Title: One Community, One Family
1One Community, One Family
- Apples and Oranges
- Department of Child Services and Systems of Care
Working Together
2Overview
- Understanding child welfare priorities
- Impact of mental health on child welfare outcomes
- Lessons learned as child welfare partner in
systems of care - Making collaboration work for the success of both
DCS, SOC, and families
3Presenters
- Traci Eggleston Decatur/Ripley County Department
of Child Services Director - Brenda Konradi Systems of Care Project Director,
One Community, One Family - Denise Floyd Resource Facilitator Leader, One
Community, One Family - Heather Hardman Dearborn County Dept. of Child
Services Family Case Manager
4Creating a CollaborationWe are all fruit!
- System-level Change (i.e. expansion, pulling
resources) - The importance of networking conversations
- See the perspective of the other side
- We all have a common goal!
5Cycle of Experiences in the Child Welfare System
Rate of Referrals/ Substantiated Referrals
Home-Based Services vs. Out-of-Home Care
Reentry to Care
Permanency Through Reunification, Adoption, or
Guardianship
Counterbalanced Indicators of System Performance
Use of Least Restrictive Form of Care
Shorter Lengths of Stay
Maintain Positive Attachments To Family, Friends,
and Neighbors
Stability of Care
6CFSR and MH-SOC Connection
- Child and Family Services Reviews
- Focus on well-being (PH, MH, Education)
- Have identified the need for MH reform
- Provide the opportunity for this reform
- Encourage participation of other systems,
agencies, families and youth - Services for parents to enhance their capacity
7The Child and Family Services Review Process
- Goal Determine child welfare agency conformity
with processes that promote safety, permanency
and well-being outcomes. - Source Supporting Improvements in Child Welfare
Systems Through the CFSRs A Resource for State
Legislators
Statewide Assessment
PIP Completion
Onsite Review/ Exit Conference
Continuous Quality Improvement Through the
Federal CFSRs
PIP Monitoring
Final Report
Program Improvement Plan
8Expected Child Welfare Outcomes
- Safety
- Children are, first and foremost, protected from
abuse and neglect - Children are safely maintained in their own homes
whenever possible and appropriate - Permanency
- Children have permanency and stability in their
living situations - The continuity of family relationships and
connections is preserved for children - Child and Family Well-Being
- Families have enhanced capacity to provide for
their childrens needs - Children receive appropriate services to meet
their educational needs - Children receive adequate services to meet their
physical and mental health needs
9Resonance Between CFSR and SOC Outcomes
- Child Family Services Reviews
- Children are protected from abuse and neglect
- Children are safely maintained in their homes
whenever possible and appropriate - Children have permanency and stability in their
living arrangements - The continuity of family relationships and
connections is preserved for children - Families have enhanced capacity to care for their
families needs - Children receive appropriate services to meet
their education needs - Children receive adequate services to meet their
physical and mental health needs
- Systems of Care
- Build safety plans into services/support plans
- Prevent out-of-home placements, keep families
intact - Minimize disruption in childrens lives and
promote continuity and smooth transitions - Core value family focus
- Strengthen the resiliency of both families and
youth and enhance natural helping networks - Focus on all life domains, including education
- Holistic approach, broad array of services and
supports
10CFSR / SOC Practice Principles
- CFSR
- Family Centered Practice
- Community-Based Practice
- Individualizing Services
- Strengthen Parental Capacity
- SYSTEM OF CARE
- Family Driven/Youth Guided
- Individualized/Strengths Based
- Community-Based
- Culturally and Linguistically Competent
- Interagency Collaboration
- Shared Accountability
11CFSR Findings Areas Needing Improvement
- Services to protect children and prevent removal
from home - Comprehensive needs and strengths assessment and
identification of community-based services to
address needs - Active involvement of children, youth and their
parents in case planning and ongoing visits - Timely achievement of permanency and retaining
connections while in foster care
12Collaborating with child welfare staff and
agencies
13Systems of Care Improves Child Welfare Outcomes
- Improve screening, assessment and referral
processes - Increase access to evidence based trauma
treatment and crisis intervention - Reduce out of home placements
- Engage families and youth in decision making
- Assist families in navigating child welfare
system through parent partners
14Impact of System of Care on Youth in Child
Welfare System
- What impact could systems of care have on a
childs story? - - Maintained relationships within
community of origin and maintained
connections with relatives - - Built on strengths (vs. treatment
approach) - - Youth centered, youth driven case
planning
15Transitions out of the child welfare system
- Establish healthy, strengths-based
relationship with biological parents - Youth driven support network in youths community
PRIOR TO aging out of care
16How child welfare outcomes for older youth could
be improved by systems of care?
- Post secondary education
- Permanent connections and natural support systems
- Access to community and life-skills needed for
successful transitions - Youth engagement
17Lessons Learned
- Its all about building and maintaining
relationships! - Being consistent
- Being persistent
- Communication, communication, communication
- Establish a protocol for the best method of
communication - Ex e-mail or phone call which works best for
that person - Dropping in if appropriate
- Dont give up
- Be visible for one another
- Learning the language and jargon of each others
programs and systems - Learn and respect the protocol for the system
youre working with - Learn and respect the protocol for the individual
youre working with - Take into consideration personality styles and
differences - How to approach one another
- Remembering and respecting that everyones time
is precious. Everyone is busy.
18Lessons Learned
- Ways to structuring and scheduling family team
meetings - Location is always the familys preference but be
flexible and support having meetings at locations
convenient for others - Compromise, compromise, compromise
- Establish common goals and ground rules. Hold
each other accountable. - Establish and maintain roles so they dont get
blurred. - Mutual respect
- If you as a resource facilitator or as a DCS case
manager dont understand something about what the
other is saying, seek clarification. - Question, question, question
- Think about how important clarification is since
your role is to explain to the family and help
them navigate the system. - Reputation
- Takes time
19For more information
Traci Eggleston, Decatur/Ripley DCS Director
traci.eggleston_at_dcs.in.gov Brenda Konradi, OCOF
Project Director brenda.konradi_at_cmhcinc.org
- PLEASE COMPLETE AND RETURN EVALUATION FORMS,
THANKS!