I recently got a job (!) as a family therapist. I work with kids and teens and their families on all kinds of issues. To be able to work with kids, I had to get finger printed, background checked, motor vehicle checked, and a provisional license. I dont disagree with this policy, especially considering the nature of the work that I do.
However, today I was thinking about the process; I have been through it 2 times already, once to get into grad school, and once to begin seeing clients. Luckily, the state of Wyoming came to the conclusion (once more) that I was not, in fact, a criminal and has graciously allowed me to help those who are.
There is always some debate about whether or not parents (read: mothers) should have to go through a similar process before giving birth or being able to keep their baby. How in the world this would be implemented is beyond me, because the number of pregnant women who do not a: have access to health care, and/or b: do not know that they need health care while pregnant and/or c: cant get care because of other reasons or circumstances and/or d: choose not to get care, is higher than we might like to think. Unfortunately, these are often the mothers that I see in therapy. So...should mothers be required by law to do some sort of criminal background check?
Of course, we are all going to have different opinions. Even the experts cant agree. I want to make it clear that I do not think that those parents with a criminal history cannot be good parents--they can. But often for these parents life's circumstances make it more difficult that those parents who do not have a criminal history. I am also not suggesting that parents without a criminal history are always good parents--they arent. We all know that.
This is my two cents...what do you think?
