The Importance of Mental Health and Therapy in Foster Children, Research Paper Example

Introduction

As per the evidence provided at the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), up to 80% of foster children, in comparison to 18-22 percent of the general population, have considerable psychological problems. Hostile childhood experiences are common among foster children, putting them at risk for mental health issues. Foster children are administered psychotropic drugs considerably higher than non-foster youth due to these heightened mental health difficulties. A child’s well-being affects their social, academic, and emotional skills. I believe the state should offer foster children free therapy and mental health services because it has a far-reaching effect on their social, academic, and emotional skills.

Background

Looking at about fifteen years back, in 2008, the U.S Department of Health and Human Services recorded 510,000 children living in foster care in the United States. According to statistics collated and analyzed for “Who Cares: A National Count of Foster Homes and Families.” These children are in foster care for various reasons, including parental abuse and neglect, socially undesirable behaviors, family dysfunction, parent illness or impairment, family stress, and the absence of parents. This affects how they socialize with family members, their friends, and strangers they meet daily. Therapy and mental health services can help foster children, promote their social well-being, and heal by doing away with or controlling severe symptoms that they reveal socially.

Argument

One of the reasons the state should offer free therapy for children in foster care is that they are frequently socially exposed to dangerous situations in their homes, such as abandonment, domestic abuse, bodily, or molestation. In addition, a history of continuous mistreatment is the most prevalent reason for children being sent out of their homes, and biological parents’ failure to take responsibility for their children is frequently linked to mental health issues such as substance misuse (Scozzaro and Janikowski 1). Therefore, considering the psychosocial needs of children in foster care is significantly essential, bearing in mind the circumstances that led to their family foster care.  According to research, the foster care population of children with at least one psychiatric disease has a very high rate of mental health diagnoses, ranging between 40 and 60 percent.

Another rationale is that, characterized by high levels of psychosocial problems experienced by adopted children and teens, it’s important to mention that foster care graduates have a five-fold higher incidence of PTSD than the public at large. This also led to dropping out of school or poor academic performance. Thus, the state is better positioned to establish therapy programs in schools for foster care children. It can also track the long-term effects of a typical antipsychotic therapy in all foster care children because they go through their system to be placed.  According to a study done by Linares et al. (2), in recent decades, the usage of prescription psychotropic drugs has increased two to threefold for children and adolescents in general, and especially for children serviced in the public sector. Therefore, I believe that through free therapy, the state can reduce the likelihood of foster care children being prescribed psychiatric medicines than other students.

On the other hand, most children are put in foster care because the state determines that the child has been subjected to or is at significant risk of mistreatment. While beneficial to some children, foster care placement frequently adds more instability to their already tumultuous lives, potentially damaging them further emotionally (Wildeman and Emanuel 1). Because of the mix of mistreatment and instability, children who have been in foster care have higher rates of emotional issues ranging from anxiety, aggressiveness, and withdrawal to behavioral problems and suicidal thoughts. The state should therefore intervene by providing free therapy and mental services specifically directed to their emotional well-being.

Refutation

Free treatment, however, may lead to a situation where it is mistakenly viewed as the first action line rather than the last resort it was intended to be. Even though the state’s intention to administer medication is helpful, it should be clear how the treatment is administered. This is because misuse or overuse can lead to negative consequences unintentionally. The intention should be to create a better social, academic, and emotional life for the foster children and the foster parents to have adequate resources. Some of the negative consequences include lack of proper long-term solutions, undermining the traditional intervention methods that could heal some of the disorders in the beginning. Beginning with intervention before moving to advanced treatments results in healing and a better connection between foster children and their foster parents. A good connection with foster parents is the start of a better social, academic and emotional life because it builds confidence.

Conclusion

The state providing free therapy and mental health services to foster children will ensure that the service networks that children in foster care use to receive mental health treatment are as varied and complex as the clinical issues they experience. There are no two children’s “foster care” experiences alike. As a result, treatment planning flexibility addressed by the state will aid in the realization of the goal of flexible therapeutic interventions. In addition, taking action on the importance of mental and therapy in foster children will cultivate the society to embrace the traditional family values such as dignity, love, and respect. These basic family values will encourage foster children to accept who they are and feel accepted by their foster families. These values will also reduce the chances of aggressiveness and triggers for a rebel. Addressing such basic human needs by considering the importance of mental health and therapy for foster children improves the state’s and society’s overall behavioral outcomes. And most of all, the social, academic, and emotional well-being of the foster care children.

Work cited

“Who Cares 2020: A National Count of Foster Homes and Families.” The Imprint, 10 Dec. 2020, imprintnews.org/child-welfare-2/who-cares-2020-executive-summary/49243.

Scozzaro, Christopher, and Timothy P. Janikowski. “Mental Health Diagnosis, Medication, Treatment and Placement Milieu of Children in Foster Care.” Journal of Child and Family Studies, vol. 24, no. 9, 2014, pp. 2560-2567.

Linares, L. O., et al. “Stimulant and Atypical Antipsychotic Medications For Children Placed in Foster Homes.” PLoS ONE, vol. 8, no. 1, 2013, p. e54152.

Wildeman, Christopher, and Natalia Emanuel. “Cumulative Risks of Foster Care Placement by Age 18 for U.S. Children, 2000–2011.” PLoS ONE, vol. 9, no. 3, 2014, p. e92785.

“Mental Health and Foster Care.” Legislative News, Studies and Analysis | National Conference of State Legislatures, 1 Nov. 2019, www.ncsl.org/research/human-services/mental-health-and-foster-care.aspx.