Health Issues and Needs

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​Health Issues and Needs

An effective health system ensures that all partners (child welfare, judicial, pediatric, mental and dental health professionals, and families) work together to respond to, manage, and improve the health and well-being of those in foster care.
  • Educational Health
    Educational health is not a term often used or heard. For children and teens in foster care, educational health is particularly critical.
  • Developmental Health
    Healthy child development is rooted in the experiences of infancy and early childhood —experiences that are mediated for the child through their parents and caregivers.
  • Mental and Behavioral Health
    Mental and behavioral health is the largest unmet health need for children and teens in foster care.
  • Oral Health
    Dental and oral health care remains some of the most difficult health services to access for children and teens in foster care.
  • Physical Health
    Children and teens have often received only fragmentary and sporadic health care prior to entering foster care.
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