Reply to Foster to adopt in MD and DC--What do I need to know

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[quote=Anonymous]OP- I think it is great that you are interested in foster care.   There are a few different ways to read your post-- which substantially impact your 'odds' of success.
1. by "foster to adopt" do you mean that you are interested in becoming a foster parent, and are prepared to fully support reunification with biological families for children placed in your home, but that you would be prepared to adopt in the event that reunification efforts are unsuccessful?   If so that is realistic.  Or do you mean that you only want to accept children into your home that have a goal of adoption?  If you intend to accept infants this is not realistic, and I would be surprised if any agency would certify you.

2. From your post it sounds like you only want to take infants?  By infants do you mean newborns?  Or do you mean young children- possibly up to age 4?  You also do not want any mental illness?   By that do you mean you don't want a child diagnosed with a mental illness, or you don't want a child whose biological family has a history of mental illness?   And only some drug abuse?   I would encourage you to think carefully about your constraints.  You asked how to make yourself 'marketable' to social services.  Well- think about what they are trying to do/ what there needs are.   I am a foster parent-- I think I have only had 1 child come into my home who did not either have a diagnosed mental illness themselves, or have a parent with a mental illness.   Interestingly enough the child without any diagnosis was probably the child with the most intense special needs.

3.  To the extent you are wanting a newborn- first understand that newborns coming into foster care are pretty rare.  The primary reason that a newborn is taken into foster care is that they are born drug addicted.  The 2nd most common reason is that the biological mother has a severe mental illness, and has had previous involvement with social services.   There may be other reasons- but I can't come up with any.

4. You have to realize that it is really quite expensive for an agency to train, certify, and maintain a foster home.   They only do this if they think it is worth the expense- which means that you can fill what their needs are.  [/quote]

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