Access to post‐adoption services when the child has substantial problems
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/17466660200900015 |
| Date | 20 November 2009 |
| Pages | 21-33 |
| Published date | 20 November 2009 |
| Author | Elizabeth Monck,Alan Rushton |
| Subject Matter | Education,Health & social care,Sociology |
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Abstract
The aim of the study described here was to assess the types of additional specialist
service available to adoptive parents participating in a randomised controlled trial (RCT)
of post-adoption support whose ex-care children were showing substantial psychosocial
problems. Parents from 37 families who volunteered for the RCT were asked about access to
professional help with problems arising from the placement, additional to the tested support:
questions focused on which services they had received, how long they waited and whether
the services were, in their terms, satisfactory. The study found that 23 families had used or
applied for 37 separate specialised services to support the child or family. Although 56%
of families were positive about services, 12 families had waited more than a year for a first
contact with specialists and 44% of parents said the services had not met their needs. The
experiences of these parents show that more timely and targeted services are needed for
adoptive families with a child with psychosocial problems.
Key words
adoption; problem behaviour; specialist support services; CAMHS
(Goodman et al, 2004). Tarren-Sweeney (2008)
has commented that numerous studies in North
America, Australia and the UK have shown that
the mental health problems among children in care
approach the levels of clinic-referred children.
Although children adopted from care are a
sub-group of children in care it may reasonably
be assumed that many will also show significant
problem behaviour, at least in the first few months
of a placement. Using a standardised behaviour
Introduction
The rate of serious mental health and behaviour
problems among children adopted from care is far
higher than in community populations. Studies in
the UK community child population have shown
that 10% of boys and five per cent of girls aged
five to 10 years have a diagnosable mental health
problem at any one time (Goodman et al, 2000;
ONS, 2004). The proportion amongst looked-
after children aged five to 15 years rises to 45%
Access to post-adoption
services when the child has
substantial problems
Elizabeth Monck
Senior Research Officer, Thomas Coram Research Unit, Institute of Education, UK
Alan Rushton
Visiting Professor, Health Services and Population Research Department, Institute of Psychiatry,
King’s College London, UK
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