended to...