Intensive Services
0070-548.04 | Revision Date: 7/1/2014

Overview

This policy guide outlines, and defines, Intensive Services, and provides requirements and staff responsibilities for dealing with such cases.

Table of Contents

Version Summary

This policy guide was updated from the 09/07/11 version, as part of the Policy Redesign, in accordance with the DCFS Strategic Plan. The name of the policy has been changed from Point of Engagement: Intensive Services.

POLICY

Intensive Services

Intensive Services must be provided when:

  • A referral is received and there is the possibility of a detention.
  • The Structured Decision Making (SDM) risk level is very high and the allegation(s) is substantiated.

Intensive Services include, but are not limited to:

  • Use of Child and Family Team (CFT) Meeting for placement determination.
  • Provision of referrals and ensuring that the family is connected to the relevant services or resources, (e.g., parenting classes, drug/alcohol treatment/testing, domestic violence counseling, Family Preservation services, etc.) and/or documentation of reasonable efforts made to connect the family to appropriate services.
  • Ensuring that the family is receiving services from qualified and appropriate service providers.
  • Obtaining signed authorization for any necessary release of information.
  • Completion of any requests for screenings, assessments or services.
  • Completion of necessary documentation on CWS/CMS of all DCFS efforts including the initial efforts to mitigate risk, prevent detention, and the services provided, as well as all contacts.
  • Facilitating Ice Breaker meetings between parents and caregivers.

Detentions and Intensive Services

Additional Intensive Services must be provided when there has been a detention, including:

  • When a relative or nonrelative extended family member (NREFM) is identified as a potential caregiver.
  • Replacement(s), if necessary.
  • Establishment of visitation for the family and monitoring of the visits, if necessary.
  • Ensuring that the child is given the opportunity to remain in his/her School-of-Origin, and when this is not possible, assisting the caregiver with the child’s enrollment in a new school and the timely transfer of the child’s school records.
  • Providing Family Reunification services and continued Concurrent Planning.
  • Initiating the collection of documents/information relative to Concurrent Planning, (e.g. child and family’s medical history, etc.) and if necessary, follow up on the receipt of the birth certificate which should have been previously requested by the EW.
  • Completion of a Concurrent Planning Assessment (CPA) for Fast Track to Permanency (FTP) cases and of sections 1 – 5 of the CPA for all other cases assigned.
  • Attending Multidisciplinary Assessment Team (MAT) meetings for assigned cases or at the invitation of the MAT coordinator.
  • Providing information to the Dependency Investigator (DI) CSW for preparation of the Case Plan Update by documenting all DCFS efforts including services provided, face-to-face contacts, health and education information, service provider information, visitation and any other pertinent case information on CWS/CMS.

Intensive Services Workers

Each area office determines, based on available resources, whether or not to appoint specialized Intensive Services Workers (ISW) and SCSWs (ISW SCSW) to carry out these tasks. When an office determines not to utilize a designated IS CSW, the Intensive Services are to be provided through a team effort between ER and Generic CSWs and SCSWs. Offices that do not utilize ISWs and IS SCSWs may assign Intensive Services tasks to appropriate staff and utilize Secondary Assignments in combination with In-Office Case Transfer for the purpose of expedient and comprehensive delivery of the Intensive Services.

An ISW will be on duty on a daily basis to respond to any detention or potential detention situation within each office.  Upon designation of the ISW SCSW, the ISW may be given secondary assignment on a referral for the purpose of assisting the Emergency Response (ER) CSW in determining whether or not detention is necessary.  The ISW is given primary assignment of all new detentions including detentions made by the Emergency Response Command Post (ERCP) (2PENs).

PROCEDURE

Addressing Detention or Possible Detention Referrals with High SDM Risk and Substantiated Allegation(s)

For offices with ISW’s:

ISW CSW Responsibilities

Emergency Response (ER) CSW Responsibilities

  1. Determine whether or not detention is necessary.
  2. Coordinate Intensive Services.
  3. Initiate a CFTM for case planning and/or placement determination.
  4. Hold a Case Conference with the SCSW to discuss and plan the Intensive Services that will be provided to the family including the CFTM.
  5. Facilitate the attendance of all appropriate staff to the CFTM.
  6. If applicable, close the referral, or promote the referral to a case and transfer the case to a case-carrying CSW per existing procedures.

Emergency Response (ER) SCSW Responsibilities

  1. Provide monitoring, direction and support to the ER worker.
  2. Approve the case disposition and case transfer/closure as appropriate.  Return the case to the ER CSW for corrective action.

ISW SCSW Responsibilities

  1. Attend and participate in the CFTM as appropriate.
  2. Monitor, direct, and support the ISW CSW.

For offices without ISW’s

Detention Cases

For Offices with ISW’s:

ISW CSW Responsibilities

For 2PEN cases, the ISW initiates the CFTM prior to the Detention hearing.  If the CFTM cannot be scheduled prior to the Detention hearing, an explanation must be documented in the Case Notes.

  1. Complete the SDM Family Strengths and Needs Assessment.
  2. Continue, as needed, with the inquiry/investigation of the family’s federal ICWA eligibility and if applicable, the provision of active efforts.
    • Document results/efforts in CWS/CMS.
  3. Complete the Initial Case Plan with input from the family, including the child if appropriate, and obtain the signature(s) of the parent(s) and the child if appropriate, on the Initial Case Plan.
  4. Provide requested information to the Dependency Investigator (DI).
  5. Initiate the Concurrent Planning Assessment (CPA) on CWS/CMS by completing sections 1-5. Also complete the CPA for all fast-track cases.
    • Review the fields that are self-populated for accuracy.  Update fields as needed.
  6. When the case is stable and all the Intensive Services have been provided, transfer the case to a case-carrying CSW.
    • If the case is unstable and/or all the Intensive Services tasks have not been completed within 45 days of the child’s removal from the home, discuss the case with the IS SCSW.
  7. When a relative or nonrelative extended family member (NREFM) is identified as a potential caregiver, evaluate the prospective caregiver.
    • In the event that the child has already been temporarily placed in the home of a relative or NREFM, ensure that all of the required documents have been provided to the ASFA division staff and that the ASFA home assessment has been completed (home has been approved or denied) prior to transferring the case.

