FASD Often Overlooked in Child Welfare: New Online Course Helps Resource Parents Support Youth With FASD

September 23, 2021

Eugene, OR — September is FASD Awareness Month and there is good reason to build awareness about fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. Drinking any amount or type of alcohol during a pregnancy can lead to a lifetime of learning and behavioral issues for the child. However, FASD is often overlooked as a possible cause for these issues, because it is a physical health condition that can look like a mental health condition.

In the United States, the number of children impacted by fetal alcohol spectrum disorders can be staggering, with as many as 1 in 20 children–from all social and economic levels of society–adversely affected by prenatal exposure to alcohol. Among children in the child welfare system, it is even more prevalent. And it is especially challenging for professionals and caregivers to identify whether the child was prenatally exposed to alcohol and whether their behavioral issues might stem from FASD. To coincide with FASD Awareness Month, and to build awareness of FASD for families who may be caring for a child impacted by prenatal alcohol exposure, Foster Parent College has released a new online course, Could It Be FASD?

Could It Be FASD? challenges viewers to look beyond a child's behavior and consider whether the cause might be FASD. As Dr. Kathryn Page says, “I think all resource parents should understand the basics of how alcohol use during pregnancy can damage the brain and how it underlies some of the most frustrating behaviors of many children in care.”

This course took 2 years to develop and was produced as part of a collaboration between Kathryn Page, PhD, an adoptive parent of a child with FASD and former director of an FASD diagnostic clinic; Robert Nickel, MD, a highly respected developmental pediatrician; and the staff at Foster Parent College, which specializes in evidence-based training methods specifically for resource parents.

Viewers will learn how alcohol can affect the brain of a developing fetus, the impairments children and adults with FASD may experience, and how children with FASD are diagnosed. Viewers will also discover the potential learning and behavioral issues children with FASD may have. The course helps resource parents understand how to provide support to children with FASD so they can reach their full potential.

Produced by Foster Parent College, Could It Be FASD? utilizes FPC's innovative approach to adult online learning, using easy-to-understand discussions, graphics, and interactive exercises. It joins over 70 other courses (in English and Spanish) on the FosterParentCollege.com website. The site is popular among caregiving families throughout the United States, with its courses having been viewed over 860,000 times. Many states and counties have turned to FPC to provide both pre-service and in-service training for resource parents, especially since the pandemic began.

To watch a short preview of the course, visit fosterparentcollege.com/course-info/fasd.