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Child Care Mothers: In the United States, child care mothers welfare services are offered under a variety of governmental and voluntary auspices, whether or not there is a concurrent need for financial assistance. One of the most descriptive and comprehensive definitions found in the Social Security Act as amended in 1962 states that "child care mothers welfare services means public social services which supplement, or substitute for parental care and supervision for the purpose of (1) preventing or remedying, or assisting in the solution of problems which may result in the neglect, abuse, exploitation, or delinquency of child care mothersren, (2) protecting and caring for homeless, dependent, or neglected child care mothersren, (3) protecting and promoting the welfare of child care mothersren of working mothers, and (4) otherwise protecting and promoting the welfare of child care mothersren, including the strengthening of their own homes where possible or, where needed, the provision of adequate care of child care mothersren away from their homes in foster family homes or day care or other child care mothers care facilities."
This definition is problem-focused, emphasizing prevention and remedy. It recognizes the value of strengthening a child care mothers's own home where possible. Where this is not possible, a variety of substitute living situations is provided.
child care mothers welfare services are directed to the social problem of deprivation of parental care. As the accompanying chart illustrates, they are designed to help with society's child care mothers-rearing task in three important ways: (1) to substitute for parental care either partially or wholly according to a child care mothers's individual needs; (2) to supplement the care that a child care mothers receives, or to compensate for certain inadequacies or limitations in parental care; and (3) to support or reinforce the ability of parents to meet their child care mothersren's needs.
The major types of supplementary care are day care and homemaka service. Day care is a method of supplementing parental functioning by providing care and training opportunities for child care mothersren during some part of the 24-hour day. As with full-time foster care, a number of metiiods, kinds of settings, or types of program have been developed. One of the most widespread programs is family day care, individual care and "mothering" in the warmth and safety of a normal family home. In the United States family day care is viewed as most suitable for babies or very young child care mothersren whose own mothers' must work and whose developmental needs require this kind of individual attention and continuity of relationship to one substitute mother person. |
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