HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — On Monday afternoon, an informational hearing will look into foster parent recruitment, which is a continuous effort of the Department of Public Health and Social Services Division of Children’s Wellness and Child Protective Services.
Of the referrals Child Protective Services received in the last three years, roughly 200 children were removed from their homes and placed in licensed foster care homes. Many of the children who enter the system don’t end up in a certified foster home, instead they are placed with a relative.
“Although we may have 750 under our custody, … a lot of time we keep the children with extended families, grandma, auntie,” Patricia Mafnas, acting human services program administrator, told The Guam Daily Post in January.
Placements with extended family are a plus, she said.
“Being on our island, we have our extended families that want to step in and assist,” Mafnas said.
But not every child has an extended family.
“Those that we cannot place with family, maybe there’s no family, maybe the family is not the best suited placement at this moment, those are the ones that we bring in. Well, they are under our custody and (we) try to place (them) in a foster family. If that doesn’t work, we have our shelter,” Mafnas said.
There are 90 foster homes currently, Mafnas said, adding that more are needed.
“We are actively recruiting families. We have brochures, and we are putting it out there. And also like Harvest House has meeting(s) that invite families to talk to them and tell how it is – what it involves to be a foster family,” she said.
Mafnas said agency workers are trying to make the path to becoming a foster family more welcoming.
“We’ve made it more easy for families to call, and we have our home evaluations and placement section entertain them and tell them what to expect. We have updated all the background requirements of foster families what we need to get cleared with police and court and even our child abuse data that we have,” she said.
Getting the word out has been a community effort, said Mafnas, who continues to look for more families interested in becoming fosters.
“If I could get another 50, that would be great,” she said.
At 2 p.m. Monday, Speaker Therese Terlaje, the chair of the Legislative Committee on Health, Land, Justice and Culture, will host the informational briefing at the Guam Congress Building Public Hearing Room in Hagåtña to delve deeper into recruitment efforts.
Patricia Mafnas from the Department of Public Health and Social Services gives a presentation during an oversight hearing at the Guam Congress Building in Hagåtña on Tuesday, April 18, 2023.
