Kinship Care: The Model Of Raising Children

Kinship Care
Introduction
Raising children has traditionally always been thought of as the role of the child’s parents. However, in today’s society, the model of raising children takes many forms. One in particular is kinship care. “The term kinship care describes this family care arrangement, and is often the best option when children cannot live with their own parents” (Cooper, 2012, p. 27). Kinship care can take various forms as well. Many times it is grandparents raising their grandchildren but it can also be great-grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc. Reasons for children going into kinship care vary depending on family situation. “Although this informal, private or voluntary arrangement has many advantages for the child, there are fewer

Research and best practice help to support quality improvement by providing a stable “why” something should or should not be done. This is highly significant to nursing practice as nurses are taught to always back up their claims and suggestions with evidence based research. Nurses working with children in kinship care face a great challenge when trying to implement or change practice as they are often up against local and state government and limited funding. “Presently, families are relying on kinship care arrangements at a much higher rate than in the past. In fact, “families led by kinship caregivers are one of the fastest growing family groups in the nation” (Cooper, 2012, p. 28). Because of the staggering growth of kinship families, research into the circumstances surrounding these families’ situations must be evaluated. By doing so nurses can utilize this research to promote resources and care for the kinship caregivers and children in the

Research shows that “a person benefits from the trust, love, support, and availability that he or she receives from caring relationships” (Denby et al., 2017, p. 114). A caring and nurturing relationship from a positive kinship experience can benefit the child in their emotional, physical, social, and mental health and well-being. Positive kinship care is important to these children as many of them are put into this situation due to unfortunate circumstances. “While evidence is limited, studies suggest that children are often placed with kin outside of the formal foster care system after a child maltreatment investigation” (Eunju et al., 2017, p. 89). Child maltreatment is one of the many reasons children are placed into kinship care. This writer learned from clinical experience this semester that some of the other main reasons children are in kinship care is due to parental incarceration, substance abuse, and loss of custody. Due to the circumstances surrounding the child’s placement in kinship care, the child is more likely to have various difficulties as they grow up. “Children who reside in kinship care are vulnerable to substance abuse, juvenile justice system involvement, mental health disorders, early pregnancy, and incomplete educational attainment” (Denby et al., 2017, p. 110). Because children in kinship care are more prone to these