Louisiana Administrative Code › Title 48 - PUBLIC HEALTH-GENERAL › Part V - Preventive Health Services › Subpart 21 - Residential Licensing › Chapter 73 - Child Placing Agencies-General Provisions › 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.
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. Individuals interviewed in person shall
				  sign and date summary written by the interviewer 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.
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.