SHARED PARENTING - ASSESSING THE SUCCESS OF A FOSTER PARENT PROGRAM AIMED AT FAMILY REUNIFICATION

Objective: There were two main objectives of the study: (1) To assess the effectiveness of a model of family reunification which united the role of parent aide and foster parent; and (2) to determine which char acteristics of the families with children in care were associated with reunification. Method: A multisite project known as the Shared Parent ing Project recruited families from five child protection agencies to participate in a program in which foster parents became extended rathe r than substitute families. Families were tested before the program be gan on a number of sociodemographic, psychological, and family measure s. The success of the program was determined by whether the child was able to return home or if the program Facilitated permanency planning. The success of the project was also examined by considering the relat ionship between returning home and a number of risk factors measured i n the families with children in care. Results: Very few families who m et the criteria for the project could be recruited and only 31% of the participants completed the program and returned home. The process of permanency planning was facilitated in another 50% of the cases. The m ore stable families with less risk factors were more likely to complet e the program successfully and to have their children return home. Con clusions: The results indicate that although the treatment model has e xcellent potential with less at-risk families it could not meet the tr eatment needs of the majority of families with children in foster care in the five child protection agencies. It is recommended that this mo del could be most helpful offered through parent aides attached to com munity support agencies that could provide respite care, support, and resources to families as needed thus avoiding the child having to be p laced in care. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd.