Undertaking a health assessment

Comprehensive and well analysed health assessments of children and adults are vital to ensuring that children’s health needs are addressed in fostering, adoption and kinship care placements. They are also crucial to ensuring that family health information accompanies looked after children into adulthood, and for effective planning for children’s future needs. The CoramBAAF health forms, developed by experienced health professionals, are key to this task and a UK-wide quality standard.

Undertaking a health assessment is designed to help health professionals to utilise the various CoramBAAF health forms that contribute to comprehensive evidence-based health assessments of looked after children, including those with an adoption plan, and prospective foster carers, adopters and kinship carers.

The guide will:

• help health professionals understand the importance of their role in completing health assessments;
• explain why the information is required and how and when it should be collected;
• discuss with whom it should be shared, with an exploration of consent requirements and confidentiality;
• explain how best to analyse it;
• provide information on the legislative framework and requirements in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

Who is this book for?

This guide will be invaluable for all those involved in completing health assessments of adults or children in fostering, adoption and kinship care.

What you will find in this book

The guide covers:

• legal issues and statutory duties for health assessments
• consent
• the initial health assessment
• the review health assessment
• assessments of mental health and well-being
• adult health assessment

A range of case examples are also considered.

Read the contents page and introduction

Authors

Florence Merredew has worked as CoramBAAF’s Health Group Development Officer for a number of years. She works to promote the health of looked after children and their carers, raise awareness, improve standards and contribute to best practice.

Carolyn Sampeys is a community paediatrician and named doctor for adoption, fostering and looked after children for Cardiff and Vale University Health Board. She acts as medical adviser in adoption to Cardiff and Vale of Glamorgan local authorities. She is also designated doctor for safeguarding children within Public Health Wales. She is the Chair of the CoramBAAF Health Group Advisory Committee.

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