Mississippi Administrative Code › Title 18 - HUMAN SERVICES › Part 6 - Division of Family and Children's Services › Chapter 1 - DFCS Policy Manual › Section 18-6-1-G - Adoption Policy › Section 18-6-1-G-III - DEVELOPMENT OF ADOPTION PLAN

Current through June 25, 2024
A.
Role of
				  COR Worker
The COR Worker shall have the following responsibilities in
					 achieving Adoption:
* Recognize, through concurrent planning, when adoption
					 appears to be the most appropriate and feasible goal for the child.
* Engage parents in a discussion on optional voluntary
					 surrender of their parental rights. If the parents wish to surrender, the COR
					 Worker must obtain permission from the Director of the Permanency Unit prior to
					 the parents signing any documents.
* Prepare and submit to the Worker's Area Social Work
					 Supervisor (ASWS) a complete Termination of Parental Rights (TPR) referral
					 within the time frame allowed by policy. (
See
Section D, TPR)
* Discuss the goal of adoption with the child, parents and
					 Resource Parents. Ascertain if the Resource Parents are interested in adopting
					 the child.
* Assist in preparation of child and family for adoption.
* Notify the Adoption ASWS within 3 calendar days of
					 adoption becoming the child's permanent or concurrent plan.
* Update the Family Service Plan (FSP) and request
					 Adoption County of Service (COS).
* There may be two Adoption COS Direct Services if the
					 child is placed outside their COR.
* One Adoption COS Direct Service should be established for
					 the Adoption Specialist in the child's COR and one within the child's COS.
* The COR worker will continue to be responsible for the
					 case, and will work toward the permanent plan as appropriate, and will visit
					 with the child face to face at least twice a month or quarterly if placed
					 outside the COR.
B.
Role of Adoption Specialist
The child's Adoption Specialist will immediately begin the
					 assessment and preparation for adoption process with the assigned child, the
					 birth family and the placement resource. The preparation for adoption process
					 should include working with the child on his/her life book (including the
					 preparation of child's written life story) and following a strategic plan for
					 transitioning the child to adoption.
* An Adoption Specialist will be assigned to work with an
					 assigned COR Worker within ten (10) working days of adoption becoming the
					 child's permanent or concurrent plan.
* The Adoption Specialist and the Worker will begin the
					 process of securing an adoptive placement for the child.
* The Adoption Specialist will also begin compiling the
					 child's file in preparation for adoption assistance certification.
* The Adoption Specialist shall inform the current and any
					 other identified Resource Parent of the child's potential eligibility for
					 Adoption Assistance and enter documentation of this discussion into the child's
					 and Resource Parent's files in MACWIS.
* Within fifteen (15) calendar days of adoption becoming
					 the child's permanent or concurrent plan. The COR Worker along with the
					 Adoption Specialist shall prepare an adoption plan that identifies the child
					 specific activities that DFCS will undertake to achieve the
					 permanent/concurrent goal of adoption and the timeframes in which the
					 activities will be undertaken.
* The Adoption Specialist shall be responsible for the
					 following:
* Consulting with private and public professionals.
* Identifying and ensuring the provision of targeted
					 services necessary for the child to be adopted.
* Adoption Status Meeting with the DFCS Worker, Adoption
					 Specialist, and the Worker's direct ASWS to review the progress being made in
					 achieving the goal of adoption and shall occur weekly for infants and monthly
					 for all other children awaiting adoption and must be documented in the child's
					 case record.
C.
Adoption Plan
The DFCS Adoption Unit is responsible for adoptive
					 placement planning for all children in DFCS custody whose permanent plan is
					 adoption. The assigned Adoption Specialist will work with the child, the COR
					 Worker, the birth family (as appropriate), and all other persons vested in this
					 child's life to develop a strategic plan to transition the child to permanency
					 through adoption and help the child maintain those life-long connections
					 already in place. This plan will be developed through Adoption Status Meetings.
This team will prepare a written plan for adoption. This
					 adoption plan will identify the following:
* Child-specific recruitment activities,
* Time frames to complete the assigned activities and
* Assigned workers to complete the specific activities.
D.
Adoption Status
				  Meeting
Within 15 calendar days of adding adoption as a
					 permanent/concurrent plan, the Adoption Specialist will convene an Adoption
					 Status Meeting with the COR Worker, COR ASWS, and other staff familiar with
					 this child. Adoption Status Meetings serve three (3) primary purposes:
* To review the progress of the adoption plan
* To identify barriers to adoption and
* To develop strategies that overcome barriers in order to
					 achieve the goal of adoption.
Adoption Status Meetings will be held monthly for children
					 over 12 months of age and weekly for children 12 months of age and younger.
Each subsequent Adoption Status meeting will update the
					 progress that has been made to move the child toward adoption. Steady
					 progression toward permanency must be documented from the date adoption has
					 been added to the permanent/concurrent plan until permanency is achieved
					 indicating who completed each task and in what time frame.
