Emergency Escape Plans
Each foster home is required to have an Emergency Escape Plan filled out and posted somewhere accessible in the home.
Prepare yourself and your family for a fire or other emergency by taking a few practice runs through your Emergency Escape Plan. The State Fire Marshal informed our foster care team that reviewing and practicing your escape plan is very useful, especially for children. Additional practice helps children retain this information well.
Fire extinguishers
All foster homes are required to have a 2A:10BC (or larger) rated fire extinguisher accessible, in working order, and serviced and tagged annually.
Here are a few locations for fire extinguisher service and tagging:
- LVC Companies Edina/Minneapolis: 4200 W 76th St., Minneapolis, MN. 952-835-4600
- Dehmer Fire Protection: 2241 LaBeaux Ave. NE, St Michael, MN. 763-497-2841
- ACE Hardware Golden Valley: 7914 Olson Memorial Hwy, Golden Valley, MN. 763-545-9627
- Summit Fire Protection: 575 Minnehaha Ave. W., St. Paul, MN 651-251-1880
- Johnson Controls Minneapolis/Rochester: 2605 Ferbnrook Ln. N., Plymouth, MN. 763-566-7650
- Nardini Fire Equipment: 405 County Road E, West St Paul, MN. 651-483-6631
Smoke alarms
Smoke alarms are another important fire safety tool, and should be checked annually to ensure the battery is still working. Most smoke alarms can be tested by simply pressing the test button located on the front of the alarm. The State Fire Marshal recommends replacing smoke alarms every 10 years.
Find additional fire safety tips from the Minnesota State Fire Marshal
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This year's foster care picnic will take place on Saturday, May 20 at Veterans Park (6335 Portland Ave) in Richfield. The event will also include a resource fair for foster parents.
Please mark your calendar for an afternoon filled with games, prizes, resources for providers, lunch and more!
More information will be included in future Essentials.
Are you a licensed foster parent interested in participating in a Hennepin County Child Foster Care License support group? Please complete this survey and you'll have the opportunity to win a $10 gift card!
HC Child Foster Care Support Group Survey
Entry form must be submitted by Wednesday, March 15.
Welcoming children: What you shared
In our last issue, we asked you to share your tips for welcoming children to your home.
Congratulations to Josephine and Lauren, our January/February gift card winners!
Josephine says:
- Having a straightforward conversation about how and what the family lifestyle looks like now and what it could look like having them a part of the family.
- Allowing them to ask questions and showing them around the home seeing where their room would be, meeting everyone in the home.
- If they had more questions after the visit, feeling free to call with the worker's permission.
Lauren says:
- Giving the kids options and space if they want it.
- Validating all their feelings.
- We got to get a lot of information from the previous foster home and even got to get a lot of their things the day before so their room was set up with things they knew and felt comfortable with.
See more tips for welcoming foster children/youth to your home
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Whether it’s your first year of being a foster provider or you're a veteran who has been here for years, you can find a breakdown of what training is required depending on your stage of licensure on our website: www.hennepin.us/fosterparents
Find up-to-date training opportunities, registration, schedules, Northstar and more!
The child foster care license training area offers training from the following agencies, free of charge to our foster parents: Hennepin County, Foster Adopt MN, Annex Teen Clinic, and Foster Parent College.
Cavities, also known as tooth decay, are one of the most common chronic diseases of childhood. Cavities are preventable. Children who have poor oral health often miss school and receive lower grades than children who don’t. Follow these tips for good dental health:
- Brushing with fluoride toothpaste at least 2 times a day helps remove bacteria that can cause cavities and bad breath;
- Flossing after brushing removes bacteria a toothbrush can’t reach;
- Avoid candy and sugary treats when snacking. Snacks such as fruit, raisins, cheese, or nuts are healthy options;
- Make sure to drink plenty of water and to avoid soda and juice. Drinking water is good for you and the fluoride in water helps protect teeth against tooth decay; and
- Ask for fluoride varnish while in for a Child and Teen Checkups health check. It is a protective coating that can help prevent cavities and help against cavities that have already started.
It can be difficult to find a dentist in your child/youth’s Health Plan network.
The Child and Teen Checkups (C&TC) staff are experienced in finding medical and dental clinics. We can help set up transportation and interpreters when needed.
As foster parents, you know that most children in foster care return home to their families. Some are adopted by relatives or by their foster parents.
When these options aren’t possible, kids still need loving, supportive adoptive families. Many waiting children in Hennepin County are school-age or teens, or part of a sibling group. Help us spread the word and find permanent families for these youth. We are in need of loving families, like yours, that are willing to be a mentor, respite provider, foster family, or possibly an adoptive resource for these youth.
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Jamie (11) is artistic, funny, charismatic, and kind. She enjoys connecting with her friends at school, playing with dolls, playing outside, and swimming. Jamie is eager to find her forever home and start building new memories and traditions. She appreciates spending quality time with her caregivers, enjoying special girl days, and getting her nails done. Because Jamie can’t pick just one, her favorite color is the rainbow. Following adoption, Jamie will need to maintain contact with her siblings and her maternal aunts.
View Jamie's profile and Reel Hope video on our website.
To receive an hour of training credit, read this Essentials newsletter and complete the quiz below.
Once you have completed the test, email it to your licensing worker.
Name:____________________________________________
Date:_____________________________________________
Licensing Worker:___________________________________
If you do not use email, please mail the completed quiz to your licensing worker at:
Hennepin County-HSPHD
Foster Care Licensing
Attn: _________________
300 South Six Street, Mail Code ______
Minneapolis, MN 55487
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- Flossing _____________ brushing removes bacteria a toothbrush can't reach.
- How often do you need to have your fire extinguisher serviced and tagged?
- Is there free foster care training? Yes No
- Jamie's favorite color is ___________.
- The foster care picnic is what date?
- Tooth decay is one of the most common chronic diseases of childhood. True False
- What are two things that Jamie enjoys?
- What is the new name for MN ADOPT?
- You can purchase any fire extinquisher for foster care Licensing. True False
- Smoke alarms should be replaced every _______years.
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