Iowa Administrative Code › Agency 441 - Human Services Department › Title XII - Licensing and Approved Standards › Chapter 108 - Licensing and Regulation of Child-placing Agencies › Rule 441-108.8 - Foster Home Studies

Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 3, July 24, 2024
The agency shall provide information to prospective foster
				  parents about foster care, agency policies, licensing requirements for foster
				  care, the children needing foster care, the licensing process and the
				  reimbursement rates.
(1)
Licensing procedures
.
a.
				Availability of applications. The agency may provide Form 470-0689 to anyone
				requesting to be licensed.
b.
				Licensing study. The agency may complete a licensing study of the family.
c. New applications. If the
				child-placing agency decides to complete the initial licensing study, the
				agency shall submit to the department all documents and information required by
				441-Chapter 113 pertaining to the licensing and regulation of foster family
				homes. This shall include a narrative evaluation of the foster family home
				which reflects a thorough study of each foster family. The narrative shall
				document at least two face-to-face interviews with the prospective foster
				family and at least one face-to-face interview with each member of the
				household before the placement of a child. At least one interview shall take
				place in the applicant's home. The narrative summary of the family study shall
				assess all of the following:
(1) Motivation
				for foster care.
(2) Family's and
				extended family's attitude toward accepting foster children.
(3) Family's attitude toward foster
				children's parents.
(4) Emotional
				stability, physical health, and compatibility of foster parents, and ways they
				cope with change and stress.
(5)
				Adjustment of own children, if any.
(6) Assessment of the child-caring skills,
				including disciplinary techniques used.
(7) Strengths and weaknesses of each member
				of the household.
(8) Types of
				children desired.
(9) Type of
				children, if any, for whom placement with the family would be appropriate.
(10) Recommendation as to the
				number, age, sex, characteristics, and special needs of children best served by
				this family.
(11) Assessment of the
				need for training and a plan for providing the needed training.
(12) Any other pertinent information that
				might assist the agency in making the licensing recommendation.
(13) Record checks. The licensed
				child-placing agency shall submit record checks for each applicant and for
				anyone who is 14 years of age or older living in the home of the applicant to
				determine whether they have any founded child or dependent adult abuse reports
				or criminal convictions or have been placed on the sex offender registry. The
				licensed child-placing agency shall use Form 470-0643 and Form 595-1396 for
				this purpose. The department's contractor for the recruitment and retention of
				resource families shall assist applicants in completing required record checks,
				including fingerprinting. Any criminal or abuse records discovered shall be
				evaluated according to the procedures in rule 441-113.13(237).
(14) Health of foster parents and impact of
				medical conditions on their ability to foster a child.
(15) Income information.
(16) Documentation that at least three
				references have been received and the responses reviewed.