Evaluation of a training program for child welfare case workers on trauma sequelae in foster children

Foster children are exposed to multiple psychosocial and biological risk factors and have an elevated risk for developmental delays and the development of mental disorders. Many children experienced compromising situations such as neglect, physical abuse, or sexual abuse before out-of-home placement. Consequently, they show a higher need for mental health services than other children. However, out-of-home placement is often considered as the sufficient measure to help these children. Hence this project had the aim to sensitize child welfare agencies and foster parent organisations for the special needs and history of foster children, to provide them with instruments for the assessment of emotional and behaviour problems and to promote the cooperation at the interface between child welfare system and mental health system. Twenty-four child welfare agencies and four foster parent organisations participated. The control group consisted of 16 non-participating child welfare agencies. After one year, participants recorded more often children's social history (p = .023), conducted more often standardized psychosocial assessments (p = .001), assessed more often the medical needs of foster children (p = .029), and informed foster parents more often about behaviour problems of their foster child (p = .034). In summary, child welfare agencies were very interested, could be sensitized for mental disorders following traumata and implemented the offered instruments in their work. Limits of resources could be observed due to the case workers' high case load.