Voices of Families at Team MeetingsPresentation

May 18, 2015

• Victor Medrano, CalWorks, FCS Linkages• Carol Sentell-Bassett, Child Welfare Supervisor• Danielle Bernardo, Child Welfare

San Francisco CalWORKs and Child Welfare Family Team meetings

                               

We work in partnership with families, communities, tribes, and other professionals and service providers working with the family.

3 Different Ways we team in San Francisco

Team decision making meetings: to involve birth families and community members along with resource families, service providers and HSA staff, in all placement decisions, to ensure a network of support for the children and the adults who care for them.

Family Team Meeting: always involves family members and is primarily utilized for ongoing case planning, decision making and case progression. Team members include mother and/or father, youth or child ( age appropriate), the case carrying social worker, caregivers, and other appropriate agency or community service providers.

Linkages Family Team Meeting: Open cases with families involved in both FCS and CalWORKs program are considered “Linkages” cases. The Linkages Family Team and Case Coordination Meeting is the initial process in which FCS and CalWORKs coordinate and streamline the Court or non-Court case plan, or the FR AB 429 Case Plan, together with the Welfare-to Work/ CalWORKs case plan. Other partner agency or community based organization case plans may be included as well.

What is Linkages Family Team Meeting for Child Welfare and CalWORks Staff in San Francisco

The Linkages Case Coordination meeting brings together a team of expert support with the family, for the family. Through the meeting process, the family’s case plans( FCS, CalWORKs and others) are coordinated and streamlined so that the family’s success is enhanced in meeting the goals and timelines of many different case plans.

The Building Blocks of SF Linkages Teaming Practice

Why Linkages?• Family Centered,

team driven• Strength based• Need driven• Solution Focused• Community Based

The Application of the Core Principles through Linkages meetings as seen by CalWORKs and FCS staff

• Getting everyone on the same page• To provide financial support to families in the

Reunification process• To avoid duplication of services coming from

both programs• Bringing team of professionals who are subject

matter experts as an extension of the family’s support network.

• Families have can voice directly their concerns and active role in the decision making process to address their self-sufficiency and child safety issues.

• Allows greater operational efficiency by coordinating services more effectively and allocating tasks to all meeting participants

• Internal cross-communication increases access to existing material resources for families involved with Child Welfare and CalWORKs.

The Application of the Core Principles through Linkages meetings as seen by CalWORKs and FCS staff

• Address and reduce conflicting program requirements.• Clarify to the family roles and responsibilities of each

staff member and who is accountable for each action item.

• Providing a safety net and continuous services to families after Child Welfare closes the case

• Allows to conduct diligent efforts to ensure that basic material needs are met via the Income Support Programs, Child Welfare Services and or community support.

• Linkages Family Team Meetings, from a Safety Organized Practice perspective ,functions as a tool to address complicating factors such as homelessness, food, cash aid and medical care. The Child Welfare staff does not have direct access or control over those systems or resources therefore, the Linkages meetings help the Child Welfare Worker remove the barriers that prevent the family from addressing the safety concerns.

•FAMILY PLAN SUMMARY AND NEXT STEPS

Family’s Challenges/Concerns

Parenting Support

Child Behavior

Substance Abuse

Welfare to Work Sanction

Mental Health

Disability

Domestic Violence

Other:

Child Care

Other: PSW Responsibilities

Family/Parent Responsibilities (Include type of activity, location, etc.) CalWORKs Staff Responsibilities

Set up or make referral to: Attend & comply with all recommended services: Set up or make referral to:

Due Date

Due Date

Due Date

Visitation with child(ren)

Parenting Support @

Client was informed that she can apply for GA after client exhausts AB 429 grant

4/14/15

Contact @ home with caregiver

Substance Abuse @ assessment at HPP

Pending

Exempt until:

Meeting with:

Mental Health @ individual therapy

pending

Exemption type:

To discuss:

Child Behavior @

Client informed about what to do regarding medical and food stamps

4/14/15

Child Care @

Set up CalWORKs/FR Services: cash and fast pass depending on progress as reported by PSW

5/1/15

Next Court date:

Other: supervised visitations – once a week

pending

Client was informed about 12 months limitations of AB 429

4/14/15

Absent parent involvement

Family therapy- in the future pending

Income verification and EBT card 4/14/15

Other

Child care

Other: PSW to send monthly

x Client informed about need

Referral to CalWORKs contracted services:

Check in emails to ES and LC

To make good progress in FR

Parenting support @

Stating whether client is engaged

Plan in month following review

Substance abuse @

Service or not.

Meeting.

Mental Health @

Domestic violence @

•Community-Based Organization Responsibilities:

CBO Name CBO Representative Plan/Next steps: Due Date

•Parent/Guardian Signature PSW Signature CalWORKs Staff Signature

•2 •Form 1163 Linkages Coordinated Family Plan 3/12

Linkages – Monthly Meetings

Linkages January 2011-October 2014

Linkages meetings held Jan 2011- Dec 2014

Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4Linkages Meetings 16 18 24 31 36 30 35 34 35 43 37 32 41 36 33 42

2012 2013 20142011

89

135

147

151

522Total:

Year

2011

2012

2013

2014