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Quick Returns and Awareness Building Initiatives

Department Control

Awareness Building Initiatives

Initiatives with Quick Returns

Short Term Initiatives

Long Term Initiatives

State Control

Short Term Initiatives (1 year or less)

Long Term Initiatives (3-5 years)

Federal Control

Long Term Initiatives

Next Steps

Introduction

The San Bernardino County Children’s Network Policy Council and the Department of Behavioral Health hosted a Foster Care Youth Summit in Rialto on Monday, November 20, 2006. The Foster Care Youth Summit included approximately 200 stakeholders, from approximately 50 different agencies. Summit participants were asked to provide feedback and observations relative to the strengths, weaknesses and areas that need change in eight-targeted areas of concern for the County of San Bernardino. Following these discussions participants identified recommended next steps to address weaknesses and needed changes within the Foster Care system.

On February 5, 2007 Foster Care Summit organizers acting as a subcommittee of the Children’s Policy Council met to review 33 recommendations for improvement and change stemming from the Foster Care Youth Summit. It was agreed that recommended changes will need to be accomplished on many different levels, including full implementation and utilization of existing laws, regulations, and statutes that promote positive outcomes for foster children.

As a first step, group members carefully reviewed, discussed and identified areas within local, department, State and Federal control as well as likely timeframes for acting on these recommendations. This document contains the results of these discussions and an opportunity for stakeholders to provide needed feedback on prioritizing the recommendations. Stakeholders can provide feedback by clicking on the following survey link: <http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=368703389740>

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Local Control

(Board of Supervisors, Cities)

Quick Returns and Awareness Building Initiatives

Item

Comments

Source

Provide tax incentives to build low cost housing

	This is a state, community and local issue with an impact to cities and the county.
	Governors initiative for homelessness
	Land use issue
	Leverage funding sources
	Tax incentives

federal and state changes

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Department Control

(Inter-Agency)

Awareness Building Initiatives

Resources may be in place but we need to build awareness that they exist.

Item

Comments

Source

Use a “child-centered” philosophy around case management

	MDT approach
	Full service partnerships

Extracted from review of data collected during discussion of weaknesses in the system

Allow for incentive payments to service providers in high need areas

	Psychologists (MFT’s) to provide services
	Increase Medi-Cal fee payments
	Possible policy items to increase payment for areas with access problems (patches, bonuses)
	Companion to initiative found in “Long Term” section

federal and state changes

Encourage the development of life long connections for children within an agency’s goals

Need to recruit and retain mentors

Intra-agency changes

Improve the quality of education for foster parents

	Need to increase awareness of what exists
	Increase awareness of available resources (e.g. handbook)
	Explore other possible resources such as “network of care” and a helpline

Extracted from review of data collected during discussion of weaknesses in the system

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Initiatives with Quick Returns

Resources may be in place but we need to build awareness that they exist.

Item

Comments

Source

Increase funding for extra curricular activities

	Funding exists but *increasing awareness* will bring quick returns
	Encourage youth participation in positive recreational activities
	Increase flex funding
	Children’s Fund has possible funding for this area
	Expand local resources
	As a *short term goal* increase COLA’s
	Possible state level decrease in regulations
	Loosen school accounting practices which restrict assistance for students in this area

county changes

Increase funding for early intervention services

Includes a combination of short term (ST), long term (LT) and quick return (QR) strategies:

	Federal dollars for housing (LT)
	State funding for substance abuse intervention (QR)
	Federal Family Opportunity Act (LT)
	CAPTA/Early Start (LT)
	MHSA (QR)
	SART (QR)
	EPSDT expansion (QR)
	Wrap (ST)
	Leverage funding (QR)

federal and state changes

Increase youth awareness of vocational/educational preparedness

	Career day to get youth involved at different grades
	Group home involvement
	Foster care involvement
	Awareness building
	Standards developed for Group Homes and FFA’s to take an active role
	County control for expansion

Intra-agency changes

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Short Term Initiatives

(One year or less)

Item

Comments

Source

Increase youth involvement/participation in decision making

Inter-agency changes

Address over-medication of foster youth

	Quality of care
	Oversight and monitoring
	Also need to increase awareness around this issue

Extracted from review of data collected during discussion of weaknesses in the system

Heal the healer in order to decrease burnout

	Applies to social worker, mental health workers and foster parents
	Identify available resources and *increase awareness* of their presence

Extracted from review of data collected during discussion of weaknesses in the system

Survey to assess needs of children and stakeholders

Adapt and expand the group home needs assessment model

Inter-agency changes

Expand Medi-Cal to include increased mental health services, in-patient drug treatment, mental health housing and flexible spending

	This is also a State and County issue (see State issues, short term initiatives)
	Access issue
	Money is there, it’s how you manage the resources directed to clients

federal and state changes

Increase use of licensed therapeutic staff in Foster Family Agencies

	Can be accomplished by using EPSDT dollars
	Quality and outcomes
	Patching with mental health programs

county changes

Focus on maintaining foster youth in their communities and maintain normalcy

	Family to Family
	Short term “early wraps”

