Clinical Foster Care
Our Children’s Homestead strives to provide trauma-informed therapeutic services to our youth and their families. Our goal is to promote happiness, health, self-sufficiency, and success through our strong commitment to each individual. Each child entering OCH is carefully matched with a foster family who has the resources and tools to build a strong, stable foundation of support for him/her. Our therapists are Master’s level clinicians who provide compassionate, culturally competent services, including many therapy modalities, as well as crisis intervention.
An emphasis is placed on placement stability, as we hope to stop the cycle of multiple placements for our youth. By the time some of our youth reach us, they have moved as many as twelve times to different homes or institutional settings. OCH provides placement stabilization services at the hint of disruption in order to proactively problem-solve with each child and family.
In addition to assisting each child and foster family, we offer therapy services for biological families as well. OCH supports the reunification of families through individual, couples, and family therapy, as well as therapeutic visitation.
An emphasis is placed on placement stability, as we hope to stop the cycle of multiple placements for our youth. By the time some of our youth reach us, they have moved as many as twelve times to different homes or institutional settings. OCH provides placement stabilization services at the hint of disruption in order to proactively problem-solve with each child and family.
In addition to assisting each child and foster family, we offer therapy services for biological families as well. OCH supports the reunification of families through individual, couples, and family therapy, as well as therapeutic visitation.
Foster Parent Support
Our Children’s Homestead views each foster parent as a valued member of their child’s treatment team. Being a parent is a full time commitment- there is no such thing as taking a sick day or a break. We recognize that parenting children and adolescents with significant abuse and trauma histories requires additional support.
TFP (Therapeutic Foster Parent) Academy
Before welcoming a child into their home, foster parents participate in intensive training for parenting specialized youth in care. TFP Academy aims to help parents:
• Develop the skills necessary to parent specialized youth in care
• Gain an understanding of potential needs of specialized youth
• Recognize individual parenting strengths and limitations
• Become familiar with resources both within the agency and in the community
• Gain the confidence to seek support when needed
• Increase placement stability
Foster Parent Support Group
Monthly group provides clinical support to parents while fostering camaraderie and a support network among peers. Various topics including attachment, trauma, and behavior management are presented.
Resources:
National Child Traumatic Stress Network
www.nctsn.org
National Center for PTSD
www.ptsd.va.gov
Autism Speaks
www.autismspeaks.org
Family Resource Center on Disabilities
https://frcd.org
Equip for Equality
www.equipforequality.org
TFP (Therapeutic Foster Parent) Academy
Before welcoming a child into their home, foster parents participate in intensive training for parenting specialized youth in care. TFP Academy aims to help parents:
• Develop the skills necessary to parent specialized youth in care
• Gain an understanding of potential needs of specialized youth
• Recognize individual parenting strengths and limitations
• Become familiar with resources both within the agency and in the community
• Gain the confidence to seek support when needed
• Increase placement stability
Foster Parent Support Group
Monthly group provides clinical support to parents while fostering camaraderie and a support network among peers. Various topics including attachment, trauma, and behavior management are presented.
Resources:
National Child Traumatic Stress Network
www.nctsn.org
National Center for PTSD
www.ptsd.va.gov
Autism Speaks
www.autismspeaks.org
Family Resource Center on Disabilities
https://frcd.org
Equip for Equality
www.equipforequality.org
Post-Adoption Counseling
In-home therapy services are offered to families who have adopted children through OCH.