Long Island University Brooklyn Child Welfare Adoption Services Case Study

Read the Case Study which focuses on working in Adoption Services. Using your critical thinking skills, and content from the Case, please answer each questions using quality complete sentences. Number each answer, then answer.

The Case is below and attached for ease of review.

Click on WRITE SUBMISSION, then type in answers, followed by clicking Submit.

Thanks!

Dr. Rich

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Case Study: Social Workercise and the Adoption Social Worker

by Ronnita J. Waters, LCSW

It is Monday morning, 7:23 a.m. to be exact, and I am already out the door. I am so excited and happy, because I have two adoption finalizations today for three kids. I am also excited because I have a home visit tonight to introduce a prospective adoptive family to one of my kids, Joey, by phone. I leave earlier than my usual time in an effort to beat the traffic to my office 45 minutes away. I am excited to get to the office to knock some paperwork out of the way, so I can spend the remainder of my day having client contact, including three home visits. I have some court documents to print, sign, and submit to my supervisor before my 1:30 p.m. adoption hearings. So I will drive past the courthouse to my office, and I finally arrive at the office at 8:35. As I arrive, my alarm goes off. I have a 9 a.m. conference call to update all parties (Joey’s guardian ad litem, DCF attorney, Joey’s caregivers, Joey’s attorney ad litem, and Joey’s therapist) on the family’s decision after reviewing the disclosure file. My supervisor isn’t in the office yet—only five other case managers, a supervisor, and the clerical staff are present this early. This is great, because now I have the community printer to myself. I start on my scheduled paperwork, which today includes updating a child study for a child for whom I have been searching for a forever family for two years, correcting a status report for court on the adoption process for a sibling group of eight, printing the adoption home study on an aunt applying to adopt her fourth child from her sister (I typed the home study up last night from my Thursday interview notes), putting together the adoption package that goes with her home study, and entering the two siblings I was assigned on Wednesday into the state adoption recruitment website.

The conference call, as I knew it would, goes longer than planned, so I decide to check my emails…only 63 new emails from Friday at 8 p.m. to Monday at 9:30 a.m. The call ends with all parties in agreement to supervise contact by phone or in person, until further recommendation of the therapist. My supervisor and I pretty much co-train all parties on our agency’s adoption matching and finalization process in one conference call. This includes references to the federal Multi-Ethnic Placement Act requirements, state dependency statutes, and the state administrative code. I haven’t gone to law school, but my paralegal certificate gets its fair share of work.

I was able to respond to all my necessary emails, so this call has multiple positives in my book. I get to my final print (the home study), and the office has bloomed into the majority of our case management workforce, including my intern. I have the social work intern use our checklist to pull together the adoption package, while I start entering the first sibling into the statewide recruitment system. I decide I’ll enter one sibling and let the intern review my entry to create the entry for the second sibling. I use my remaining time to follow up on service provider requests and to make corrections to the few court and adoption documents my supervisor returned to my attention. Working on papers doesn’t stop my phones from ringing or my emails from dinging, so I stop and respond to those, too. This stop-and-go switching from papers to phones to emails is a daily routine. I call it “social workercise.”

Although I plan to leave at 12:30 for my 30-minute drive to court, my intern and I don’t get on the elevator until 1 p.m. after my stop-and-go routine and putting the last-minute touches on the adoption package. We leave the package and other corrected documents with my supervisor for review and head out. I remember my adoption finalization folders as I step on the elevator and rush back to get them out of my desk. When I get to the parking lot, I give the social work intern the courtroom number, so he can meet me to observe the adoption finalizations.

Thank God I packed water, fruits, and nuts today. I snack and drive and return to aimless thoughts and various car karaoke moments as the radio seems in tune with my mood today. I have three missed calls, and two are on one of the cases I am finalizing today. I walk into the courthouse holding on tightly to my adoption finalization folders. The folders have various adoption forms and information on adoption resources for the adoptive families and their “new” children. I greet the security guards and go through the metal detector.

I check my phone, and one of the families adopting today has called for the second time but has left no voice message. I call them back, and they confirm the details of the hearing. They acknowledge that they confirmed yesterday, but they are so excited they want to verify again whether they should call in or if I will call them. I explain that the court will call them and verify that they have the notary present. I don’t have a folder for them, but I will put it in the mail tomorrow. They are appearing by phone, because they reside outside of the state. They are adopting Trice, a sibling in the first case I received as an adoption worker.

more than a year ago.

The process for new placements without concern usually takes 90 days. With this case, we also had to wait out an adoption application appeal process. The child’s previous caregiver applied to adopt, so the competing applications had to be reviewed by a committee. After the committee made its recommendation and the department decided not to approve the previous caregiver, the previous caregiver appealed the decision. We awaited an administrative hearing to be set. Once it was set and done (it lasted two days), we awaited the administrative order, and then the appeal time for that order. The family and I are so excited to finally have this adoption hearing set. The other finalization today is a family completing their sec-ond adoption, and this time it is a sibling group of two. I did their first adoption a year ago, with Trice’s sister, Lisa. I plan to keep in touch, because Trice and Lisa’s biological brother remains in foster care awaiting a family, and I want to ensure these siblings don’t lose contact.

I get to the courtroom waiting area, and my intern is waiting with the family and the adoption attorney, everyone dressed in some type of purple. I greet everyone with hugs. One of the children taps me and asks, “Where is your purple?” I unbutton my jacket and proudly show my purple satin ruffled shirt. The kids beam smiles. Lisa chose our dress code today—purple is her favorite color. She saw another family do some dress coordination on her adoption day and asked her mom if this time their family could do some matching. We all excitedly complied. The adoption attorney states, “We’re next.” I’ve worked with him on many adoptions over the years, but I am not sure if he knows it is me, since he calls my co-worker my name all the time.

