Latino caregiver psychosocial factors and health care services for children involved in the child welfare system

• We examined caregiver psychosocial factors and child health care in a sample of Latino child welfare system caregivers.
• Monolingual Spanish-speaking Latino caregivers reported higher social support and problem-focused coping.
• Problem-focused coping was positively related to well-child status.
• No psychosocial factors were related to medical appointment adherence.

Children in the child welfare system have a high prevalence of health problems, making pediatric health service use critical. Latino children represent a growing proportion of the child welfare system, and are at increased risk for health problems. Many have argued that Latino caregivers can provide Latino children with the least disruptive out-of-home placement, but little is known about how caregiver factors might relate to health services utilization or child health status within this population. This study assessed relationships between caregiver psychosocial factors, health care service utilization, and health status for children in the child welfare system. This sample featured 48 Latino caregivers involved in child welfare. Logistic regression models were used to test for relationships between caregiver psychosocial factors and appointment adherence and child health status. Problem-focused coping was positively related to well-child status. No psychosocial factors were related to medical appointment adherence. Case workers may help improve child health outcomes by promoting problem-focused coping skills among Latino caregivers.