By Melissa McWilliams, AGSS Program Manager
The adoption has been finalized, so what help is there now?
HOW TO ACCESS INDIANA’S POST-ADOPTION/ POST-GUARDIANSHIP SUPPORT SERVICES.
The meetings with attorneys and court hearings have ended. Case managers and service providers have stopped coming to your house. You and your children have been moving forward as a formal, legalized family for a few months now, or maybe it’s been several years. As with any family, the ebbs and flows of life can result in times of smooth-sailing, and times of rocky waters. If you’re in the midst of some rocky waters, Lifeline wants to let you know that you don’t have to navigate this alone.
Lifeline, in partnership with the Department of Child Services (DCS), offers support services for families who have finalized the adoption or guardianship of their child(ren), and who would like some additional support. Although we would always encourage you to seek assistance pro-actively or as soon as you feel things getting off-track, we are available to engage if the situation has reached more of crisis level, to help restore stability and safety within the home.
HOW TO ACCESS INDIANA’S POST-ADOPTION/ POST-GUARDIANSHIP SUPPORT SERVICES.
In addition to crisis intervention support, here are other areas in which we can provide support through this program:
- Coordinate community resources, including mental and behavioral health services, external support groups, and financial resources.
- Provide resource libraries that include a collection of literature, videos, and web resources for parents and families.
- Assist with identifying and building informal respite care resources, including but not limited to, family members, friends, and community members.
- Offer temporary, family-focused counseling and/or therapy based on family need & dynamics.
- Provide in-home family coaching or training based on family need.
- Provide Trust-based Relational Intervention (TBRI) trainings for parents and caregivers. If a parent or caregiver has already completed this training, then document this in your notes, and work with them to make sure they are implementing these skills and refresh where needed.
- Help the child and family address feelings of grief and loss that are associated with the many losses the child has had thus far (i.e. loss of biological family, loss of foster parents, loss of familiar environment, community, etc.
- Address any loyalty struggles the child may be feeling.
- Connect to available support groups.
- Facilitate the closing of the case and oversee the transition to any ongoing care, if needed.
These support services are completely voluntary and short-term. Initial services can last up to 6 months; however, if at that ending time you think your family needs to continue, additional 3-month extensions are available by request. You can end services at any point by letting your Lifeline Care Coordinator know, and if you decide you would like to have support services again in the future, you simply reach out again (following the same process below to get started)!
Getting started:
If this is something that you’d like your family to get started with, just click on the orange button that says “Get Post-Permanency Support” below. After you complete and submit the request form, an Adoption Consultant from DCS will contact you to review your request and if appropriate, submit a referral to Lifeline Youth & Family Services. Once a referral is received by Lifeline, our Care Coordinator will reach out to you directly within 72 hours to get your first visit scheduled!