§7 Glossary

Children’s Division Glossary "F"

Section 7 is the glossary and reference chapters. The terms in this glossary are legal, medical, psychological, and practice terms commonly used by Children’s Division (CD). However, some of the definitions may not reflect the meaning that the general public uses.

Select a letter from the row below or scroll down to browse the index. Then select a topic from the index list.

- F -

FACE-TO-FACE:
An in-person interaction between individuals that allows the individuals to communicate and/or observe one another.
FACTITIOUS DISORDER by PROXY (FDP):
FDP is the diagnostic term used by mental health licensed professionals based upon a mental health assessment of parents in conjunction with concerns of Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy (MSBP).
FAILURE TO THRIVE SYNDROME (FTT):
An FTT child’s height, weight, and motor development fall significantly short of the average growth rates of normal children. In about 30% of FTT cases, there is an organic cause such as serious heart, kidney, or intestinal disease, a genetic error of metabolism, or brain damage. Other cases are a result of a disturbed parent-child relationship manifested in severe physical and emotional neglect of the child. In diagnosing non-organic FTT as child neglect, certain criteria should be considered:
  1. The child’s weight is low for the child’s height, but substantial weight gain occurs when the child is properly nurtured, such as when hospitalized.
  2. The child exhibits developmental retardation which decreases when there is adequate feeding and appropriate stimulation.
  3. Medical investigation provides no evidence that disease or medical abnormality is causing the symptoms.
  4. The child exhibits clinical signs of deprivation which decrease in a more nurturing environment.
  5. There appears to be a significant environmental psychosocial disruption in the child’s family.

    FTT may not apply to children who are below the growth chart in length or height. Such children are more liable to have a metabolic problem or a congenital abnormality such as heart or kidney disease. Or they may have grown improperly while in the mother’s uterus because of the mother’s medication or alcohol consumption during her pregnancy which did not allow the child to grow properly.

    Some children may exhibit failure-to-thrive because they are difficult to feed. Some are not particularly interested in food, or have unusual feeding and swallowing patterns which make it difficult for them to gain weight. In such cases, parents should not be blamed, but should be helped to develop better techniques of feeding their children.

