	Family Preservation and Stabilization Services

Introduction

Administration and Management

Service Delivery Administration Standards

Service Standards

FPS 2: Screening

The organization screens families promptly and responsively to identify the level of need and direct family members to appropriate services.

FPS 2.01

The organization responds to referrals or requests for service by directly contacting families within:

72 hours, if providing family preservation and stabilization services; or
24 hours, if providing intensive family preservation and stabilization services.

Interpretation: Response time should be appropriate to the urgency of family needs and the level of concern for child and/or family safety. Organizations providing intensive services should be able to respond immediately, if necessary. When special circumstances result in the postponement of contact, the organization should document these circumstances, as well as its efforts to initiate contact, within the first 24 hours of referral or request for service.

FPS 2.02

The family is informed about what services will be available and when, and works with the organization to determine how well family members’ needs and risk factors match the organization’s services.

Interpretation: The organization should consider both the intensity and duration of the services it provides and recommend the most appropriate and least intrusive service alternative that will preserve child and family safety and well-being.

NA Another organization is responsible for screening.

FPS 2.03

Prompt, responsive screening practices are culturally responsive, ensure equitable treatment and support timely initiation of services.

NA Another organization is responsible for screening.

FPS 2.04

Families who cannot be served, or cannot be served promptly, are referred or connected to appropriate resources.

NA The organization: (1) accepts all clients, or (2) only receives clients by referral, and is required by contract to accept all referrals.

FPS 2.05

The organization identifies Indian children and collaborates with the tribe or Indian organization to:

determine the applicability of, and ensure compliance with, the Indian Child Welfare Act
determine jurisdiction
assess the family’s needs;
provide the family with information regarding their rights under the Indian Child Welfare Act;
determine the most appropriate plan for the family; and
maintain connections between the family and tribe.

Interpretation: If the tribe is unknown, the organization should document efforts to identify the tribe and notify the regional office of the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Interpretation: The organization should have established procedures for identifying Indian children that do not depend on the child’s physical appearance.

Note: Evidence of tribal participation should be documented in the case record.

Research Note: The Indian Child Welfare Act authorizes states and federally recognized tribes to enter into agreements governing the care and custody of Indian children and jurisdiction over child custody proceedings. Organizations should refer to tribal-state agreements and the Indian Child Welfare act to determine what role each party should play in cases involving Indian children, and to ensure compliance with relevant legal requirements.

QUICK JUMP TO


	PURPOSE: Family Preservation and Stabilization Services improve family functioning, increase child well-being, ensure child safety, reduce the need for placement in out-of-home care, and enable children in out-of-home care to return safely to their families.

RELATED FILES


	FAMILY Two or more people who consider themselves family and who assume obligations, functions, and responsibilities generally essential to healthy family life. Child care and child socialization, income support, long-term care, and other caregiving are among the functions of family life. The definition of "family" will rest with an individual's indication of who plays a family member role, including current or former foster family, adoptive family, extended family members, fictive kin, or significant others. Organizations that believe family is the central constellation in a child's life, and that family attachments are of primary importance for human development, will strive to work with professional staff to develop a common understanding of "family."


	SERVICE One or more organization-operated programs or activities that have a common general objective and deploy the organization's material and human resources in a planned and systematic manner. An organization that publicly promotes or identifies itself in writing as offering a service, is licensed to deliver a service, assigns personnel and/or space to a service, or allocates financial resources to a service is considered to offer that service.


	OUT-OF-HOME CARE Services for persons living in environments outside of their usual households. Foster Care Services are considered to serve persons in out-of-home care.


	SCREEN A preliminary test administered to a client to determine whether he/she meets eligibility criteria for the services offered by an organization.


	REFERRALS Resource suggestions provided to consumers to address problems or needs that are beyond the scope of the organization's mission.


	PRACTICE Established actions or ways of proceeding in the regular performance of organizational duties. Policies and procedures often guide practice.


	CONNECTED The means by which individuals access services that may or may not be provided by the organization itself. These terms are used interchangeably when individuals are connected to services either directly or by referral. See also LINKED.


	CONTRACT A formal written agreement between two or more parties that specifies the services, space, or products to be provided in exchange for some form of compensation. Also known as "purchase of service arrangement."


	INDIAN ORGANIZATION As defined in ICWA, "Any group, association, partnership, cooperation, or other legal entity owned or controlled by Indians, or a majority of whose members are Indians."


	INDIAN CHILD As defined in the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), "Any unmarried person who is under age eighteen and is either (a) a member of an Indian tribe or (b) eligible for membership in an Indian tribe and is the biological child of a member of an Indian tribe." For purposes of compliance with ICWA, the definition provided in the Act shall apply. For purposes of access to services and resources, other more inclusive definitions may apply (e.g. Indian Education Act, tribal definitions, etc.).


	CLIENT See service recipient.


	CASE RECORD A written compilation that describes the client and the services delivered. Records can be in hard copy and/or electronic format. The case record can be used as a source of information for quality improvement or other evaluation activities, for research purposes, or to demonstrate accountability to funding bodies.


	CUSTODY The care, control, and maintenance of a child. The court legally can award custody to an agency in abuse and neglect cases or to parents in divorce, separation, or adoption proceedings. Child welfare departments retain legal custody and control of major decisions for a child in foster care; foster parents do not have legal custody of the children for which they provide care.


	CASE A general term used to designate clients (including individuals, families, and groups) served by an organization for purposes of monitoring the provision of services. A foster care case is generally based on the placement of an individual child, although casework for the child may include services to the child's family. A child protective services case is based on an entire family household if a family assessment model is used; otherwise a case is defined as a child.