(a) The department shall provide post-adoption services in order to reduce the risk of adoption dissolution and to support the goal of permanency in adoption.
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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 36-1-143

  • Adopted person: means :
    (A) Any person who is or has been adopted under this part or under the laws of any state, territory, or foreign country. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
  • Adoption: means the social and legal process of establishing by court order, other than by paternity or legitimation proceedings or by voluntary acknowledgment of paternity, the legal relationship of parent and child. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
  • children: means any person or persons under eighteen (18) years of age. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
  • Department: means the department of children's services or any of its divisions or units. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
  • parents: means any biological, legal, adoptive parent or parents or, for purposes of §. See Tennessee Code 36-1-102
(b) The department shall provide the following post-adoption services either directly or through purchase of service providers:

(1) Crisis intervention, including the provision of immediate assessment and time limited treatment in volatile situations and connecting families to long-term adoption sensitive treatment providers;
(2) Family and individual counseling, including the provision of mental health counseling to families and children to address issues challenging family communication, integration and other issues that may be threatening the family unit;
(3) Support groups for parents and children, including educational and recreational group experiences that bring families and children together who share the experience of the adoption process and are family strength focused;
(4) Advocacy, including information and referral services to assist families in navigating and accessing services through the community, educational, mental health and medical provider systems;
(5) Respite, including services that provide temporary, nonthreatening relief to families and children undergoing challenging circumstances and those in crisis;
(6) Case management services to stabilize volatile family situations, to develop short-term intervention plans and to connect the family with ongoing services and support systems; and
(7) Networking of families and community providers, including the provision of educational experiences that build a more adoption sensitive provider community to be aware of and responsive to families created through adoption.
(c) Post-adoption services are available to:

(1) Families who have adopted children for whom the department had legal responsibility immediately preceding the adoption; and
(2) Biological families of children adopted through the department.
(d) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent access to records of the adopted person as otherwise permitted or required by this part.
(e) It is the legislative intent that this section shall be carried out subject to the availability of funds with which to do so and that this section shall not be implemented beyond budgetary limitations.
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