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

These action steps were included as a result of stakeholder comments during the Child and Family Services Federal Review. There are three junctures that information regarding
service options is presented to foster parents if they decide to adopt. This information is now included in the scripted orientation and Impact training.
Policy now requires that the Adoption Assistance Handbook and information regarding accessing Post Adoption Services be provided to all foster care and adoption
IMPACT participants.
At time of signing of the Form 33/37 Placement Agreement, the family is provided a packet of information from the Georgia Center for Adoption Resources and Support
groups, community resources and events relating to adoption. Packets include copies of the Adoption Assistance Handbook
DATA ISSUES:
In an effort to address the federal office’s expressed concern regarding discrepancies between the foster care and adoption systems due to adoption, beginning with October 2003
data, the Division is completing a monthly comparison of the data produced by the two systems to reconcile them.
Item 10. In order to more appropriately select and use the permanency goal of Another Planned Permanent Living Arrangement (APPLA), The Division has taken the
following actions:
The various permanency options (including APPLA) and the criteria for their selection have been addressed in revised policy (January 2003). In addition, the state’s
Foster Parent training curriculum, including the new IMPACT training, incorporates content on permanency planning and is also one of the “Bill of Rights” to include
foster parents in permanency planning. Annual Foster Parent Training Institutes ensure that in-service training opportunities also offer topics on permanency.
Additionally, foster parents are invited to participate in the Multidisciplinary team (MDT) meetings and can be given a total of five training credit hours per year for
attending MDT meetings.
The following measures/steps have been taken to address the higher level of documentation required whenever APPLA is selected as a permanency goal, that is,
documenting compelling reasons: revisions to Georgia statute, program policy, New Worker and Supervisory training curriculums, and the design of the Case Plan
Reporting System (CPRS).
The most recent QCR Report for October 2003 – September 2004 rated cases with APPLA as the goal as being compliant 87.91%. The report indicated that the goal had
been appropriately selected given the individual circumstances of the child’s situation in 81.81% of the cases read.
Safe Futures – A Plan for Program Improvement
Georgia Department of Human Resources
November, 2004 Quarter 8 – Table of Contents Page ix