For Foster Kids, a Push to Make Medical Care Treat Psychological Pain

PLANO — On most mornings these days, Bari Greenwood’s 4-year-old daughter wakes up in her bunk bed, gets dressed by herself and eagerly waits to be taken to daycare.

For most 4-year-olds, these moments in a daily routine would hardly be worth mentioning. But Greenwood recounts them with the wide smile of a proud mother, for each is a hard-fought victory and a sign of remarkable progress.

Greenwood adopted her daughter in July 2015 but had cared for her for more than a year before that, when Child Protective Services removed the girl, then 2 years old, from her biological parents. Greenwood, a relative, agreed to take the infant in after adults in the home were found using methamphetamine, she said. There were also allegations the girl had been sexually assaulted.