Foster parents are some of the busiest folks I know. They must assume the role of parent, confidant, friend, policeman, investigator, cook, chauffeur, teacher, and mentor. There is no wonder that there is little time left in the day for one more important duty- documentation. It seems to be ignored by most foster parents and only an emergency or unfortunate event seems to remind us of its value.

There are many reasons to embrace the idea of documentation. First, being organized and efficient makes fostering easier. If you already have become slave to your calendars, dayrunners, and schedules, you are now half way there. We write down these dates and duties so as not to forget them. This is the primary reason for documentation. Busy people cannot trust their memories to always get all details right, so we write them down shortly after the important event or beforehand as a reminder. Documentation is nothing more than a written record of events.

A second reason to document everything of importance is to settle disputes, answer questions intelligently, and be able to transfer information to those who need it. When your social workers want to know the facts as they occurred, you have them. When a therapist asks you to recap the event when your foster child went off the deep end, you are able to do so. When your foster son argues that he did not have the car that night in question, you can show him the proof. Documentation is like having a witness to those situations.

The third reason for documentation is to protect yourself in the event of allegations. Reporting the incident by detail can wipe an untrue story from the slate. When a mischievous child reports you and alleges you abused them, those logs of driving times, appointments, phone calls, and incident reports are going to be invaluable in proving your innocence.

What items should be documented? Everything! I know thatŐs a tall order, but foster parents are very vulnerable to allegations and misunderstandings. Keeping appointment and phone call records are a good start. If dates must be reconstructed, these items help both in establishing where you were at the time as well as serving as a way to jog your memory. These should include exact times, (dates and hours), purpose of call or meeting, where it was held if meeting and who attended. If phone call, who was called and what significant things were said or decided in either case. Add to this a vehicle log for transporting kids. Include time left, and time arrived at destination, mileage when left and when arrived. It takes a few extra precious minutes, but can prove it was virtually impossible for events as alleged to happen in the total time of the trip. You probably are required to fill out an accident or incident report. One is usually damage to property, the other some physical harm to a person. Keep copies of anything handed in for future reference. I learned the value of documentation when I did a stint as a worker in a home with mentally handicapped and disabled adults. The state required us to write up a short description of the highlights of the residentŐs day during your shift. Foster parents should also keep some sort of notebook in the same way.

You will find in time, these small chunks of writing will not be even be a problem to you. It goes faster and easier with practice and as it becomes habit. It will only take one terrible allegation experience to convince you of its worth. Please donŐt wait until you are accused and must defend yourself to start to document. Get the habit now.

And thanks for all you do as a foster parent. We truly need you.

Other articles on Foster Parent Community by Jo Ann Wentzel:

• Reasonable Expectations of Foster Kids
• Don't Forget Gifts Of Toys For Teens
• The Value of Consistency
• Hanging In There For The Long Haul
• Teens Believe They Are Immortal
• Picking Your Battles
• School Violence Due In Part To Intolerance
• Foster Kids Really Are Ours
• Gifts To The Foster Parent
• Help Kids Discover Their Softer Side
• Yippee! Kids Go Back to School, Oh No! Trouble Now Begins
• Caring for A Pregnant Teen
• Learning On The Job
• Did We Know How to Parent Before Labels?
• Respite for Foster Parents

Biography of Jo Ann Wentzel

Between the years of 1966 and 1993, I brought children into life, into my foster home, into court, and into their own apartments. Mother of three, two natural children born to me and one foster kid who never left our family, grandmother to five, foster mom to over 75 kids, and mother, friend, guardian angel, or their worse nightmare, depending on which of the other hundreds of kids you ask.

A quarter of a century devoted to raising children, learning what issues concerned them, volunteering to help groups serving kids, and teaching others what little I know. Life Ready was our own business where we installed kids, who had no other choice, into their own apartment. My husband and I, as para-professionals, also were contracted by counties in Minnesota to supervise kids and work with families to help get foster kids back home.

Before foster care, I was a licensed daycare provider and cared for all ages of children. During foster care, our specialty was teenaged boys and we had a group home where we served up to eight youth at a time. Street kids and gang members were among those we worked with and families ranged from traditional to what in the world. Our kids came from all over Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, and North Dakota. Volunteer positions were held in Pennsylvania, Texas, and Minnesota.

I have held the position of Guardian-ad-Litem in Goodhue County, a paid not volunteer position. I trained to be a surrogate parent which enables you to sign I.E.Ps for children whose parents can't or won't. I have taken Mediator training for Minnesota court system. With my husband, I presented a seminar at the Minnesota Social Worker's Convention in Minneapolis, spoke at the Federal Medical Center( a prison), and gave several talks to school classrooms.

My book is about the experiences and adventures of a foster parent. It encourages creative parenting and offers useful methods and ideas for everyone raising kids. It features just a few of the many wonderful kids that lived with us.It tells how we ran our home of as many as eight teenaged foster kids at a time. It is written from the viewpoint of the expert, the one who does the job, the hands on provider- the foster parent.This book is currently looking for a publisher and will be available just as soon as we find one.