http://www.kplctv.com/Global/story.asp?S=12128098
Probably the wisest words I've read in a long time:
"There are a lot of kids that are hard to parent.
Some of them have behavioral problems, because they've been abused. Some of them are abused because they have behavioral problems," said Sam Armer with Professional Counseling Specialties.
Sam Armer is a clinical psychotherapist, and has worked on these types of cases for years.
"You would have needed to have a doctor that monitored the child with medication, possibly. You would have to have a therapist involved to help train you, the parent, on how to manage the behavior, and to help with the child as well," said Armer.
People who know Jaime Day said she is a good mom, and that she did seek care for this young boy, who in there opinion has severe mental problems. But, does the boy's possible behavior problems justify the way he was allegedly treated?"
Of course it doesn't!! This is most obviously a child that required a therapeutic placement. My guess is that either the family did not want to admit that they could not control him appropriately and kept the abuse highly secret or they were keeping him to continue to receive a stipend (such as SSI).
We're seeing more and more abuse cases these days involving children who should not be living in regular family homes as their individual needs are too great. However, to access a voluntary foster placement for that child, the family must give up the SSI. That's not easy to do in this economy.
Many don't know that a child living in his birth home can qualify for a SSI payment at approximately $400-600/month. Being that it is a means based program, though, the family will lose the funds if their income is too high or if the child leaves the home.
If that same child is placed in a therapeutic foster home trained to deal with tremendously challenged children, the foster parent will receive the SSI payment and an ISP (Individualized Service Payment) specially negotiated for the needs of that child. Depending on the state, that payment can be anywhere from a few hundred dollars up to several thousands or more per month. That's hard for families to accept sometimes. Often times, specialized foster families even have more access to services and respite for the child. It's an imperfect program as we are talking about children, families, and very special needs. JMO
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