FAMILY:
The nuclear unit of parent(s) and child(ren) regardless of their physical location or legal status.
FAMILY ASSESSMENT-FAMILY UNCOOPERATIVE/CHILD SAFE:
Enough information has been obtained to ensure that the child is safe; however, the family refuses to participate in the family assessment process and the allegations do not warrant a co-investigation with law enforcement or court intervention.
FAMILY ASSESSMENT-SERVICES NEEDED:
The family has an identified need for services. The service need should relate to one or more of the Family Assessment Findings categories. This code is used when Children’s Division (CD) will continue working with the family after the assessment is completed.
FAMILY ASSESSMENT-SERVICES NEEDED-FAMILY DECLINED:
The Children’s Service Worker has identified a service which may be beneficial to the family, however the family declined to receive the service. The child’s safety has been assessed and there is no evidence which warrants court intervention.
FAMILY ASSESSMENT-SERVICES NEEDED-SERVICES LINKED DURING INITIAL 30-DAYS:
The family has an identified need for community services. The identified services were linked with the family during the 30-day family assessment process. Children’s Division (CD) will not continue working with the family when the family assessment is completed. The Children’s Service Worker should contact referral providers to verify that the family is receiving needed services.
FAMILY ASSESSMENT-SERVICES NOT NEEDED:
The family does not have an identified need for additional services during the family assessment process. Families may be receiving services prior to the date of the hotline. Services Not Needed only applies if the family does not have additional service needs.
FAMILY-CENTERED SERVICES (FCS):
FCS is the family-focused intervention method utilized by the Division in working with families. A Children’s Service Worker meets with the family, in their home, to assist them in identifying their strengths and service needs. The worker and the family then work to develop a family plan for change.
FAMILY SYSTEMS:
An approach at looking at a family in the context of the environment in which the family operates.
FAMILY THERAPY:
Therapy sessions based on identified family problems which a therapist works through with a family as a unit.
FAMILY TREATMENT PLAN:
A plan of action which is family-specific and based on family diagnosis and risk assessment.
FELONY:
A crime is a "felony" if it is so designated or if persons convicted thereof may be sentenced to death or imprisonment for a term which is in excess of one year.
FETAL ALCOHOL SYNDROME:
A syndrome caused by excessive alcohol intake by the mother during pregnancy (excessive can be 2 oz. of alcohol daily). In the severe form, there is a characteristic facial appearance, intrauterine and postnatal growth retardation, microcephaly (small head), and mental retardation. It can also be present in milder forms.
FETUS:
A developing human, usually from three months after conception to birth.
FONTANEL:
The soft spot on a baby’s skull where the bones of the skull have not yet grown together.
FORCIBLE COMPULSION:
Means either physical force that overcomes reasonable resistance, or a threat, express or implied, that places a person in reasonable fear of death, serious physical injury, or kidnapping of himself or another person.
FORENSIC MEDICINE:
The branch of the medical profession concerned with establishing evidence for legal proceedings.
FOSTER/ADOPTIVE CARE (FA) FAMILIES:
Families recruited and approved as adoptive families, and licensed to provide foster/adoptive care services. They must be willing to accept licensing if they require financial assistance until custody of the child is transferred for the purpose of adoption, approval of an adoption subsidy agreement for an eligible child, or the child is removed, whichever occurs first.
FOSTER CARE:
A form of substitute care, usually in a home licensed by a public agency, for children whose welfare requires that they be removed from their own homes.
FOSTER CARE CASE REVIEW:
Periodic monitoring of the case plan of every child in the foster care system.
FOSTER PARENT(S):
The adult member(s) of any family licensed to provide foster family care to children unrelated by blood, marriage, or adoption. General Counsel Division has stated that foster parents are not volunteers, nor employees, not agents of Children’s Division, but most closely approximate independent contractors. (March 18, 1983)
IV-E ADOPTION ASSISTANCE:
A match of state and federal funds authorized by the Social Security Act, Title IV-E, for eligible children with special needs who have been placed for adoption and subsequently adopted. Assistance includes payment for costs of maintenance, medical and children’s services. Eligible children include only those who were previously eligible for Temporary Assistance (formerly AFDC) and IV-E Alternative Care, and who have a "specific factor or condition (such as his ethnic background, age, or membership in a minority or sibling group, or the presence of factors such as medical conditions or physical, mental, or emotional handicaps); and it is not possible to place the child without assistance after a reasonable effort to find an appropriate adoptive family resource." (The legal costs of adoption proceedings are not included as a part of the assistance.)
IV-E ALTERNATIVE CARE:
A match of state and federal funds authorized by the Social Security Act, Title IV-E, for eligible children which is used to meet maintenance costs of their care when a judicial determination has been made for the child to remain in the care of his parents or other temporary assistance non-parent caretaker relative payees would be contrary to the welfare of the child. The child must continue to meet all eligibility requirements of need, deprivation of parental support or care, and must not exceed 18 years of age unless graduation from high school will occur before the child’s 19th birthday. Families caring for relative children who are in the custody of the Division are eligible if they meet the definition of a temporary assistance relative payee. These families must also be approved as meeting the licensing standards for families providing out-of-home care.
FRACTURE:
A broken bone, and common injury in battered children. The fracture may occur in several different ways.
  1. Bucket Handle Tears - Total fracture of the metaphysis so that it is floating loose.
  2. Chip Fracture - A small piece of bone is flaked from the major part of the bone.
  3. Comminuted Fracture - Bone is crushed or broken into a number of pieces.
  4. Compound Fracture - Fragment(s) of broken bone protrudes through the soft tissues surrounding the fracture, causing a wound.
  5. Simple Fracture - Bone breaks without wounding the surrounding tissue.
  6. Spiral Fracture - Twisting causes the line of the fracture to encircle the bone like a spiral.
  7. Torus Fracture - A folding, bulging, or buckling fracture.
FRENULUM (also FRENUM):
A fold of mucous membrane that connects the lips with the gums and attaches the tongue to the floor of the mouth.
FRONTAL:
Referring to the front
FUNDASCOPIC EXAM:
Opthalmic examination to determine if irregularities or internal injuries to the eye exist.