In the foster care system, this includes social workers, their supervisors, foster parents, counselors, and the state. The shortage of trained foster parents results in more children being placed in each available home, shifting children from one home to another and frequently separating siblings. Many of the foster homes have an overload of children and can't take an entire group of siblings. Less money in the system results in less qualified, lower paid social workers. Less social workers means more caseloads for the present social workers.
Social workers can carry a maximum of twenty caseloads, but that is too many for today's standards.
Service to children is the goal of the system, so increasing the number of social worker positions would only benefit the system. Organization is also lacking in the foster care system. Case reviews are essential in making decisions about children's cases. There is no consensus of which type of review is most appropriate or effective. This serious degree of disorganization and uncertainty of authority is adversely affecting the system and consequently the children.