Dealing with Emotional Challenges

Mental Health Resources for Foster Families in Southern California

Imagine what it’d be like to leave everything you know behind and start over somewhere new. This might sound intimidating, scary, and maybe even exciting. Now imagine this happening to you as a child, and that in addition to moving to a new school or neighborhood, you’re also leaving your family. 

This is the reality that many foster kids face. In addition to starting over, they also have to deal with all the emotional baggage from the life they left behind—usually under tough circumstances and as the result of someone else’s decision. So much change and uncertainty at such a young age can lead to emotional challenges, like anxiety, difficulty studying, or sudden emotional outbursts. These issues can stymie a child’s development and create difficult situations at home.  To help foster kids navigate these complex emotions, Kamali’i Foster Agency offers free mental health services through our sister organization, Kamali’i Counseling Center.

Mental Health Services 

Kamali’i Counseling Center shares Kamali’i Foster Agency’s mission of empowering foster youth for future success through comprehensive care and support. Our mental health services aim to stabilize behaviors and preserve placement. The last thing we want is to create additional challenges for kids by having to move them from home to home.   

In addition to accepting referrals from Kamali’i Foster Agency, KCC also serves Riverside County’s Transitional Housing Program for non-minor dependents in extended foster care. We offer mental health services to foster youth ages 0 to 25 and their families.

Services include: 

• 1. Individual Therapy — Clinicians work with foster youth on identified goals from intake assessment to help them better understand their feelings and behaviors and process trauma.
  2. Peer Support — Peer support specialists with lived experience (either as a former foster child or experience navigating the mental health system) provide mentorship.
  3. Parent Partner — Our parent partner is an individual with experience as both a resource parent and adoptive parent who acts as liaison between foster youth, clinicians, and resource families, as they aren’t limited by confidentiality in the same ways as clinicians.
  4. Referrals — For families who need it, clinicians can provide referrals for additional resources, like individualized education programs (IEPs) for foster youth whose mental health or developmental needs create academic hurdles.
  5. Family Therapy — Typically court-ordered or requested by foster youth, family therapy is most often administered to a foster youth and their biological family but can sometimes include resource parents.

Peer Support is a unique program that provides foster kids with a mentor who can relate to them in a way that clinicians can’t. Because peer support specialists have first-hand experience as a foster child or someone navigating the mental health system, they can understand foster youth undergoing mental health services on a deeper level. 

Parent partners are an important mental health resource. They will work with a child’s clinicians to ensure the best possible treatment, and any insights they learn about a child are shared with their treatment team. But unlike clinicians, partner parents are not bound by the same privacy laws and can more easily share information with a child’s resource family — making them a crucial go-between for resource parents and KCC clinicians. 

Family therapy is less common but helpful in certain circumstances. 

Referral Process 

Every child who comes to Kamali’i through the Child Protective Services system receives a mandatory mental health screening. 

To receive additional services for your foster child, you will need a referral from a social worker. This typically requires additional documentation beyond the referral form itself—-including MediCal eligibility, court-ordered permission to provide services, and consent to treat. All the paperwork required sometimes makes the referral process longer than ideal, but rest assured that KCC will work hard to make sure that your foster child receives the treatment they need.

After your referral is processed, an initial assessment involving interviews with both the foster child and resource parent will determine the treatment they receive and the timeline for treatment. However, treatment services can be adjusted throughout the treatment process based on your foster child’s changing needs.

One perk of receiving treatment through Kamali’i Counseling Center is that all our treatment options are community-based, meaning that you won’t be expected to commute to receive treatment for your child. Our clinicians will come to you!

How to Successfully Navigate KCC Mental Health Resources 

Just like other medical and mental services, KCC is sometimes limited by patient confidentiality laws. However, we also understand the importance of clearly communicating kids’ mental health needs with their resource family. That’s why we recommend that resource parents be direct as possible with clinicians regarding their needs and concerns.

We also recommend making use of your parent partner as an additional resource who can help advocate your concerns with your child’s treatment team.

Learn More 

In addition to mental health services, Kamali’i also provides support for both resource parents and foster youth. These include our resource parent support group, transitional housing options for former foster youth, and independent living classes!

For additional support and to learn how Kamali’i can help you, call us at (951) 674-9400.