Table of Contents - Department of Human Services

consider the availability of a foster home willing to accept a sibling group in isolation. It should be noted that when siblings cannot be
placed together, it is most often not because a home willing to accept siblings was not available. Instead, the decision to place or not
place siblings together is also impacted by other issues, pertaining to their overall well-being and functioning, (such as their medical,
social-emotional (behavioral), educational needs, along with the proximity of an available foster home to their parents, etc.). The
psycho-social/sexual behavior of some children is so provocative that placing their siblings with them compromises their safety and
well-being.
Documenting the number of newly recruited homes willing to accept sibling groups is an on-going process. While Georgia directs
considerable attention to its foster home recruitment efforts, the percentage and types of homes needed statewide is very difficult to
accurately establish and track. This is partly due to the fact that children in need of care are a fluid population, meaning that it is
unpredictable how many children will come into care at a given time; how many of them are part of a sibling group; how many have
issues or circumstances requiring separate and/or specialized placements, etc. Georgia recognizes that as many children requiring
placements into approved foster homes with their siblings are entering care, still others are exiting care, returning to their birth
families, thus freeing up foster homes. Simultaneously, Georgia gives priority to placing children with their family members first,
which means that relative resources cannot be identified until the child/children come into care.
5 th Quarter DOCUMENTATION:
Foster Care and Adoption Services Recruitment Statistics -- Fulton and Appling County DFCS
6 th Quarter Report: The state considers this item achieved. The curriculum for training foster parents is being revised and will
include a specialized segment on managing sibling groups. The revisions are scheduled to be completed by June 30, 2004.
Monitoring our progress in this regard will be on-going as new homes are recruited and approved.
BARRIERS TO ACHIEVEMENT:
2 nd Quarter Report: The primary barrier with this goal is identifying enough resources that are willing to take multiple children,
particularly, sibling groups. As many homes are lost due to becoming a permanent home for a child. Replenishing homes continues to
be an on-going challenge for the state.
2 nd Quarter Federal Response: HOW DID YOU INTEND TO OVERCOME THIS BARRIER?
Georgia's Reply 3 rd Quarter: The goal is Achieved.
There is no one-time remedy or solution to this problem. For this reason, there will always be a challenge to expeditiously identify and
approve relatives, willing, able and eligible to be a placement resource. However, Georgia will continue to assertively seek and pursue
Safe Future – A Plan for Program Improvement
Georgia Department of Human Resources
April, 2004 Quarter 6 - Work Plan G Page 7