an overview georgia program improvement plan - Department of ...

4. The E & R Review Guide was revised to monitor that worker visits with the parents are occurring as set forth in policy. Cases are sampled in county departments and the
file is reviewed for a 3-month period to determine compliance.
5. Both New Worker Training and ongoing training reinforce the core competency of effective and meaningful casework with parents.
The following need has been identified in maintaining frequent and purposeful contacts with parents:
The QCR (Cumulative Report for October 2003 – September 2004) examined a total of 81 cases. Of these, 62.96% revealed that meaningful contacts with parents were
being made in accordance with policy. Where this standard was not met, the case manager was meeting with parents at court or at case panel reviews, rather than in the
home. The policy is in place to set the expectation (frequency and location) as well as documentation standards, when visits do occur. The revised E & R Review Guide
will continue to be a means of monitoring compliance.
Item 22 – Physical Health of Children in Foster Care
Unfortunately, the PIP action steps do not reflect the full scope of activities that have been implemented to address the health care needs of children in foster care. However, in this closing summary these
activities are worthy of mention. A collaborative made up of representatives from the Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS), The Division of Public Health (DCH), The American Association of
Pediatrics (AAP), and The Department of Community Health (DCH) was formed to address the health care needs of children in foster care. The following strategies were developed at the state level to ensure
children in foster care receive appropriate health care and have access to medical providers within their community:
Training of staff within the Division of Public Health on indicators of abuse and neglect and mandated reporting.
Recommendation for incorporating of pertinent medical information into foster care forms to share with foster parents and the child’s medical provider.
Training initiative for DFCS and DPH staff to promote the development of partnerships at the local level.
Initiative to refer all children under the age of five to Children 1 st for monitoring and tracking.
Initiative to monitor and track periodic health check (EPSDT) screens for all children 0-18 in foster care.
Policy and Practice development to ensure implementation of the amendment to the Child Abuse and Prevention Act (CAPTA) for the referral of children to early
intervention.
Safe Futures – A Plan for Program Improvement
Georgia Department of Human Resources
November, 2004 Quarter 8 – Table of Contents Page xvi