 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
Engaging Youth and Families for Safety, Permanency and Child Well-Being Family-Centered Assessment Training Family-Centered Assessment with Immigrant and Refugee Families Conducting Family-Focused Child Protection Investigations Developing an Outcome-Based Case Plan Solution-Focused Case Management Family-Centered Reunification Training Family Group Decision Making: A Decision Model that Strengthens Families Fathers in Child Welfare: Welcoming Dads into the Circle of Family Centered Practice Working Effectively with Substance Affected Families Clinical Issues in Child Welfare Family Centered Practice with Children with Mental Health or Behavioral Disorders Breaking through Barriers to Permanency Safe Case Closure in Child Welfare Cases Legal Skills for the Child Welfare Professional Keeping the Help in the Helping Profession Youth-Specific Child Welfare Trainings: Incorporating Resilience Factors into the Assessment Process with Youth Transition from Residential Treatment Back Home: A Solution-Focused Approach Permanent Connections for Youth in Out-of-Home Care Training for Child Welfare Supervisors: Improving Recruitment and Retention in Public Child Welfare (see Recruitment and Retention) Engaging Youth and Families for Safety, Permanency and Child Well-being This course teaches skills in building and maintaining relationships
and empathy with individuals and family groups. Students will
practice verbal, non-verbal and contextual joining techniques. Students
will learn how to build trust, work with resistance, and avoid triangulation
and splitting. Engagement with parents with mental health issues
will also be addressed. Solution-Focused Case Management Participants in this training become familiar with family systems and theory, and the goals of family-centered practice. They learn how to use basic diagnosis tools to analyze family and community dynamics, engage families in treatment, identify behavioral goals, assure family progress toward change, concurrently plan, and effectively terminate services. Accurate assessment and application to the case plan are critical for the success of families under the time lines of ASFA, and the training addresses these issues. ^ Back to top Intensive Family Services Supervisors and intensive treatment workers learn a comprehensive model of family assessment and a brief, structural and strategic approach to working with multiple-needs families and their communities. Participants are introduced to advanced skills in the treatment of chemical dependency, and spouse and child abuse. This course is not designed as a substitute for clinical training with supervision, yet introduces sophisticated family therapy methods to form a sound foundation for further work. ^ Back to top Family-Centered Reunification Training This 2-3 day training is for residential providers, foster care workers, and family-based therapists. It focuses on various methods of supporting family connections during separation, transition, and reunification. Participants learn to conduct a structured family meeting using the family’s support system, and to use tools such as goal-setting and visitation to enhance reunification potential. ^ Back to top Family Group Decision Making: A Decision Model That Strengthens Families Family Group Decision Making (FGDM), developed in New Zealand in the mid-1980s, has been adopted by a number of jurisdictions in the United States as a process for engaging families involved in the child welfare system in safety planning, case planning, and reunification decision-making. FGDM empowers families to define their needs and direct the decision-making processes, and it elicits and solidifies the family's informal as well as community support network. The NRCFCP offers training and technical assistance in all facets of FGDM and family team meetings (FTM), including establishing an FGDM process in a community, training for facilitators, and training for caseworkers who prepare families for and participate in FGDM/FTMs. ^ Back to top Welcoming Fathers into the Circle of Family Centered Practice Participants will be able
to describe the research findings on the important contributions
of fathers, including non-residential fathers, to the well-being
of children. We will describe best practices for engaging fathers
and paternal relatives whose children are involved in the child
welfare system, and practice skills for productively addressing
conflict between fathers and mothers and the larger family system.
Participants will identify any explicit or implicit biases they
have about non-residential fathers, how these biases might affect
their work with fathers, and how to move beyond them to best practice.
This training can be adapted for agency administrators with a focus
on organizational change and development of father-family services. Working Effectively with Substance Affected Families Participants
will learn safety planning with substance affected families, be
able to explain to families the various models of understanding
and treating substance abuse, explore techniques for engaging families
in treatment, including motivational interviewing, court orders,
and understanding the stages of change; learn casework strategies
for families engaged in the change process (managing service demands,
engaging families members to support treatment, etc.); and use a
matrix tool to guide permanency decision-making with substance affected
families. A DVD demonstration
of testifying in court on a substance abuse case will be shown.
Clinical Issues in Child Welfare This one day training looks in depth at practice issues and decision-making tools for working with families with mental illness (especially mood, anxiety and personality disorders) and substance abuse.^ Back to top Family Centered Practice with Children with Mental Health or Behavioral Disorders Participants
will learn about symptoms and diagnostic categories for common child
mental health and behavioral disorders. The focus is on assuring
quality assessment and treatment of these issues and supporting
birth, foster and adoptive families in a strength based way to support
the children’s optimal growth, development and attachment and to
sensitively manage transitions between caregivers. Breaking through Barriers to Permanency This
workshop looks at the barriers to permanency for children and youth
and introduces tools and strategies for systematically addressing
these issues in order to achieve timely safety and permanency. Issues
explored include: chronic parental conditions such as substance
abuse and mental illness, parental ambivalence, working with resistance,
child health and mental health issues, family interaction model
(visiting, increasing parental responsibility), and permanent connections
for older youth. Safe Case Closure in Child Welfare Cases Returning
children safely and permanently to their family’s care requires
skill in making case closure decisions. Participants will be able
to analyze their local organizational and institutional contexts
for case closure decisions; describe the elements of critical thinking
which should accompany case closure decisions, including common
decision errors; Identify the ways in which existing tools and casework
strategies can be used to improve case closure decisions; and identify
strategies for working with the family team to improve collaborative
decision-making regarding case closure. Testifying
in court and working with lawyers are often among the most stressful
activities for child welfare workers. This training, taught by a
lawyer with 25 years of child welfare experience, helps workers
enhance their understanding of the legal process, including rules
of evidence, and to enhance their skills in working with lawyers
and testifying in court. Workers have an opportunity to observe
and practice testifying skills.
Keeping the Help in the Helping Profession Child
welfare work is unique in its challenges and rewards. One of
the most cherished qualities necessary for effective work with families
-- empathy -- is also one that can make the worker vulnerable.
The causes and symptoms of compassion fatigue, secondary traumatic
stress and vicarious traumatization will be introduced, along with
self-assessment checklist. Workers will learn strategies
for strengthening personal and social resilience and techniques
for self care and health realization. Transition from
Successful Residential Treatment Back Home: A Solution-Focused Approach A youth-centered
approach to case planning places the youth at the helm of planning
for his or her future, with support from family, kin and other significant
adults. Come learn how to build and facilitate a dynamic youth-centered
team process which will support older youths' capacity for self-determination,
a key factor in successful transition to adulthood. Permanent Connections for Youth in Out-of-Home Care Helping older youth in care
develop connections with significant adults is a key factor in helping
to achieve youth permanency as well as for providing and sustaining
support as they enter adulthood. The training will provide
teach specific worker skills and tools for helping youth identify,
establish and maintain permanent connections. Because placement
instability often disrupts relationships, strategies for stabilizing
placements will also be addressed. Improving Recruitment and Retention in Public Child Welfare (see Recruitment and Retention)
|
