Louisiana Administrative Code › Title 67 - SOCIAL SERVICES › Part V - Child Welfare › Subpart 8 - Residential Licensing › Chapter 73 - Child Placing Agencies › Section V-7315 - Foster and Adoptive Certification

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 6, June 20, 2024
A. Home Study-Foster and Adoptive Home
1. Prior to placement of a child/youth in the
				  home, the provider shall complete a home study of the foster/adoptive parent
				  and their home. The home study shall be signed and dated by the person
				  completing the home study and approved, signed, and dated by a licensed
				  clinical social worker, licensed master social worker with 3 years of
				  experience in adoption or foster care services, licensed professional
				  counselor, licensed psychologist, medical psychologist, licensed psychiatrist,
				  or licensed marriage and family therapist prior to certification of the
				  foster/adoptive parents. All individuals who approve home studies shall be
				  licensed in the state of Louisiana.
2. The provider shall assess information
				  gathered regarding the family, housing, and environment to either approve or
				  deny certification for prospective foster/adoptive parents.
3. The provider shall conduct at least three
				  consultation visits with prospective foster/adoptive families two of which
				  shall be conducted in the home with the third visit either in the home or
				  child-placing agency office. The consultation visits shall be conducted on
				  three different dates. The following interviews shall be conducted during each
				  of the three consultation visits:
a. one
				  joint interview with the prospective foster/adoptive parents;
b. one individual interview with each
				  prospective foster/adoptive parent; and
c. one group interview with all individuals
				  living in the home.
4. In
				  addition to the interviews noted in §7315.A 3, one individual interview with
				  each child six years old or older and capable of verbal communication living
				  either full-or part-time in the home shall be conducted in the home.
5. In addition to the interviews noted in
				  §7315.A 3, one individual interview with each other person living in the home
				  either full or part-time shall be conducted in the home or the child-placing
				  agency office.
6. The following
				  interviews shall be conducted either in person or by telephone for the
				  following:
a. each minor child of the
				  prospective foster/adoptive parents not living in the home age 6 years of age
				  or older and capable of verbal communication;
b. at least one adult child of the
				  prospective foster/adoptive parents not living in the home; and
c. a family member not living in the home and
				  not yet interviewed.
7.
				  Documentation of the consultation visits shall include the date, time, method
				  of contact, duration of each interview, those present at each interview,
				  relationship to the prospective foster/adoptive parents, and a summary of each
				  interview.
8. Foster/adoptive
				  parents and adults of the household interviewed in person shall sign and date
				  summary or home study written by the interviewer upon its completion to ensure
				  accuracy.
9. If the prospective
				  foster/adoptive parents have school age children, an interview or reference
				  letter shall be obtained from at least two school personnel who are unrelated
				  to the foster/adoptive parents that can provide an opinion of the prospective
				  foster/adoptive parents' suitability to provide care for children in foster
				  care or available for adoption. If the child is home schooled by someone other
				  than the prospective foster/adoptive parents, then an interview or reference
				  letter is required from that individual regarding their opinion of the
				  prospective foster/adoptive parents' suitability to provide care for children
				  in foster care or available for adoption. If provider is unable to obtain
				  reference information due to school policy, documentation of attempts to secure
				  information is required.
10.
				  Throughout the home study process, the provider shall document and assess the
				  following with regard to prospective foster/adoptive parents:
a. motivation and willingness to provide a
				  foster/adoptive home placement for a child;
b. capacity to provide a foster/adoptive home
				  placement for a child;
c. the
				  number, age, and sex of children the foster/adoptive parent are willing to
				  foster/adopt;
d. behaviors, health,
				  or developmental conditions of the children which prospective foster/adoptive
				  parents are willing to accept for placement;
e. prospective foster/adoptive parents
				  feelings about their own childhoods and parents, including any history of abuse
				  and/or neglect and their resolution of those experiences;
f. the nature and quality of prospective
				  foster/adoptive parents respective roles and how those roles may change the
				  present marital status or significant interpersonal relationship;
g. history of previous marriages or
				  significant relationships and the reasons why those relationships
				  ended;
h. prospective
				  foster/adoptive parents religious faith, affiliation, practices, attitudes
				  towards religion, openness to the religion of others, the role of religion in
				  rearing children and willingness to respect and encourage a child's religious
				  affiliation if different from their own;
i. prospective foster/adoptive parents
				  sensitivity and personal feelings with regard to children who have been abused
				  and/or neglected; understanding of the dynamics of child abuse and neglect and
				  how these issues and experiences will affect their families, the children in
				  their care, and themselves;
j.
