For many children in foster care, the path up to, including and even after adoption can include trauma, grief and loss. As a potential adoptive parent, it’s crucial that you understand the story a foster child is bringing to you and what part you can play in that.

This course, “Advanced Adoption: The Effects of Trauma and Loss on Adopted Children,” takes you beyond the introductory level into beginning to understand more deeply the emotional, mental and physical needs an adoptive child may have. A startlingly high number of adoptions are not successful, which is why it is so important that you have realistic expectations and adequate support, both of which are explored in this training.

You will first be guided through a discussion around the definition of adoption, including what it is and what it isn’t, and you will be encouraged to share your ideals and goals as an adoptive parent. You will then spend a majority of your time learning about the impact of trauma, grief, loss and ACES (adverse childhood experiences) on development in adopted children, and exploring how to recognize behaviors related to these issues. This includes training on attachment and learning ways to strengthen your bond with the children in your care depending on their attachment style.

When you leave the training, you will have numerous new training resources and supports to assist you as you navigate this new environment.

For social workers, difficult conversations are part of a broad landscape of interactions necessary to achieve the best outcomes for children, youth and families. The updated training “Advanced Guidelines for Difficult Conversations” will give you the tools to feel prepared to manage these exchanges effectively and with respect.

By definition difficult conversations bring together opposing opinions and high stakes, with the potential for conflict and negative emotional reactions. Though challenging, these interactions are essential to working through problems and finding solutions, something at the core of carrying out effective social work practice. They are part of communicating well with families, and can also surface in professional environments. 

This course will begin by taking you through a self-assessment of your own comfort level, and help you understand your own emotions and how to maintain objectivity. You will then engage in discussions around how to develop a goal or mutual purpose for these conversations, considering what all parties want to achieve. You also will talk about how to develop a safe space for having these conversations, a vital element in creating open dialogue. You will break into small groups with other participants to work through scenarios with all the skills you have just learned. 

At the close of the training, you will know how to create mutual purpose and ensure safety when having difficult conversations as you move forward. This will give you the tools to develop conversation goals to strategize case planning for families you work with.

In this course, you will learn the definitions of child abuse and neglect used in Washington State, as well as your obligation to report suspected child maltreatment.  You will be introduced to 3 foundational concepts used in child welfare work: child safety, risk assessment and global assessment.  You will consider how ethical principles, particularly related to confidentiality and your role as a helping professional impacts how you do your work.  Lastly, you will be introduced to the Safety Framework, the guiding structure used in our state to understand and assess child safety.  You will be asked to consider how culture might affect both your assessment of child safety and the work you do to ensure children are kept safe.

Participants register separately for each part of the module, but MUST complete each session within the module in order. Participants who have not completed 1.1 will not be allowed to participate in 1.2.

Module 1 Child Safety includes:

1.1 eLearning

• Mandatory Reporter
• Ethics and Confidentiality
• Basics of Present Danger and Protective Actions

1.2 Webinar

• Child Safety: Identifying Present Danger

1.3 Webinar

• Child Safety: Taking Protective Actions

In this course, you will learn how protective actions help ensure the safety of children in present danger.  You will learn what components protective actions must include for you to feel confident in their being effective.  Of particular importance, you will consider how you decide whether a specific adult can be relied upon to participate and provide safety to the child.  Finally, you will put everything you have learned about child safety into practice as you consider a scenario and determine whether present danger exists and, if so, what protective actions might be effective.

Participants register separately for each part of the module but MUST complete each session within the module in order. Participants who have not completed 1.1 and 1.2 will not be allowed to participate in 1.3.

Module 1 Child Safety includes:

1.1 eLearning

• Mandatory Reporter
• Ethics and Confidentiality
• Basics of Present Danger and Protective Actions

1.2 Webinar

• Child Safety: Identifying Present Danger

1.3 Webinar

• Child Safety: Taking Protective Actions

Identifying injuries which tend to be seen prior to, or along with, serious physical abuse can help us identify children who are unsafe, and sometimes prevent disastrous consequences.  You will learn about these injuries, called “Sentinel Injuries,” as well as injuries that are more common in childhood and don’t typically raise concern for abuse.  You will practice differentiating between the two using many different scenarios.  Lastly, you will learn more about how to collaborate with key partners, particularly medical professionals, in response to your concerns related to an observed mark or injury.

Participants register separately for each part of the module but MUST complete each session within the module in order.  Participants who have not completed 2.1 will not be allowed to participate in 2.2.

