Foster care helps give children advantages they may not have had.
The state of Pennsylvania prefers its foster parents to be well informed. The government departments that oversee the welfare of children view foster parents as an extension of the organization. Foster parents provide a service to children in need to help keep them off the street, to keep them fed and educated and to minimize negative emotional trauma. To perform these duties, the state believes it's in the child's best interest to keep the foster parents informed.
Department of Public Welfare (DPW)/SWAN
The Department of Public Welfare (DPW) is the central organization in Pennsylvania that oversees the welfare of children in the foster system. There are programs for children and adults, such as child abuse hot-lines, safe havens for newborns and family support centers. DPW also oversees the actions of the Statewide Adoption and Permanency Network (SWAN). Anyone interested in getting information about becoming a foster parent and eventually going through the adoption procedure goes through SWAN.
Pennsylvania State Foster Parent Association (PSFPA)
Pennsylvania State Foster Parent Association (PSFPA) is a network of foster parents, child psychologists and physicians, as well as adoptive parents. They provide information on many levels of the foster-parenting process. Members of the association are able to attend networking events and regional training conferences. A quarterly newsletter is published to members as well as local government child welfare authorities; it provides information on training courses, activities for Pennsylvania foster parents and new laws passed that affect the rights and regulations that govern the foster-parenting program. As of 2011, the annual fee to join is $25 for foster parents.
Confidentiality
Before, during and after a child is placed with a foster parent, the information released to the foster parents is confidential by Pennsylvania law. This includes information about the biological parents, the child's medical history and any other records that will help the foster parent provide better care for the child. The Pennsylvania Department of Welfare encourages foster parents to develop a relationship with the biological parents, because most children are eventually returned to their biological families. Any information the child shares with the foster parent is also confidential. Violating the state-enforced confidentiality agreement could land a foster parent in jail.
Child Abuse Information/Act 33 Clearance
Child-abuse information flows both ways. By Act 33 Clearance, also known as the Child Protective Services Law, foster parents are given any existing information regarding previous child-abuse claims and records. This information is important to the foster parent's ability to handle the child's special needs in the home, such as bed wetting, nervousness, and hyper behavior, which could be misconstrued as bad behavior when in reality they are actually the aftermath of child abuse.
Before foster parents can be cleared to bring children into their home, they also must be investigated for potential for child abuse. This act also requires foster parents to undergo criminal history checks by the Pennsylvania State Police.
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