It's really hard to rise above bureaucracy. There's pretty much no rising allowed. Either you do the petty paperwork or...you're out.
Tomorrow we meet with our licensing social worker to renew our license.
(This is social worker #3 in our lives. She's not to be confused with the foster care social worker nor the adoption social worker. If I believed it actually took some level of expertise to manage all the rules and paperwork for each area then I'd understand. But, in reality, all three of them give us the forms ahead of time and we fill them all out by ourselves, then turn them back in. If the forms are so easy a layman can do it--how does their agency need to hire three different people just to manage one family?)
The list of things we have to do to renew our license is long and feels sillier by the minute. There's a 10 page questionnaire with statements like:
I want to know why our fire and tornado emergency plans would've changed since the last time we drew a map of our house. Wouldn't the social worker who comes every month have noticed a major renovation that would've changed how we escape from our house?
But the state doesn't want honesty or common sense. They want to cover their ass. If they asked and we put our reply in writing then they can hold us liable and themselves blameless when the shit hits the fan. That's all this petty paperwork is about--not keeping kids safe, not forming helpful relationships between social workers and foster parents, not about honesty and asking for help. Just a state-level CYA plan.
So, I'm writing this post today to crow about one teeny, tiny victory in the war on pettiness. As part of this renewal we have to provide proof that our pets are up to date on their vaccinations. That's what the form states: vaccinations. It doesn't ask for anything else about our pets' medical records or care, just proof that immunizations are up to date.
So, I go to my vet's office today and ask for the cats' shot records. They print out a form that shows yes, the kitties are up to date but then there's a line that says one cat is overdue on his parasite check (aka fecal sample). I don't know why that's in there. I always bring both cats--if I brought in a sample for one then I'd have done it for the other, too. I can't remember any details about bagging up cat poop a year ago but I know enough from having cats for 12 years that I'm sure this glitch is on their end, not mine.
I get real nice and smiley and lean over and explain to the receptionist that we're foster parents and we're renewing our license and the state is only asking for their shot record, not anything else about the animal's medical care. She has to leave and talk to her manager but then she comes back and says, no, they can't take that line off the form because that would be "altering the animal's medical record". She says it like this is an actual crime. She looks at me like I've just asked her to rob a bank.
You'd think someone who works in a vet clinic would understand the difference between immunizations and parasites. You'd think someone looking at a computer screen with our history could see we are responsible people, not looking to pull a fast one on anybody. Nope. She's all important with her big NO and not gonna budge for no one.
Oh my god, people, I'm so tired of all this shit. Literally.
I just walk out and come home. So, I've got some options. a) submit the paperwork as is and hope the social worker won't care or will understand, b) scan that paperwork in, use photoshop to erase that one line, reprint. c) try to get an appt for the cat, scoop poop, and repay the outrageous vet fees, again, less than a year from when I did it last.
As I'm talking this through with Theo (I'm wanting a or b, he's wanting c) I suddenly remember there's this online pet portal website I've never used. Maybe it lets me sort info I want to show? I log in and POOF--that system is correct! It does NOT show any missing poop report!! Yippee!! Print that version out and voila, we now have a pet record that will pass the state.
But at the end of the day I just sit here and think of all the other things I could be doing with my time that would meaningfully improve the lives of my children.
If I were in charge of this system then I'd be radically changing everything from the get go. I'd make the initial licensing process be much more rigorous (e.g. get a letter from your vet showing if you have a history of providing all types of medical care on a regular basis for the life of your animal--if the vet certifies you've been a responsible animal owner for at least two years, then we will never ask you about your animal's vet care again) and this thorough screening would then put people in different categories. Some categories of people are clearly highly responsible with a long history of parenting and they shouldn't have the same ticky tacky micro-management as people in other categories who possibly need more oversight. This would not only increase trust and good feelings between foster parents and social workers but it'd also mean less work by social work staff.
But of course this idea of mine is not in the state's interest. Far better to overwork social workers with paperwork to keep the state's ass covered at all times--even from the scary danger of a cat with worms.
