Community Partnership for Foster Care Health - MED - PEDS - Adolescent Health and Medicine, University of Minnesota

Children in foster care are heavy users of health services for medical conditions, but disorders of development and mental health far surpass medical disorders.

The American Academy of Pediatrics, Child Welfare League of America, and American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry recommend coordinated, comprehensive health care that includes mental health assessment and treatment, and that begins within 24 hours of the child’s removal from the home.

They also recommend that ongoing care be provided by health practitioners knowledgeable about foster care health, with clinical support appropriate to the needs of this population.
The Community Partnership for Foster Care Health is an interdisciplinary task force with the goal of creating a model of health care for children in foster care in Minnesota, emphasizing their emotional, physical and educational well-being. The guiding force in the development of this model will be the experience of children in out-of-home care and the families that care for them, including birth, foster and adoptive families.

Goals
Delivery of excellent health and mental health care to children in out-of-home placement.

Create an actionable model for foster care health delivery and community collaboration that includes mental health prevention services as well as treatment.
Create an action plan and timeline.

Create an ongoing university-community collaborative committee to address health care quality and delivery for children in foster care throughout Minnesota.
Create a website for communication with the community, facilitating dissemination of information and community input.
Offer clinical care sites as training sites for health providers (pediatrics, family practice, nursing, mental health, public health, etc.), social workers, and juvenile justice workers.
Secure funding to provide appropriate care.

Timeline
Study period: February –June 2007
Model development and grant submission: July-September 2007
Wrap-up and transition: October 2007

Sponsors
The Community Partnership for Foster Care Health is funded by a grant from the University of Minnesota Office of Public Engagement. Additional support is provided by the University of Minnesota Department of Pediatrics, Divisions of General Pediatrics and Adolescent Health & Medicine. The project director, Amelia Burgess, is a fellow at the University of Minnesota; and is supported through funds from the Faculty Development in Primary Care General Pediatrics grant, University of Minnesota (grant D55HP04186-03, HRSA, Bureau of Health Professions, DHHS). Professional time is donated by participants’ home organizations. Community partners are supported by the Office of Public Engagement.

We welcome comments or suggestions regarding our goals. Please address comments to Amelia Burgess at burg0248@umn.edu