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Addressing the Complex Needs of Children & Families
From the University of Montana's Center for
Children, Families,
and Workforce Development
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Issue 5, May 2018
Grandparents Raising Grandchildren
Montana has witnessed a sharp increase in the number of adults who are unable to care for their children. Opioids, meth, and heroin abuse along with mental health problems, financial hardships, and incarceration has compromised parents' abilities to adequately care for their children, resulting in more grandparents having to assume primary care of their grandchildren. In Montana, approximately "7,400 grandparents are raising their grandchildren without parental involvement" (MSU-Extension, para. 1). Unfortunately, becoming parents for a second time and forgoing the anticipated joys that often accompany retirement, an empty nest, and grandparenthood often stirs a wide range of emotions and strains family relationships.
In this month's Montana Minute, we focus on grandparents raising grandchildren by explaining the hardships that frequently occur and providing resources to help grandparents and families to navigate this difficult transition. The podcast features University of Montana's Dr. Keith Anderson who is a nationally recognized gerontologist. We have also included a wide range of resources designed to assist grandparents and families in adjusting to these role changes and ensuring that children's needs are met.
(www.grandfamilies.org/montana)
The University of Montana's Center for Children, Families, and Workforce Development was established in 2015 to partner with the child protection, health, educational, and judicial systems to develop and deliver educational and training resources to professionals and caregivers statewide. The Center also conducts research that focuses on solving problems that impact children and families. The Center receives support from the University of Montana, College of Health Professions and Biomedical Sciences, and School of Social Work.
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Featured Podcast: Grandparents Raising Grandchildren
More of Montana's grandparents are now raising their grandchildren...Dr. Keith Anderson, Professor at the University of Montana explains what's behind this increase in kinship care and how to best support families.
Listen Here!
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60 Minutes Episode on "Opioid epidemic leaving grandparents to raise grandchildren".
The nation's growing addiction to opioids and other illegal drugs has resulted in approximately one million children being removed from their parents' care and placed in their grandparents' homes. The drug abuse has also drastically altered the roles of grandparents as many have drastically altered their retirement plans and depleted their personal savings to adequately care for their grandchildren.
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Feature Headline
You Can Help by Knowing:
The Challenges--Help Guide that has a list of the challenges grandparents and grandchildren often face along with tips on how to deal with them
Support--Online support group and quick links to crisis information
Tips to get Help--AARP has tips to get others to help support kinship care providers
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Conversational Styles to Decrease Resistance &Support Behavior Change
This workshop will provide an overview of the conversational styles utilized in the spirit of Motivational Interviewing (MI). Learning MI is a process, not a one day training. This training seeks to provide foundations for what a true MI learning environment includes.
Bozeman, June 19, 2018
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Article Headline
Child and Family Services ECHO
Billings Clinic and UM's Center for Children, Families and Workforce Development are partnering to bring Child and Family Services Division a unique opportunity to obtain expert knowledge, feedback and peer support in a six-month pilot of trauma-informed learning and case consultations via Project ECHO. Project ECHO, a video-based tele-mentoring platform, is utilized by Billings Clinic to reach clinicians across Montana on a variety of topics including pediatric and adult mental health, opioid use disorders, and adverse childhood experiences. Child and Family Services ECHO will focus on supporting child welfare professionals working with children who have been exposed to complex childhood trauma, including abuse and neglect. Child and Family Services ECHO will connect Montana's child welfare professionals with regional and national experts for peer support, service knowledge enhancement, case discussions and treatment planning.
Child and Family Services ECHO next session on May 24, 2018 from
11:30 - 1 at CFSD offices.
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