Me and my foster family: assessing the feasibility of a flexible intervention

To what extent is it possible to implement an intervention centered around the use of
screening tools in routine social work practice? We answer this question by examining
Me and My Foster Family (MOMP), an intervention aimed at improving the ability of
social workers to fulfill their parental responsibility to secure the well-being and
academic skills of children placed in foster care. We do so from the perspective of a
“situated intervention,” using a mixed-methods approach and data from six municipal
intervention sites. We used a parallel approach: Implementation followed a step-by-step theoretical model while the researchers and social workers at the same time
made adjustments to ensure a fit between the intervention and routine local practices.
Intervening thus becomes a form of knowledge-generation. This approach speaks to
social work researchers’ calls for being responsive to local practices when
implementing new tools. Our analysis indicates that the implementation of MOMP
within local municipal contexts is overall feasible. Variations in implementation across
municipalities point to the importance of administrative support, organizational
responsiveness, and institutionalized forms of cross-sectoral information-sharing. We
end by discussing the implications of implementing new tools as situated interventions.