Outside our conference room, we heard a sound halfway between a yell and a scream. It was no surprise. I was going into a meeting of the citizens review panel of juvenile court. We review the status of every child in the Fulton County foster home system at least every six months.
In the room were three members of the panel — citizen volunteers — our counselor, two case workers, the foster mother, the child’s lawyer and parents. The child was 18. She sat restrained in a wheelchair, heaving back and forth, screaming. She wore a white, almost football-like helmet, with a Plexiglas front and cutouts for her mouth. Her left arm, which she waved continuously, was kept in an extended position so that she wouldn’t hit herself. She showed evidence that she had been repetitively hitting her right ear to the point where it was now a cauliflower ear.
She was born with severe cerebral palsy. She cannot speak. She barely responds to anything. Sometimes she points if she’s hungry. She has been in the foster care system almost her whole life. Her parents lacked the resources to care for her and terminated parental rights many years ago.
She has a wonderful foster mother who sees to her every need. She sees a doctor regularly, a neurologist frequently to control her involuntary motion problem and a dentist. The social worker is continually fencing with the government to provide funds. Her foster mother gets $2,400 a month to cover expenses and a salary; it’s more than worth it.
This is the kind of sad case that the citizens panel faces repeatedly. We act as adviser to the judge assigned to the case. Our job, first and foremost, is to see that everything possible is done for these kids.
We find out why the child needs a foster home. We evaluate the parental situation, family finances and possible history of parental abuse. We decide whether the family needs financial aid, housing, anger-management counseling, child-rearing counseling or anything else we can provide.
Then we evaluate the child’s behavior and needs. Most require some counseling. Many have been involved in crime, prostitution or drugs. They participate in self-destructive behavior and often need special schooling to teach them to get along with others. They need medical care, dental care and often psychiatric care. Many are difficult to handle and drugs are given for destructive behavior; part of our job is to monitor that drug treatment. A major effort is made to see that they are doing well in school and, if appropriate, preparing them for a vocation.
Our main thrust is to reunite the family if at all possible. If this fails, we seek a qualified guardian. If the parents show no interest in the child, we have no recourse but to recommend termination of all parental rights and adoption. If adoption is impossible, the child remains a ward of the state.
I have volunteered for the citizens panel for about the past nine months. It’s probably the best thing I’ve done since I retired. It amounts to going to the juvenile courthouse for about three cases, one morning every month. I feel I can really make a difference in the life of a child with terrible needs. What could feel better?
Shia Elson is a retired cardiologist.
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