Module 2 Physical Abuse includes:

2.1 eLearning

• Intro to Physical Abuse and MedCon
• Basics of Photographic Documentation
• Limited English Proficiency

2.2 Webinar

• Physical Abuse: Sentinel Injuries

2.3 Webinar

• Physical Abuse: Serious Physical Abuse

In this course, you will learn more about how Washington State defines and responds to neglect and sexual abuse. Afterhours staff rarely interview children to gather information about the specifics of maltreatment, but their discussions with young people can help or hurt DCYF’s ability to protect the child in the future. You will review and apply basic principles of child interviewing to support you in talking with children about their overall safety at home. You will learn about the function of child advocacy centers as partners in responding to sexual abuse concerns. Lastly, you will learn best practice for assessing the suitability of unlicensed relatives/others and the importance of providing caregivers with all information available about the child.

Participants register separately for each part of the module but MUST complete each session within the module in order. Participants who have not completed 3.1 will not be allowed to participate in 3.2.

Module 3 Neglect, Sexual Abuse and Placing Children includes:

3.1 eLearning

• Neglect and Basics of Child Interviews
• Intro to Sexual Abuse and Responding to Spontaneous Disclosure
• Placing with Unlicensed Caregivers for AHCT

3.2 Webinar

• Neglect, Sexual Abuse and Placing Children: Assessing Neglect and Sexual Abuse

3.3 Webinar

• Neglect, Sexual Abuse and Placing Children: Placing Children

Afterhour’s staff respond in crises and emergencies – situations that are likely to be traumatic for everyone involved.  In this course, you will consider ways to reduce the traumatic impact of removal from the home and placement into a new care setting.  You will carefully consider how to determine, along with your supervisor, whether a placement with a relative or suitable other is safe and should occur.  In addition, you will learn how to support the success of a placement by reviewing critical forms with a new caregiver, and providing information about the child.

Participants register separately for each part of the module but MUST complete each session within the module in order.  Participants who have not completed 3.1 and 3.2 will not be allowed to participate in 3.3.

Module 3 Neglect, Sexual Abuse and Placing Children includes:

3.1 eLearning

• Neglect and Basics of Child Interviews
• Intro to Sexual Abuse and Responding to Spontaneous Disclosure
• Placing with Unlicensed Caregivers for AHCT

3.2 Webinar

• Neglect, Sexual Abuse and Placing Children: Assessing Neglect and Sexual Abuse

3.3 Webinar

• Neglect, Sexual Abuse and Placing Children: Placing Children

In this course, you will review several principles of trauma informed care and consider how these apply to your routine interactions with children awaiting placement. You will consider what you will need (and need to do) to care for children awaiting placement, whether that is for an hour or a weekend. Significant time is spent addressing children who have challenging behaviors or exceptional care needs. This includes building a stronger understanding of policy and practice around youth who run away or have returned from being on the run. You will become more familiar with how to monitor, dispense, and document medications to youth who are taking them. Lastly, you will discuss your takeaways from the eLearning related to the Indian Child Welfare act. You will apply what you learned to your role in afterhours, and identify steps you should be taking to ensure everyone’s rights are protected.

Participants register separately for each part of the module but MUST complete each session within the module in order. Participants who have not completed 4.1 will not be allowed to participate in 4.2.

Module 4 Caring for Children, Worker Safety and Documentation includes:

4.1 eLearning

• Caring for Children and Using Car Seats Correctly
• Worker Safety
• Indian Child Welfare: An Introduction

4.2 Webinar

• Caring for Children

4.3 Webinar

• Worker Safety and Documentation

The most frequent allegation of child maltreatment is neglect.  Some families are referred to the department numerous times with little change in family functioning.  In this course, participants will learn how to assess for chronic neglect, its effects on children and appropriate interventions.

This 6 hour focused topic training for caregivers will focus on how children with substance abuse in their life have an increased chance of experiencing many effects, such as poor social, cognitive and emotional development, physical, mental and health issues, depression, anxiety, concentration and learning difficulties, trouble controlling their responses, as well as other traumatic issues. The goal of this workshop is to identify and address the impacts drugs have on children and setting up a successful environment and coping skills. The takeaway from this training is feeling empowered to care for a drug impacted child as they grow through childhood, teenage years and beyond.

This 6-hour focused topic training for caregivers develops an understanding of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) as presented in DSM 5 and alternate behavioral descriptions from Daniel Amen MD.  The training also covers the common developmental course of ADHD and a 7 Step Intervention pathway for home and school success.

Randi Hankins has over 30 years of clinical experience in community mental health in Washington State.  She is an Associate Professor in the Clinical Master’s of Social Work Program at Walla Walla University.  She maintains a fulltime clinical practice on a Crisis Response Unit in Southeastern Washington.  Ms. Hankins has trained extensively on Child/Adolescent Mental Health issues in Washington, Idaho and Montana.  She is certified as a Designated Mental Health Professional, a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker, a Licensed Mental Health Counselor, a Child Mental Health Specialist, and a Developmental Disabilities Mental Health Specialist in Washington State