Barnens väntrum : En kvalitativ studie om socialtjänstens arbete med barn placerade längre än sex månader i jourhem

Sammanfattning

Emergency foster care is intended to be a temporary placement for children whose home situation needs to be evaluated or who are waiting to be placed in permanent foster care. According to Swedish law, emergency foster care placements may last for a maximum of six months. But there are instances when children are placed longer in emergency foster care than the six-month duration period. The aim of this study is to examine how child welfare investigators and emergency foster care social workers describe their work with children and youths who remain in emergency foster care for longer than six months. The study focuses on the factors that contribute to prolonged placements, the challenges that arise, and how professionals manage these challenges in practice. This study uses a qualitative research design based on seven semi-structured interviews with professionals in social services, including four child welfare investigators and three emergency foster care social workers. The empirical material was analysed through thematic analysis. The analysis identified three main themes: structural causes of prolonged placements, challenges related to prolonged placements and professional approaches to managing these placements. The study concludes that prolonged emergency foster care placements should be understood as the result of interacting organizational and professional conditions rather than isolated decisions. The findings also show that prolonged placements may affect children’s attachment and sense of security. Overall, the study highlights the need for organizational and system-oriented measures that address workload, placement processes, follow-up routines and access to suitable long-term foster homes.