|
Home > Glossary - H
Glossary - H
Many child welfare terms are subject to interpretation. The Glossary identifies commonly held definitions for terms that can be found on the Child Welfare Information Gateway website. It defines common acronyms and includes links to information on major Federal legislation and related child welfare terms. The Glossary will be updated as new terminology emerges in the field, as new legislation is enacted, and as child welfare terms take on new meaning.
Hague Convention
A multinational agreement (The Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption) that sets out internationally agreed-upon rules and procedures for adoptions between countries that have a treaty relationship under the Convention. It provides a framework for member countries to work together to ensure that adoptions take place in the best interests of a child and to prevent the abduction, sale of, or traffic in children. The Convention also establishes a central authority in each country to ensure that one authoritative source of information and point of contact exists for prospective adoptive parents to receive reliable and accurate information.
home-based services
Services provided primarily to families in their homes. In child welfare, this may include home visiting, parent aides, respite care, and homemaker services.
home study
Process of mutually assessing and preparing prospective foster, adoptive, or kinship families to determine their suitability to foster or adopt and determine the type of child whose needs would best be met by them. A home study may include a range of evaluative activities, visits to the family's residence, and educational activities.
home visiting
Method of delivering preventive and family support services directly to the family in the home. Home visiting programs support positive parent-child relationships, promote optimal child health and development and academic success, enhance parental self-sufficiency and parenting skills, connect the family with community resources, and prevent child abuse and neglect. They focus on the importance of children's early years and on the role parents play in child development.
|
