Therapeutic Foster Care

FSW’s Therapeutic Foster Care (TFC) program offers loving, stable homes and foster parents to children who, for various reasons, are unable to live with their birth parents or family members at this time. The children are from all social, economic and ethnic backgrounds and between the ages of 0-21. The youth are special in that they may have behavioral, social, medical, or emotional struggles.

Therapeutic foster parents are provided with extensive training and professional support including respite care and 24 hour on-call support. Therapeutic Foster Care’s foster parents give children the chance they deserve for a family, a home and a future.

What is therapeutic foster care?

Therapeutic or treatment foster care (TFC) goes above and beyond typical foster care because the youth served may have medical or behavioral health needs that require more intensive and ongoing intervention and treatment than traditional foster care.

For example, a foster youth placed in a therapeutic foster care home may have an individualized treatment plan that calls for weekly individual therapy, weekly supervised family visitation and ongoing medication support.

The goal of therapeutic foster care placements is to return the foster child to his or her home environment as soon as safely and practically possible.

Who can become a foster parent?

Foster parents in New York state, must be:

  • 21 years of age or older
  • Legal residents of the United States
  • Have an annual income that can support adding a child to your home

How do I become a foster parent?

  • Attend an orientation session
  • Complete the foster parent application, a child abuse clearance form, be fingerprinted and provide current medical reports and  supplemental documents
  • Complete a Foster Parent Training Workshop
  • Participate in a home study

What resources and support systems do foster parents receive?

  • Financial stipend for the child
  • 24-hour emergency services
  • Ongoing therapeutic support
  • Training programs for foster parents
  • Events, social gathering and support groups

What resources and support systems do foster children receive?

All planning is specific to the needs of the child and his or her family (birth family, resources, a legal guardian, etc.). This includes:

  • Intensive therapeutic interventions using trauma-focused practices
  • Mental health treatment
  • Health insurance
  • Independent living skills training
  • Referrals as needed

To read more, see our FAQs by clicking here.

Contact Information and Next Steps:

To find out more and/or begin the process of becoming a Therapeutic Foster Care Parent, please contact:

Beth Bernardone, Program Director
(914) 305-6891
beth.bernardone@fsw.org