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July/August 2021Vol. 22, No. 7Supporting the Well-Being of Children, Youth, and Families After the Pandemic Is Over

Written by the Capacity Building Center for States

Throughout 2020, agencies grappled with numerous disruptions, including the COVID-19 pandemic (with its related school and work closings and economic downturns), natural disasters, and racial and political turmoil around the country. In this tumultuous atmosphere, agency staff were challenged to respond creatively to ongoing disaster-related challenges and continue their work with children, youth, and families while keeping their own families safe. 

As child welfare agency leaders reflect on the past year, they can begin to assess how well they did in supporting the well-being of children, youth, and families, as well as consider areas where they might do things differently. The following considerations are drawn from lessons learned from the experiences of 2020.

Equity Matters
 
The COVID-19 pandemic hit communities of color especially hard for a variety of reasons, including higher levels of underlying health conditions and inequitable access to resources and services due in large part to a history of racial inequity and oppression (Wilson et al., 2020). The pandemic has provided child welfare agencies with an opportunity to rebuild systems in which families can equitably access preventive resources and services that can mitigate the impact of a disaster (such as access to technology infrastructure, child care resources, preventive medical care, and affordable sources of food and housing). For example, agencies might take a closer look at barriers to accessing services and resources such as location, scheduling, technology availability, and staff approachability.
 
A discussion of this topic and some strategies for addressing it are described in Children's Bureau Information Memorandum 21-03. A new Capacity Building Center for States (Center) publication, Visioning for Prevention: The Evidence for Strengthening Families, offers research and data on the many benefits of supporting families with prevention-focused services and what changes are needed for such a shift to occur.
 
Collaborative Disaster Planning Is Key 
 
Because disasters affect an agency's ability to provide services for children, youth, and families, proactively planning for disasters should be an agency priority. Over the past year, it has become clear that cooperating with families, youth, community organizations, and service providers can prepare agencies and families to respond more effectively to disasters by better understanding family needs and implementing supports before disasters occur. 
 
Engaging youth and families in disaster planning and response, listening closely to their input, and following their lead is especially important to ensure that everyone has what they need to continue their daily activities, such as school and work, as much as possible. For example, one state's youth advisory board sponsored a town hall to help connect young people currently and formerly in foster care to technology and self-care resources during the COVID-19 pandemic. 
 
Coping With Disasters and Strengthening Systems is a new Center series that offers information and resources to help facilitate agency collaboration with youth, families, and other stakeholders and provides additional content on planning for, responding to, and recovering from disasters.
 
Build Flexibility Into the System 
 
According to a recent Children's Bureau (2021) Information Memorandum that shares lessons learned from the pandemic, flexibility needs to be built into the child welfare system at all levels and in all areas before disasters occur. Some of these areas mentioned include the following:
  • Policies and guidance related to funding 
  • Eligibility rules for service
  • Infrastructure to disseminate information in languages other than English
  • Rules around technology use for virtual meetings and telework
Technology use during the pandemic is a good example of how existing resources can be repurposed to address new needs if the existing rules for use are flexible. Although child welfare agencies have long used technology for communication (e.g., email) and information storage and tracking, new uses for existing technology emerged as critical for family well-being during the pandemic (e.g., using videoconferencing technologies to keep children and youth digitally connected to their parents and siblings) (American Enterprise Institute, 2021). Flexible policies around technology would allow many agencies to take advantage of this resource and others like it earlier when responding to disaster.
 
Children's Bureau Information Memorandum 21-03 offers additional information about ways the child welfare field can mindfully incorporate the lessons learned from the pandemic and other disasters. In addition, the Center's Building Capacity for Disaster Preparedness at a Child Welfare Agency webpage provides resources to help agencies think about ways to adjust their policies and practices in response to disaster.
 
Throughout 2020, child welfare agencies continued to focus on keeping children safe and supporting the well-being of children and families in the face of significant challenges. Now, they can use the lessons learned to begin the work of recovery. 
 
References
 
American Enterprise Institute. (2021). What lessons can the child welfare system take from the COVID-19 pandemic? https://www.aei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/What-Lessons-Can-the-Child-Welfare-System-Take-from-the-COVID-19-Pandemic.pdf?x91208 
 
Children's Bureau. (2021). Information memorandum ACYF-CB-IM-21-03: Emerging transformed: Taking lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic to create more just, equitable, proactive, and integrated approaches to supporting families and ensuring child and family health and well-being. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families. https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/documents/cb/im2103.pdf 
 
Wilson, D. B., Solomon, T. A., & McLane-Davison, D. (2020). Ethics and racial equity in social welfare policy: Social work's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Social Work in Public Health, 35. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/19371918.2020.1808145