Mental Health Support for Youth in Foster Care | YMCA of Greater Seattle

The foster care system was created to ensure children’s safety and support families in overcoming barriers to maintaining a safe, stable home. The ultimate goal of foster care is to reunify the child with their biological parents once they can provide a safe environment. The reasons for removal are varied. They can range from neglect, abuse, parental substance abuse, and domestic violence. Due to these reasons, it is safe to assume the children in the home may have experienced adverse childhood experiences and be at higher risk of developing mental health problems. 

In addition, the action of removing a child from their home in itself is a traumatic experience. The trauma of removal increases stress and emotional dysregulation by creating uncertainty, multiple losses, and transitions that affect a child’s overall health. We know through decades of research that childhood trauma can have long-lasting impacts emotionally, socially, and developmentally. Many children in foster care will need the assistance of mental health support to ensure they can live happy, fulfilling lives. Foster parents must work closely with the youth’s social worker and support team to proactively address these needs. 

Here at the YMCA, we offer behavioral and mental health programs designed to meet the unique needs of children in foster care. One such program, Wraparound with Intensive Services (WISe), is a voluntary service that uses a team approach to meet a child’s needs. It provides intensive mental health services to help children, and their family meet their goals by:

• Providing services designed for achieving wellness, safety, and to strengthen relationships within their community.
• Developing an individualized care plan, based on strengths and needs that respect the child’s family culture, norms, and preferences. 
•  Including natural support from family, friends, spiritual advisors, and professionals who work with the family, such as counselors and probation officers. 
• Offering services and support in locations and at times that work best for the family, including at home or a public location of choice, and on evenings or weekends, and 24x7 crisis support. 

These services are achieved by assigning a child and their family a WISe Case Manager, a Child & Family Therapist, a Peer Partner and/or Parent Partner. Participating in a wraparound approach allows for smoother communication and coordination of services, as well as looking holistically at the child’s and family’s needs. Instead of one person working on just one area, there is a team assessing different needs and collaborating to ensure progress towards goals. With each intervention and outreach, the hope is that the child can start healing and learning how to navigate all the changes that have been or will be happening in their lives. The earlier that a child gets the mental health care they need, the better the long-term outcomes they will have to live a long, fulfilling life.  

By becoming licensed as foster parents through the YMCA, you can work with a team experienced in supporting children with mental health needs and receive support in-house with our WISe program. If you are interested in speaking with a representative about becoming a licensed foster parent with the YMCA please complete an inquiry form. 

To learn more about our WISe program, please visit our website at or contact the WISe referral team at wisereferrals@seattleymca.org. 

Additional Resources:

• Mental and Behavioral Needs of Kids in Foster Care
• Children and Youth Behavioral Health Work Group  
• Kids Mental Health Washington 
• Youth Mental Health Community Project