The Flaws Within The Foster Care System

Not everyone has the opportunity to live in house filled with joy and laughter, nor are they able to live with a forever family. Countless of kids weren’t fortunate to be able to have parents to care for them, so they were forced to either find relatives or be put into Foster Care homes. These homes give them a second opportunity to live again and patiently wait for their next family, but what happens in these households are not always the best of sight. Foster Care Systems may have their pros when allowing kids to have a home when they have no one to look after them, but not all children are lucky due to the number of flaws there are in this community. There are children out there who are forced to be separated from the only families they have left, pushed to live in a big world without a family to be guided from, getting abused mentally and physically, as well has heighten their traumatic state.

The bond created between siblings is one that never breaks. Every year, the Foster Care System has separated hundreds of the siblings and placed them into different households. No one should have to endure the feeling of being forced to be separated from one’s siblings, but thousands of youths within the foster care does. The aftermath of the parting leaves the kids at a higher risk of developing behavioral problems. A sibling bond is the strongest and longest lasting bond. “Brothers and sisters provide emotional support, comfort, and a sense of stability, belonging, and continuity. They may serve as allies, confidants, companions, and sources of love… “(Kernan). When separated, brothers and sister will long for one another

. A sense of grief and loneliness will surface as their time of separation last longer. When situations like this occurs, they will want to have contact with one another. However, it will take months for caseworkers to be able to make an appointment that could last for only an hour. There are even times, when these appointments are even denied. Despite the fact that siblings are likely to be separated from one another, there some people who weren’t fortunate to have a family to adopt them and are exposed to live in the real world.

When one turns the rightful age of adulthood, they are required to leave the foster home. Being 18, they are left alone to support their needs. Since these, now adults, weren’t adopted, they have no other family to lean on for mental and physical support. As of 2016, it has been recorded that over 20,000 young adults have aged out of the foster care without permanent families (Santana). Without a family, they won’t have anyone who will guide them to live a prosperous life. Most of them tend to experience homelessness, incarceration, as well as unemployment throughout their adulthood. The foster care system doesn’t help and support these adults on how to live alone. Most struggle to make a living because the foster care systems didn’t give them a proper base on how to live as an adult. Having to live without support has negatively affected these people, nevertheless, there are still kids who are experiencing far worse situations.

When living in a foster home, it is expected that all children are treated equally with love and care. However, not every household is filled with sunshine and rainbows. Nowadays, thousands of kids are being cared for in foster care, however, there have been hundreds of occurrences where they were physically abused from the caretakers. According to 37 states, it was reported that 2.4 percent of the children in foster care homes died due to abuse (Santana). The fact that there are kids who get abused within these households signifies how little they care about these children.

The Foster Care System should be able to select responsible and harmless adults to be able to take care of these kids. Not all reports of abuse go into the system, so not many people have acknowledged this situation. The abuse that some kids go through further traumatizes their experiences in foster care. The situation with them getting abused leads them to have a higher risk to gain mental disorder such as depression and anxiety. The Child Welfare System tried to aid the kids throughout their foster care journey, but not all have succeeded.

Being abused isn’t the only case of why kids have been diagnosed with mental disorders. Most children are placed in these homes due to their abusive parents, but being placed in foster care heightened up their mental state. Their reason is mainly due to jumping from one home to another, so the kids don’t feel like they belong in just one general place. The Trauma-Informed Care is trying to aid these kids, but so far, there has not been much effect. Overall, the environment and/or the amount of times the kids are placed in different foster care had a negative effect on them. (Beyerlein and Ellin). Within a year, children can move up to four different foster homes. Each foster home holds a different environment. The child will have to learn and adapt along the way, but all the moving around will stress them out and make them feel like they don’t belong.

Although the foster care system has its cons, they are able to provide a home for millions of kids who aren’t lucky enough to have a family. The foster care system gives people a second to live again. They are able to provide them a temporary home when no one else are able to. Caregivers strive to provide them best temporary home for all the youths. More than 168,000 social workers strive each day to improve the lives of children and families. The Foster Care system strives to be able aid through the healing process of many adolescents by leaving them in a secure and lively environment until they could either be adopted into a loving familly or until it’s safe enough to bring them back home. Even though it may be rough for several kids, the caregivers want to make sure to make the process as smooth as possible.

No one should have to endure the harsh environment that the Foster Care System provides. Although it doesn’t occur for many children, having these flaws in the system should be assessed, in order for no other kids to feel lonely and abandoned. The Foster Care System should be able to make sure that all kids are given the chance to feel what happiness is without further abandoning their mental and physical needs.

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