Intra-agency changes

Train non-therapeutic staff to identify mental illness

	Context is as it applies to health and substance abuse issues
	Need to determine if this is an access issue
	Target crisis intervention/red flag behaviors
	Target pregnant foster youth
	Public Health Dept involvement

Inter-agency changes

Mandate assignments of foster youth to employment specialists

	This initiative was merged with “develop employment resource list and partnering w/businesses to hire foster youth”
	Apprentice programs and TAY serve as a resource
	Probation/DCS working with WIB/Youth Council (DOL funds)
	Job fair focused on “how to look for work” and linking youth to employers
	Set up actual system to give foster youth names of WIB contractors

county changes

Increase the frequency of the “independent city” presentations

	ILP
	Prioritize ILP funding
	*Long term* link back to federal dollars to increase marketing program to Feds.

Intra-agency changes

Increase communication and collaboration between agencies and resources

	Child centered, MDT approach
	Full service partnerships
	Continuity and connections
	Develop “how to”
	Increase worker flexibility
	Increase education
	Combine funding resource
	Increase line staff communication
	Add a “what’s new today” e-broadcast to increase awareness of resources
	Co-locate staff to increase interaction and communication

Inter-agency changes

Further align the mental health system with foster care distinct needs

	Build capacity in specialists
	More focus on attachment and post traumatic stress syndrome w/foster kids meanwhile balanced w/addressing behavioral issues
	Reprioritize how we deliver services and funding
	Continuity with therapist, evidence based services and decreased moves

county changes

Develop more peer support groups

	TAY Center
	Parent Peer support
	Family to Family

Inter-agency changes

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Long Term Initiatives

(3-5 years)

Item

Comments

Source

Network with institutions of higher learning

	Creating partnerships to obtain tutoring resources
	Identify additional resources
	Tap into private institutions
	Increase higher education tracking at younger grades
	Kids transitioned into college
	Partnership with Cal State SB (Dr Karnig is attending Children’s Fund meetings)
	Mentoring when kids reach the campus
	Expand to JC’s

Inter-agency changes

Coordinate effort to recruit, train and retain mentors of all ethnicities

	Explore other models (e.g. ILP and other counties)
	Contract with non-profit agency to take care of this task
	Culturally competency embedded in process
	Need for Big Brother type of organizations
	CASA program model adapted
	Expand mentoring programs
	Peer and family advocates (consumers)
	Use of “Wilderness” style programs

Inter-agency changes

Continuity between teachers, schools, districts and education programs

	“Zero tolerance“ programs
	Address stigmatization

Extracted from review of data collected during discussion of weaknesses in the system

Allow for incentive payments to service providers in high need areas

	State adjustments to formula for rural areas within large metropolitan geographic communities (e.g. San Bernardino County)
	Companion to initiative found in “Awareness Building” for this section

federal and state changes

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State Control

Short Term Initiatives (1 year or less)

Item

Comments

Source

Create resources to complete family searches and create permanency for foster children

	Item falls under both state and local control
	Family Finders
	Don’t re-invent the wheel
	Leverage and prioritize resources
	Caseload reduction money can make it possible for social worker to help with this.

county changes

Increasing in number, frequency, and type of vocational programs

	ROP and increased funding for this item
	Work between Foster Care, WIB and ROP

Inter-agency changes

De-regionalize Medi-Cal and create a single Medi-Cal number

	Context of this recommend-dation is access to Medi-Cal system
	Sally Leibert bill

federal and state changes

Expand Medi-Cal to include increased mental health services, in-patient drug treatment, mental health housing and flexible spending

See same issue at county (department/

Inter-agency) level

federal and state changes

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Long Term Initiatives (3-5 years)

Item

Comments

Source

Increase funding to Child Welfare Services to decrease case load size

Current legislation in progress

federal and state changes

Increase surprise home visits to foster family agency homes and group homes

	Increase funding to Community Care Licensing
	Provide funding to local agencies
	Contract monitoring increased to evaluate service—this will require funding

Intra-agency changes

Increase funding for foster youth services

	There are some *quick return* opportunities by expanding EPSDT funds
	AB 1808-2006 provides partial funding but doesn’t include relative placement funding
	Maximized funding may be possible as a result of inter/intra agency collaboration

federal and state changes

Increase funding to allow for wraparound services to all foster children

	Initially this is in State control but then attention needs to be directed to what can be done at Federal level
	SB 163
	Increase Federal funding to support wraps
	Possibility of *quick returns* via Early Wrap
	Flexibility of Federal funding

federal and state changes

Make ILP participation mandatory

Need funding to make this possible

intra-agency changes

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Federal Control

Long Term Initiatives

(3-5 years)

Item

Comments

Source

Expand the age range for ILP funding to 14 to 21 years of age

	Need money to increase services and expand age range
	Full funding to serve all eligible youth requires federal dollars

federal and state changes

Note: To provide feedback on prioritizing the recommendations click on this link <