The adoptive mom, Mrs. Smith, jokes with me: “Well they about to be all mines now, don’t you bring me no more.” The whole group, including me, laughs. The bailiff looks at me and in a deep voice says, “You noising up my hallway again, young lady.” He has known me since I was a social work intern eight years ago at 20 years old. He gives me a smile and a wink. I know he is joking, but I smile and apologize out of habit.

The bailiff signals to the adoption attorney, who says, “It’s show time.” I lock eyes with Mrs. Smith, and tears have already formed in the pockets of her eyes. Her adult daughter rubs her back, and the tears are now running down her face. Lisa falls into her usual role and quickly wipes her mom’s face. I love seeing Lisa after her adoption. Seeing how she grew to be comfortable with emotions and so protective of her mother ensures me this was the right family for her. I know Mrs. Smith’s tears are tears of relief. I also know she isn’t comfortable with them but can’t stop them. I feel my eyes burning. Mrs. Smith looks at me and jokes, “My eyes hot. They sweating.”

We walk into the courtroom. I let the family enter first—about 15 attendees. When I get to the front of the courtroom, the judge is already asking for the adoption worker. I announce myself, and then the adoption attorney leads the family introductions. The judge does some fact reviewing, and the adoption attorney confirms. He asks Mrs. Smith to share why she wants the judge to grant her petition for adoption. I look straight up to the ceiling, because I know I will not be able to hold back these tears. Mrs. Smith tells the court how much she and her family love the children. Now there is not a dry eye in the room.

The children are not old enough to require their consent, but they are of age to understand this process. I know they understand it, because I worked with them regarding adoption, starting soon after their parents’ parental rights were terminated. The adoption attorney asks if the children want to share why they want Mrs. Smith to adopt them. The youngest shakes his head no. The older sister tearfully says, “Because she is our mommy, and me and my brother love her.”

Now it’s my turn, and the adoption attorney asks if I signed the consent for this adoption. “Yes.” He asks if I completed the adoption home study recommending that Mrs. Smith adopt these siblings. “Yes,” I answer. He then asks, “And why did you recommend Mrs. Smith to adopt these beautiful children?” I do my look to the ceiling to hold my tears, breathe, and state, “I saw what Mrs. Smith did for Lisa and knew these children needed only her to get them to an emotionally safe place. I believe this forever home and family is the best for the children.” The judge says, “I agree, so I am granting this petition for Mrs. Smith to adopt these two beautiful children.” She announces each child’s new legal name, and we all cheer. We do some quick pictures in the courtroom and with the judge. Mrs. Smith says she’ll wait for me outside, and I turn back to do the other adoption by phone.

On my way out of the courtroom, I give Mrs. Smith and her new-est two children each a folder, explaining to her the tuition waivers and adoption tax credit information inside of her folder. I encourage her to join a foster and adoptive parent group and to keep an eye out for chances to advocate for the tax credit to continue. I exchange see-you-later hugs. Mrs. Smith invites me to lunch, but I explain I have to head down south for home visits. She gives me a hug and thanks me for everything. I thank her for being the best mommy for my kids. I rush to my car in hopes of beating the traffic and getting to my 3:30 p.m. home visit with Joey on time. I give my intern a few moments to debrief, as I switch into comfortable flat shoes and put my “court shoes and jacket” in my trunk for my next court date (Wednesday).

I finish my day at 8:30 p.m., when I walk out of my last home visit. I have a new to-do list from each home visit, but I am happy because tonight every child I visited appeared safe and with caregivers who were ensuring the health of the children’s well-being. Joey’s call with the prospective adoptive family is moving him toward permanency. A 16-year-old child who said she didn’t want to be adopted agreed to participate in an adoption recruitment event. And I did an adoption placement and subsidy agreement for a sibling group of four with their godfather. Safety, permanency, and well-being are the core objectives in child welfare, and in five hours, I made progress in all three areas for six children who do not have legal parents. I love my career!

When things don’t go well, I call it “The Journey,” as I believe the destination will prove the twists and turns are necessary.

Of course, life has various twists and turns. Life in “foster care” adoption is no different. For example, I arrived home at 9:15 p.m. and I was able to sleep in using my flexible schedule. But at 10 a.m., my 16-year-old from last night’s home visit was calling me. She was in a heated argument with her caregiver. While I was speaking with the caregiver, the child packed a bag and left the home, stating she would not be returning. Now I have a missing child. A week and a half into their telephone contact, Joey and the prospective adoptive family had a spat, and the family wants to stop the process and consider another child. The day after the three children were adopted, one of my co-workers went on medical leave, so I have my cases PLUS I am covering half of her cases until her return or a new person is hired. My organization skills are put to the test, but they are sharpened at the same time. I learn my self-care has a direct effect on my engagement skills and rapport building. In the end, I still love my career!

Answer the questions below using complete sentences and depth of thought.

1. What are the core objectives in child welfare, and how would you ensure them as an adoption social worker? Be detailed.

2. What are the possible pros and cons of “social workercise”? Be specific.

3. What are some factors you would consider when recommending which family should adopt Trice? Be specific.

4. How is a home study different from a home visit? Be detailed.

5. Trice, Lisa, and their biological brother are being adopted by different families. How would you explain to the adoptive families why sibling contact is important post adoption? Be detailed.