Written by a psychologist who has worked with families and foster children for 11 years, Treating Families andChildren in the Child Protective System is designed for therapists, social workers, family preservationists, court officers, attorneys, judges, and others caught up in the interplay of child protection. Using theory and compelling case studies, the author posits child abuse as an ultimate form of family injustice, requiring intervention at every level of the system. The author proposes a critically optimistic stance, approaching each case as a family-friend with practical and powerful tools to direct the overwhelming power of the system into a force for the restoration of family justice.

Kids in danger are treated instrumentally to promote the rehabilitation of their parents, the welfare of their communities, and the social justice of their race and tribe—all with the inevitable result that their most precious developmental years are lost in bureaucratic and judicial red tape. It is time to stop letting efforts to fix the child welfare system get derailed by activists who are concerned with race-matching, blood ties, and the abstract demands of social justice, and start asking the most important question: Where are the emotionally and financially stable, loving, and permanent homes where these kids can thrive? “Naomi Riley’s book reveals the extent to which abused and abandoned children are often injured by their government rescuers. It is a must-read for those seeking solutions to this national crisis.” —Robert L. Woodson, Sr., civil rights leader and president of the Woodson Center “Everyone interested in child welfare should grapple with Naomi Riley’s powerful evidence that the current system ill-serves the safety and well-being of vulnerable kids.” —Walter Olson, senior fellow, Cato Institute, Robert A. Levy Center for Constitutional Studies

Crenshaw proposes a new integration of many of the existing theories and practices of family and child counselling with those of the welfare, child protection, and social services programs.

This comprehensive handbook is a useful tool for practitioners in understanding the casework process. Chapters cover child development, intervention with families and medical evaluation of child abuse and neglect and how to interview in child protective services.

Includes treatment issues not covered elsewhere This one-of-a-kind resource for mental health professionals in multiple settings is a comprehensive guide to treatment issues unique to children and families who have a relationship with the foster care system. With a focus on understanding how to negotiate the child welfare system, the book identifies and addresses mental health and behavioral issues specific to this population and provides proven, effective treatment interventions. It brings together in one place the myriad of current resources available to help such children and families, and addresses situations that span removal from the home to kin or foster care, to reunification, adoption, or other permanent family connections. Broad in scope and depth, the text includes treatment issues not discussed elsewhere, such as how to cope with acting out in the foster home, how to draft a behavior modification plan, and how to maneuver through the court process. It delivers evidence-based guidelines for engaging and collaborating with multiple parties including other professionals, addressing crises, and assisting with transitions. The book covers assessment from the perspectives of the client, caseworker, and therapist, and discusses the use of medications, complications, and barriers to effective treatment. Strategies are also directed at such specific issues as sexual abuse, physical abuse, substance abuse, neglect, trauma, and attachment. Of special interest is a focus on the worldview of the parties involved in the child welfare system, including the child, the family, the birth parent, and the foster parent. Additionally, the text provides behavior modification plans that work and social skills training. Chapters weave case studies, ethical issues, multicultural concerns, and current research into a highly accessible guide. Key Features: Provides core information about the child welfare system for mental health professionals who work with this population Includes treatments that really work Illustrates, through case studies, how to combat common issues for the child welfare population and their families Describes strategies for engagement, collaboration, addressing crises, and assisting with transitions Addresses specific treatment issues not covered elsewhere

Each year, child protective services receive reports of child abuse and neglect involving six million children, and many more go unreported. The long-term human and fiscal consequences of child abuse and neglect are not relegated to the victims themselves-they also impact their families, future relationships, and society. In 1993, the National Research Council (NRC) issued the report, Under-standing Child Abuse and Neglect, which provided an overview of the research on child abuse and neglect. New Directions in Child Abuse and Neglect Research updates the 1993 report and provides new recommendations to respond to this public health challenge. According to this report, while there has been great progress in child abuse and neglect research, a coordinated, national research infrastructure with high-level federal support needs to be established and implemented immediately. New Directions in Child Abuse and Neglect Research recommends an actionable framework to guide and support future child abuse and neglect research. This report calls for a comprehensive, multidisciplinary approach to child abuse and neglect research that examines factors related to both children and adults across physical, mental, and behavioral health domains-including those in child welfare, economic support, criminal justice, education, and health care systems-and assesses the needs of a variety of subpopulations. It should also clarify the causal pathways related to child abuse and neglect and, more importantly, assess efforts to interrupt these pathways. New Directions in Child Abuse and Neglect Research identifies four areas to look to in developing a coordinated research enterprise: a national strategic plan, a national surveillance system, a new generation of researchers, and changes in the federal and state programmatic and policy response.