If you have a background in healthcare, or you’d be happy to learn how to support a foster child with medical needs, becoming a foster carer is a rewarding role. Being a foster carer means opening up your home for children in care who are missing a loving and supportive home environment. Doing this can provide plenty of benefits for both you and the child.
In this article, we will look at how you can support foster children with medical needs.
What Are Medical Needs?
Some foster children need more support than others, whether this is physically, mentally, or emotionally. Medical needs can mean many things, and as a foster carer, you would only be placed with a medical need that you could support.
If you have experience in healthcare, you may be able to support a child with most medical needs. If you have no background but a willingness to learn, you could support a child with diabetes, anxiety, or a learning disability such as ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder).
What Skills Would I Need?
To support a foster child, with or without medical needs, you don’t necessarily need to have past experience working with children. You may have raised your own children or worked in a setting with children. As a foster carer, the key skills you will need are resilience, determination, and most importantly, compassion.
To support a foster child with medical needs, you’ll need all of the above, plus a willingness to learn. You also need the time to care for a child with extra needs, as they may need help with daily activities. This is a great experience to help a child that needs that extra little bit of physical and emotional support.
You do not need any special certificates or qualifications, although your fostering agency may help you get some so that you can feel confident in your abilities before taking on the role and will give you full training throughout your fostering journey.
How Will I Be Supported?
Supporting a foster child with medical needs is a learning experience. Your fostering agency will be with you every step of the way and will teach you everything you need to know before you take in your first foster child. You will also get fostering allowances, which will enable you to provide food, clothes, toys, and everything else your foster child needs to thrive.
At thefca.co.uk, you can find more information about fostering allowances and other benefits you can get from fostering children with or without medical needs. You will have the opportunity to continuously learn and improve yourself, so you can become an advocate for children with medical needs.
Looking after a foster child with medical needs is a great way to make a difference in a child’s life. You can use knowledge and skills you’ve gained from your life or learn new skills along the way to support children that need it most. If you have free time and are a stay-at-home parent, fostering is an enriching role that could just change your life.
