We fostered infants for ten yearss. We've seen a lot. We've heard stories that that nightmares are made of and are suffered by small children.
One night we were brought a 7 month old baby girl. Once the caseworker left I began to change her for a bath when I suddenly saw bruising all over her backside. Nobody told me she had been beaten and covered in bruises. I had been told she previad a family emergency and that she had been in their home for awhile.
I called the caseworker and she called the previous home ecause they had a family emergency and that she had been in their home for awhile. I had been told she was brouyght to us from a previous foster home because the previous home. The home told the case worker the bruises were there before they received her from the hospital. Initially my thoughts were that the previous home had caused the bruising.
Turns out the markings were not actual bruises but Mongolian Spots.
These spots are not uncommon on Bi-Racial children. The easiest way to describe them is to refer to them as a type of birthmark.
I relized that I would need to explain the markings to any nursery worker that I took her too so they would know she wasn't covered in bruises.
It's unfortunate her paperwork did not inform me of this nor had I been educated to realize these markings were more than likely not bruises. We spent a few hours
on the phone to discover that it was not child abuse after all.
It is so important that if you foster, be sure to document with pictures because you don't want Child Protective Services knocking on your door for something you didnt do."
Had a church nursery worker seen the marks and had I not had knowledge and documentation that the marks were Mongolian spots then they could of called CPS on me and CPS may of removed the baby from the nursery, taken her to the hospital and then investigated us and that would be very very invasive for my family and can be traumatic for the child.
This is also important for any family, foster or non foster to have medical paperwork on hand at all times for any questionable marks or conditions to prevent misunderstandings and removal of your child/children.
Although she had not been removed for the appearance of bruising. She had been removed because her parent tried to suffocate her with a pillow.
We learned from that experience to look the baby over and take pictures upon arrival in the presence of the caseworker. We only fostered newborns so it wasn't as invasive for them as it might be for an older child but it is important for your protection to know as much as you can about the physical and emotional condition of the child that comes into your care.
