CONCERN's 
Services  

Foster Care Services

Treatment Foster Care places neglected, abused and/or delinquent children and youth into foster homes in the community. Highly trained treatment foster parents provide emotional and physical nurturance, structure and discipline. CONCERN staff members provide intensive support services, counseling and case management.

Intermediate Treatment Foster Care is open to direct referrals from county offices of children and youth and to youngsters who have been placed in the Treatment Foster Care program for six months or more, but who no longer need the intensity of the support services provided in that program

Foster Care for Children with Disabilities (Medically Fragile in Maryland) provides homes for children with acute physical, emotional or mental disabilities as an alternative to hospitalization or institutionalization. Foster parents and staff undergo specialized training to deal with the disabilities of the children.

Traditional Foster Care places children who, for reasons beyond their control, cannot live with their own parents. 

Parent/Baby Foster Care (Mother/Infant in Maryland) provides homes for a pregnant teen or young adult and her baby.

Life Skills Programs, including Community Life Skills, Life Skills Institute and Life Skills Foster Care, offer community-based, treatment-oriented supervised living arrangements for adjudicated and dependent or delinquent youth ages 16 to 21. This program helps these youth secure employment and to develop skills which will enable them to live independently after leaving CONCERN.

Youth in Recovery Foster Care provides concentrated family-based care and support for teens meeting one of the following criteria: completion of in-patient treatment and the home environment is deemed not conducive to rehabilitation; has had treatment within the past year, has relapsed and is having difficulty returning to sobriety; or is experiencing much difficulty in his present environment, the support system is lacking and sobriety is jeopardized.

COMPADRES Program features experienced bilingual foster parents who serve as mentors to families whose primary language is Spanish and who are interested in foster parenting.

Adoption Program (Foster/Adopt and Adoption) offers a permanency option for children of all ages. Foster/Adopt is designed to provide an adoptive resource for children in care whose goal has been changed from reunification with birth parents to termination of parental rights/adoption. The Adoption Program provides services through Pennsylvania Statewide Adoption Network (SWAN), which includes providing adoption services to the families who came to the agency through the foster/adopt program and families not affiliated with any agency to do their adoptive family profile and then help them become matched with a waiting child.

CONCERN Treatment Units for Boys (CTUBs) are staff-secure, treatment-oriented facilities for adolescent males. The goal of this program is to change the mind sets and behavior patterns of the youth so they will be able to function appropriately in society and will return to the community as healthy, productive citizens.

Counseling is provided on a confidential outpatient basis to adults and children from the community, as well as to the children and youth in CONCERN’s care. CONCERN Counseling Services is a licensed psychiatric outpatient program which also offers Employee Assistance Programs for large and small businesses. Psychological and psychiatric testing also is available.

Family Group Decision Making (FGDM) is a decision-making process involving families, public agencies and community participants. FGDM provides a structure that offers parents and their extended family the opportunity to assume a decision-making role and to assume responsibility for developing a plan that will ensure the safety and protection of their children. FGDM is purposefully designed so that families involved in the child welfare system can exercise a meaningful voice over their affairs. Emphasis is given to preparing family group members and professionals, weighting meeting participation toward the family, respecting the family’s culture, and ensuring timely approval and implementation of a plan.

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