Tomorrow we meet with our licensing social worker to renew our license.
(This is social worker #3 in our lives. She's not to be confused with the foster care social worker nor the adoption social worker. If I believed it actually took some level of expertise to manage all the rules and paperwork for each area then I'd understand. But, in reality, all three of them give us the forms ahead of time and we fill them all out by ourselves, then turn them back in. If the forms are so easy a layman can do it--how does their agency need to hire three different people just to manage one family?)
The list of things we have to do to renew our license is long and feels sillier by the minute. There's a 10 page questionnaire with statements like:
- In the past year have you kept your medications locked up?
- In the past year, if you own a gun, have you kept it securely contained?
- What are your fire and tornado emergency plans? Draw a map and label it.
I want to know why our fire and tornado emergency plans would've changed since the last time we drew a map of our house. Wouldn't the social worker who comes every month have noticed a major renovation that would've changed how we escape from our house?
But the state doesn't want honesty or common sense. They want to cover their ass. If they asked and we put our reply in writing then they can hold us liable and themselves blameless when the shit hits the fan. That's all this petty paperwork is about--not keeping kids safe, not forming helpful relationships between social workers and foster parents, not about honesty and asking for help. Just a state-level CYA plan.
So, I'm writing this post today to crow about one teeny, tiny victory in the war on pettiness. As part of this renewal we have to provide proof that our pets are up to date on their vaccinations. That's what the form states: vaccinations. It doesn't ask for anything else about our pets' medical records or care, just proof that immunizations are up to date.
So, I go to my vet's office today and ask for the cats' shot records. They print out a form that shows yes, the kitties are up to date but then there's a line that says one cat is overdue on his parasite check (aka fecal sample). I don't know why that's in there. I always bring both cats--if I brought in a sample for one then I'd have done it for the other, too. I can't remember any details about bagging up cat poop a year ago but I know enough from having cats for 12 years that I'm sure this glitch is on their end, not mine.
I get real nice and smiley and lean over and explain to the receptionist that we're foster parents and we're renewing our license and the state is only asking for their shot record, not anything else about the animal's medical care. She has to leave and talk to her manager but then she comes back and says, no, they can't take that line off the form because that would be "altering the animal's medical record". She says it like this is an actual crime. She looks at me like I've just asked her to rob a bank.
You'd think someone who works in a vet clinic would understand the difference between immunizations and parasites. You'd think someone looking at a computer screen with our history could see we are responsible people, not looking to pull a fast one on anybody. Nope. She's all important with her big NO and not gonna budge for no one.
Oh my god, people, I'm so tired of all this shit. Literally.
I just walk out and come home. So, I've got some options. a) submit the paperwork as is and hope the social worker won't care or will understand, b) scan that paperwork in, use photoshop to erase that one line, reprint. c) try to get an appt for the cat, scoop poop, and repay the outrageous vet fees, again, less than a year from when I did it last.
As I'm talking this through with Theo (I'm wanting a or b, he's wanting c) I suddenly remember there's this online pet portal website I've never used. Maybe it lets me sort info I want to show? I log in and POOF--that system is correct! It does NOT show any missing poop report!! Yippee!! Print that version out and voila, we now have a pet record that will pass the state.
But at the end of the day I just sit here and think of all the other things I could be doing with my time that would meaningfully improve the lives of my children.
If I were in charge of this system then I'd be radically changing everything from the get go. I'd make the initial licensing process be much more rigorous (e.g. get a letter from your vet showing if you have a history of providing all types of medical care on a regular basis for the life of your animal--if the vet certifies you've been a responsible animal owner for at least two years, then we will never ask you about your animal's vet care again) and this thorough screening would then put people in different categories. Some categories of people are clearly highly responsible with a long history of parenting and they shouldn't have the same ticky tacky micro-management as people in other categories who possibly need more oversight. This would not only increase trust and good feelings between foster parents and social workers but it'd also mean less work by social work staff.
But of course this idea of mine is not in the state's interest. Far better to overwork social workers with paperwork to keep the state's ass covered at all times--even from the scary danger of a cat with worms.
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