				  disciplinary beliefs and practices including how prospective parents were
				  disciplined as children, their reactions to the discipline received, their
				  ability to recognize and respect differences in children, and the need to use
				  discipline methods that suit the individual child;
k. prospective foster/adoptive parents
				  sensitivity and feelings regarding a child's experiences of separation from or
				  loss of their birth families;
l.
				  prospective foster/adoptive parents feelings about the child's parents,
				  including the issue of abuse or neglect of the child by the child's parents or
				  other family members; and sensitivity and reactions to the child/youth's
				  parents;
m. prospective
				  foster/adoptive parents sensitivity and acceptance of the child/youth's
				  relationships with his siblings; their willingness to support the child/youth's
				  relationships with parents, siblings, and extended family including support for
				  contacts between the child/youth and the child/youth's family;
n. prospective foster/adoptive parent's
				  attitude, sensitivity, tolerance, and acceptance of a child's race/ethnicity,
				  heritage, and/or culture and willingness to respect, support, and encourage a
				  child's connection to their culture of origin;
o. prospective foster/adoptive parents'
				  formative experiences with foster care or adoption;
p. prospective foster/adoptive parents' plan
				  for child care if foster/adoptive parents work outside of the home;
q. assessment of support systems shall
				  include extended family available to foster/adoptive parents and support the
				  family may receive from these resources and those available as caregivers
				  during an unexpected event or crisis, such as an illness or disability of a
				  foster/adoptive parent, loss of transportation, or the death of an immediate
				  family member;
r. family
				  background;
s. family
				  traditions;
t. potential effect of
				  foster/adoptive child on family relationships;
u. hobbies and interests of foster/adoptive
				  parents and household members;
v.
				  contact with extended family, integration into/involvement in community and the
				  effect the addition of a new child will have on the family;
w. the impact the extended family's attitudes
				  will have on the family's ability to provide foster/adoptive care;
x. plan in the event the foster/adoptive
				  parent is unable to assist the child academically;
y. location of weapons, firearms, and
				  ammunition and plans for safety once placement occurs;
z. attitude and capacity for handling a
				  disruption if it occurs; and
aa.
				  openness to adopt from a foster care situation should the opportunity present
				  itself.
11. At least one
				  applicant shall be functionally literate as required by
				  Public Law
				  115-123.
12. For each prospective foster/adoptive
				  household, the child-placing agency shall document, assess, and verify that the
				  prospective foster parents have income separate from foster care reimbursement
				  to meet the needs of the family. Social Security Disability, Social Security,
				  and/or other sources of income such as family support, Supplemental Nutrition
				  Assistance Program (SNAP), and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
				  shall be included to determine financial stability.
13. The child-placing agency shall assess the
				  potential negative impacts on the child/youth and family if a business open to
				  the public adjoins the prospective foster/adoptive parent's household and
				  assessment shall include the hours of operation, type of business, and
				  clientele.
14. The prospective
				  foster/adoptive parent shall be allowed the opportunity to review and obtain a
				  copy of their home study in accordance with agency policy whether the
				  application was approved or denied for certification. Any quotes from reference
				  letters or other third party letters or telephone reports from agencies or
				  professionals or information obtained from or referencing criminal background
				  clearances shall be deleted. Identifying information regarding the
				  child/youth's birth family shall be removed, unless a release of information is
				  obtained from the legal guardian. Information shall be made available to the
				  applicant within seven calendar days of the request.