We like to think that when a child is in crisis, we know what's in their best interest. And that in some cases, that means removing them from one family and placing them with another - for foster care, and/or to be adopted. If they were adopted, we like to think the adoptive parents are good people, good parents with good intentions, who want to help and love a child, with whom the child will be "better off". Unfortunately, adoptive families are equally capable of abusing and neglecting children in their care. And for a multitude of reasons, we miss it. We miss it in screening, we miss it in home visits. We miss it til it's too late. In this session we will: Review child maltreatment and death cases in the media to examine missed opportunities for screening and intervention Review red flags of narcissism in prospective families, as well as screening questions to assess Encourage audience members to reflect on how their own ideas and beliefs about adoption/child welfare could potentially cloud the ability to spot red flags Examine system failures, and consider opportunities for change …and more.