Reflective Journal Entry 2: Summary & ResponseResearching Your Community Service Organization

The research article I analyzed explorers the maltreatment of the child who is taken into the system, and the steps for the child to be reunified with their biological families. The author conducted a study of kids who are in protective services, and the nature of harms that they face during this process for reunification. The study concluded that professional services were excising the proper judgments and procedures for the safety of the children. Although there are many steps to the reunification process this particular study and article is to support the message for authorities making choices for maltreated children. Reunification is a tough process for kids who have experienced abuse and neglect. In many cases treatment is involved for the parents and child, which could take over a year with a kid in foster care under professional services. I chose this article because it relates well to the volunteer work I am doing. Many children who enter the system have usually been abused, neglected or been present during a domestic violence dispute. When the child is moved away from their family, it is a traumatic situation especially if the child is of age to comprehend what is happening. The article relates to this program because children in Mecklenburg County who are in Youth and Family Services custody are generally in foster care or under protective services for a long time. Over the past few years, reunification had been very unlikely between the child and the parent. This usually occurs because the parent has not obeyed court orders or shown interest in making the situation better with the child.

However, recently the reunification process has become more popular amongst parents. As a Guardian ad Litem volunteer it is my job to work with the child and recommend the childs best wishes although it may not be what the child wants. From training reunification can be a tough call especially if the parent is has substance abuse problems, housing issues, or any situation that could put the child in danger of his or her safety. I was surprised that the article was leaning towards reunification from this study. It is the first time I have read something so intriguing that focuses on the child being reunified with the parent because in most articles that is not the case. However, it has been proven that parents overcome their problems to get their children back. YFS usually has about a year or less in Mecklenburg Country to place the kid in permanent care. This article was relevant dealing with the study of reunification. Although it was not much I thought that the article was powerful. It acknowledged protective services for taking the percussions that they take to keep a child safe. There are so many children in the system, that every Social Worker cant get around to spending time with all the children, but that article from the book shows that the long process for reunification is either giving the parent a fair chance to get their act together, or make sure that child is in a safe and comfortable home for the rest of their life. Castleton, P 2013, 'Caring for Abused and Neglected Children: Making the Right Decisions for Reunification or Long Term Care', Child & Family Social Work, 18, 4, pp. 505-506, Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 16 September 2013.