ISW SCSW Responsibilities

  1. Receive and review the new detention case.
    • This includes 2PEN cases
  2. Give primary assignment to an ISW.
  3. If needed and upon consultation with the ER SCSW, assign the ER CSW as a secondary on the case in CWS/CMS.
  4. Have a case conference with the ISW to discuss and plan the Intensive Services that will be provided to the family.
  5. Attend and participate in the CFTM, if appropriate.
  6. Monitor, direct and support the ISW CSW.
  7. Approve the Initial Case Plan.
  8. Review the case.
    1. If the case is stable and the IS CSW has completed all the Intensive Services tasks, approve the transfer and transfer the case to a Generic CSW.  Return the case to the ISW for corrective action, if necessary.
    2. If the case is unstable or all of the Intensive Services tasks have not been completed within 45 days of the child’s removal from the home, a determination will be made by the ARAs, as to whether or not it would be “best practice” to have the ISW maintain Primary assignment to finish the Intensive Services tasks or if the case should be transferred to a Generic CSW.
    3. In the event that the child has already been temporarily placed in the home of a relative or NREFM and that the completion of the ASFA home assessment is still pending, the case may only be transferred after an agreement is made to do so between the transferring and receiving ARAs.

For Offices without ISW’s:

ER CSW Responsibilities

  1. Immediately after a detention, request a CFTM .
  2. Hold a Case Conference with the SCSW to discuss the case and plan the Intensive Services that will be provided to the family, including the CFTM and the Secondary Assignments and/or In-Office Case Transfer.
  3. Complete the SDM Family Strengths and Needs Assessment.
  4. Facilitate the attendance of all appropriate staff to the CFTM.
  5. Initiate investigation of family’s federal ICWA eligibility and document results in CWS/CMS. 
  6. Complete the Initial Case Plan with input from the family, including the child if appropriate, and obtain the signature(s) of the parent(s) and the child if appropriate, on the Initial Case Plan.
  7. Obtain approval of the Initial Case Plan. 
    • If applicable, complete any corrective action as directed by the SCSW.
  8. Provide any requested information to the Dependency Investigator (DI).
  9. If appropriate, close the referral or promote the referral to a case.
  10. Transfer the case.

ER SCSW Responsibilities

  1. Provide monitoring, direction and support to the ER worker.
  2. Approve the case plan, case disposition and transfer/closure of the case as appropriate.  Return the case to the ER worker for corrective action, if necessary.
APPROVALS

ER SCSW

  • Initial Case Plan
  • Case Disposition/Transfer/Closure
  • SDM Tools

ER ARA

  • Case Disposition/Transfer/Closure where an ARA approval is required

ISW SCSW

  • Participation of ISW in CFTMs (where an ISW is not assigned to a case)
  • Case Assignments and Ending of ISW Secondary Assignments
  • Primary Assignments
  • Ending Primary Assignments
  • Initial Case Plan
  • Case Plan Update
  • Case Transfer/Closure
  • SDM Tools

ISW ARA

  • Continued Intensive Services after 45 days
HELPFUL LINKS

Forms

LA Kids

DCFS 4366, Children’s Services Case Transfer Check Sheet

DCFS 174, Family Centered Referral Form

CWS/CMS

Initial Case Plan

Case Plan Update

Health and Education Passport

TILP

REFERENCED POLICY GUIDES

0070-548.01, Child and Family Teams

0070-548.10, Investigation, Disposition and Closure of Emergency Response Referrals

0070-548.25, Structured Decision Making (SDM) Safety Plans

0080-502.10, Case Plans

0080-508.05, Fast Track to Permanency (FTP) Provisions

0080-507.20, Concurrent Planning And The Concurrent Planning Assessment (CPA)

0100-520.10, Evaluating a Prospective Caregiver

0600-500.05, Multidisciplinary Assessment Team (MAT) Assessments and Meetings

0700-500.10, Education of DCFS-Supervised Children

1000-504.10, Case Transfer Criteria and Procedures

1200-500.05, Adopting and Serving Children Under the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA)

STATUTES AND OTHER MANDATES

California Department of Social Services (CDSS) Manual of Policies and Procedures (MPP) Division 31-125 - Summarizes the protocol for the social worker initially investigating a referral to determine the potential for the existence of any condition(s) which places the child, or any other child in the family or household, at risk and in need of services.

Welfare and Institution Code Section 16501.1 – States the following: A case plan ensures that the child receives protection and safe and proper care and case management, and that services are provided to the child and parents or other caretakers, as appropriate, in order to improve conditions in the parent's home, to facilitate the safe return of the child to a safe home or the permanent placement of the child, and to address the needs of the child while in foster care. A case plan shall be based upon the principles of this section and shall document that a pre-placement assessment of the service needs of the child and family, and pre-placement preventive services, have been provided, and that reasonable efforts to prevent out-of-home placement have been made. In determining the reasonable services to be offered or provided, the child's health and safety shall be the paramount concerns. Reasonable services shall be offered or provided to make it possible for a child to return to a safe home environment.