E.
Documentation of Efforts toward
				  Adoption
The Adoption Status Meetings shall be documented in the
					 child's case file by the Adoption Specialist within 5 working days after the
					 meeting is held.
Documentation of the Initial Adoption Status Meeting
					 Includes the following:
* Date when Adoption was added to the permanent/concurrent
					 plan
* Date of TPR hearing, if set, or discussion of parental
					 surrender of rights
* Summary of previous discussion of adoption with the
					 child.
* Tentative date when the Adoption Specialist will meet
					 the child and begin the assessment and preparation process for adoption.
* All maternal and paternal relatives are contacted
* The need to re-evaluate any possible relatives for
					 adoptive placement or to foster permanent connections is established.
* Description of any fictive kin relationships or other
					 life-long connections that have been established.
* COR Worker's discussion with the current placement
					 resource about adopting the child
* COR Worker's recommendation of the current placement
					 resource to adopt
* Name the Resource Family who plans to adopt, if it is
					 the plan.
* Adoption Specialist will plan to meet the Resource
					 Parent to assess and prepare the family for adoption.
* Discussion of continued contact with birth family
					 following adoption, if in the best interest of the child.
* Schedule a Family Team Meeting to be held with birth
					 family/kin, Resource Parents, COR staff, and Adoption Specialist to address
					 birth family visitation/contact, if found to be in the child's best interest
* Discussion of sibling placements
* Adoption Specialist will begin the assessment of sibling
					 placement to determine if they can be adopted together.
* If the child is placed out of state, assessment of the
					 home including whether the home is licensed, family willingness to adopt, etc.
F.
Ongoing Adoption
				  Status Meetings
* The Adoption Specialist will review the file to select
					 all necessary documentation needed in order to certify the child for Adoption
					 Assistance.
* The Adoption Specialist will make referrals for
					 necessary services that must be provided before an adoption can be finalized.
* Update the Comprehensive Child Assessment and
					 preparation document.
* Update assessment of siblings being placed together. If
					 plan becomes separate placements, give update on visitation plan/
					 responsibilities.
* Description of how permanent connections are being
					 fostered
* Identify barriers to the transition to adoption.
* COR Worker will update on TPR
					 process/permanent/concurrent plan progress or barriers to achieving permanency.
* All progress toward a permanent placement will be
					 discussed at monthly status meeting.
* Outline: "Who will do what & when"
* Scheduling an appointment, requesting records,
					 researching needed services, making appropriate referrals, contacting
					 relatives, etc.
G.
INFANTS up to 12 months of age
Once adoption is added to an infant's permanent/concurrent
					 plan an initial Adoption Status Planning meeting is held. Weekly Adoption
					 Status Meetings will be held until the permanency plan is achieved.
* When a mother wishes to place her infant for adoption,
					 the child shall be referred to the Adoption ASWS for placement into an adoptive
					 home upon entering DFCS custody or discharge from the hospital, where
					 applicable.
* The Adoption Unit will make an appropriate adoptive
					 placement through the Placement Committee Process (which can be held by phone)
					 and Adoption Status Meeting. These placement efforts will be documented in the
					 child's case.
* The Adoption Specialist will provide COS services,
					 preparation and assessment for the child(ren) and adoptive family, assist the
					 family in mediating future contact between the birth family and adoptive
					 family, and supervise the adoptive placement throughout the adoption process.
If the COR is working with the biological parents to make
					 plans for an adoption prior to the child's birth, the COR ASWS shall inform the
					 Adoption ASWS of these plans and provide background information on the child,
					 when possible. This will enable the Adoption Unit to plan for a potential
					 placement into an Adoptive Home.
After the birth of the child, the Adoption ASWS shall be
					 notified of the birth by the COR ASWS. The following information on the child
					 will be provided at that time:
1.
				  Birth date
2. Birth weight and
				  length
3. Race
4. Physical condition of the child, as
				  reported by the attending physician
The Adoption Specialist will accompany the COR Worker to
					 the hospital for the child's discharge and will proceed with placement into the
					 identified adoptive home. The following information/documentation shall be
					 submitted to the Adoption Specialist upon the child's discharge from the
					 hospital or at the time the parent(s) signs the surrender of parental rights,
					 form 459. (See Appendix A)
1. Social
				  Summary and Form MSDH-913, Medical and Social History. (Must be obtained from
				  the MS Department of Health)
2.
				  Form MDHS-SS-430 Obstetrical and Newborn Record. (See Appendix B)
3. *Form MDHS-SS-459 and 459A (See Appendix
				  C) or 459B (See Appendix D) signed by the Mother.
4. *Form(s) MDHS-SS-459 signed by the
				  Father(s).
5. State Department of
				  Health forms 914 or 915 (Must be obtained from the MS Department of Health),
				  Authorization to Disclose.
*Forms for the Surrender of Parental Rights and
					 Consent to Adoption cannot be executed by the biological parents until 72 hours
					 (three days) after the birth of the child