As we are preparing our house to open back up for foster placements, I am reviewing all of the things I could have done better the first time around. When my three boys first came I tried to prepare the best I could, but you don't really know what you don't know, LOL! One of the areas that I totally could have done better in is organizing the massive amounts of paperwork, records, notes, and observations you will have when dealing with foster care. For the boys I have a HUGE Rubbermaid filled with papers, it is completely disorganized. Today I am going to show you what I have been working on to keep it all organized this time around!
I decided a Foster Care Binder for each child would be the best way to keep everything in one place and well organized. You will find the links to individual pages/forms throughout the post, they should open in google docs so you can customize them to fit your needs.
BINDER COVER: You can get a copy of my Binder Cover here. I choose to leave the child's name off of the front, that way if I need to bring the binder with me the name is not visible to anyone. If you had more than one Binder you may want to put Initials or design a different cover to distinguish each child.
BACK OF BINDER: I have a copy of this poem (or this design) on the back outside cover of my binder.
Flash Drive: Any time I receive paperwork, notes, emails, cards, etc. I scan them into my computer and put a copy on the child's flash drive. This way if the child moves on I can easily pass the binder along and still have a copy of everything without having to worry about storage space, or I can quickly email caseworkers documents, etc. This is also a great way to keep copies of school work and crafts, just scan them onto the drive and you don't have to feel guilty about throwing away the weekly spelling test! If you want to keep the binder when the child moves on, you can always burn everything from the flash drive onto a CD that you can send with them or give to the Case Worker. I keep the Flash Drive and a few pens and post-its in a zipper pouch in the front of the binder.
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BASIC INFO SHEET: This sheet goes in the front of the binder and contains any pertinent information such as, Name, Birthdate, Age, Grade, Date of Placement, Allergies, Medical Diagnosis. If I can I like to put a picture of the child upon placement on this sheet too.
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CONTACT SHEET: This sheet includes the names, addresses, phone numbers, fax numbers, and emails for anyone involved with the child. At the beginning of the placement I will handwrite them on this sheet in pencil, because things can change quickly. Once things settle down I will go back and type them in if I feel so inclined :) Behind this sheet is one of those plastic baseball card collector sheets to place business cards in from various professionals involved with the child. Always ask for a card or if they don't have one get their name and jot it down. Transporters, visit supervisors, ANYONE!! You never know when you will need to recall someone who had an interaction with the child.
Case Workers (County, Agency, Transport, Visit)
Supervisors
GAL/CASA
Birth Parents
Doctors
Therapists
Dentist
Teachers
Principal
Former Placements
Siblings and Extended Family
Foster Placements of siblings
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CONTACT LOG: You can get a copy of my Contact Log here. Rather than tying to make all the information fit into columns, I've found it is easier for me to give myself as much space as needed to write notes or things I need to follow up on. I will also insert written communication such as emails, cards, etc. in plastic page protectors. I will still log these into the main Contact Log and then write "See Attached" in the notes section. That way I can keep track of everything in chronological order. Get a copy of the cover sheet for this section here.
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IMPORTANT PAPERS: This section contains any important papers I need for the placement, including placement paperwork, Birth Certificate or SS cards, Medical Cards, permissions for treatment or travel. I also like to include this Incoming Personal Property Inventory sheet so I can keep track of any items the child came with and add any items that are given to them by birthparents throughout the placement. The other sheet I keep in here is a timeline of the child's life, including past placements and important events. This can be very helpful when you are talking to various therapists and doctors, I find that having a visual of all the dates is helpful in getting a full picture of the child. I can also add events to it as they come up throughout the placement or as new information is disclosed by those involved with the case. Get a copy of the cover sheet for this section here.
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MEDICAL SECTION: If you take medically fragile placements you may find it best to have a whole binder divided by type of Doctor/Specialist. For me, I keep a summary sheet in the front with doctor/dentist information, how often and when they are supposed to see them, when the last appointment was and when the next one will be. I keep a separate sheet listing current medications, dosage, directions, who prescribed them as well as a medication history sheet showing past medications. I usually keep a few copies of their current medication sheet so I can hand it out when asked what medications the child is on ( I also include any Over the Counter medications or vitamins that are given regularly). I have a medication log to document that I have given the medications. I then just keep all medical documents by date, if something is important and I will need to find it quickly or often I will put a post-it note on it that sticks out a little from the binder. In the back of this section I keep Incident Reports which I fill out if there are any bumps or bruises that I want to document. I will scan it in and email it to the caseworker, make a note of the email in the contact log, and then place it in chronological order in this section. Get the cover sheet for this section here.
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EDUCATION SECTION: I keep a sheet of important information up front, School contact info, teacher name, grade, room #, schedule including "specials" (for example 'Gym Day' so we bring sneakers), school calendar, IEP dates. Next is a copy of the current IEP and Evaluation in page protectors. Afterwards all important documents are put in chronological order. If a placement receives early intervention I keep that paperwork in this section rather than medical section. Get the cover sheet for this section here.
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VISITATION SECTION: I keep a sheet of important information up front, Visit Schedule, Transporter contact information, visitation supervisor information, visitation center address and phone number. Then I keep a Monthly Calendar where I color in visit days either Green, Yellow, or Red. Green for successful visit, Yellow if there was an issue (late, left early, etc.), Red for No Show or Cancelled. I think the visual is helpful to keep track of the visits. I keep a Notes page to write any observations from the visit or things kids said about visit. Get a copy of this section cover sheet here.
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BEHAVIOR SECTION: This section will vary depending on what behaviors need to be addressed in each child. I keep a Monthly Calendar where I can jot down things as well as note pages where more detailed summaries can be placed. If we are using a specific behavior sheet or reward program I will include those here. Get a copy of this sections cover sheet here.
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COURT RECORDS: I keep a summary sheet of any court info I may have, court house address and contact information, judge assigned, GAL assigned, case number, important dates. The rest of the Court paperwork gets organized by date. I will also include a note page if a caseworker gives me a summary of what happened at a court date and include it accordingly. Get the cover sheet for this section here.
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FINANCIAL SECTION: Any expenses that your agency may reimburse for can be kept in this section. I keep mileage logs here as well as any receipts for tolls. I also keep a copy of the current Clothing Inventory showing the placement has the required number of clothing items in each category as well as receipts if your agency requires them. Any extra-curricular activities that the placement may be in or school fees and the receipts. Check stubs from the monthly stipend can be hole punched and kept in this section as well. Get the cover sheet for this section here.
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MONTHLY REPORTS: My agency requires a monthly report to be filled out, I keep copies of each monthly report here as well as some blank ones. Get the cover sheet for this section here.
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PICTURES: I keep a copy of important pictures in the binder such as school pictures for the year, Christmas Card Picture, pictures from important events, a picture with their birth family, pictures with caseworkers, etc. Get the cover sheet for this section here.
How do you organize everything? Id love to hear in the comments!
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