	Kinship Care Services

Introduction

Administration and Management

Service Delivery Administration Standards

Service Standards

PA-KC 15: Aftercare and Follow-Up

Whenever the need for aftercare is identified, the service provider and the family work together to develop an aftercare plan, and follow-up occurs when possible and appropriate.

Interpretation: While the decision to develop an aftercare plan is based on the wishes of the service recipient, unless aftercare is mandated, the agency is expected to be strongly proactive with respect to aftercare planning.

NA The agency has an interagency agreement that does not include aftercare planning or follow-up.

PA-KC 15.01

The agency and the family develop an aftercare plan sufficiently in advance of case closing that specifies services needed or desired, and the steps for obtaining these services.

Research Note: Literature suggests that aftercare services such as counseling, housing assistance, and respite care can support reunification efforts.

PA-KC 15.02

The agency takes the initiative to explore suitable resources and make contact with service providers when appropriate.

Interpretation: When the case involves an Indian child, services offered by the tribe or local Indian organizations should be considered when coordinating aftercare services.

PA-KC 15.03

Each child who is discharged from therapeutic kinship care receives follow up services for a period of time, agreed upon by the team, to ensure a successful transition.

NA The agency does not provide therapeutic kinship care services.

PA-KC 15.04

The agency follows up on the aftercare plan, as appropriate, when possible, and with the permission of the family.

Interpretation: Reasons why follow-up may not be appropriate include, but are not limited to, cases where the family’s participation is involuntary.

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	PURPOSE: Kinship Care Services maintain the family system as the primary source of care and preserve the continuity of care, culture, relationships, and environment essential for child safety and well-being.

RELATED FILES


	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.


	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."


	CULTURE The customs, habits, values, skills, technology, beliefs, and religious, social, and political behaviors of a group of people in a specific period of time.


	AFTERCARE Additional services provided beyond the period of primary care that offer continuity and supportive follow-up.


	SERVICE RECIPIENT The individuals, groups, organizations, or communities that use, receive, or benefit from programs and services. Service recipients can include consumers, patients, family members, legal guardians, advocates, public/private organizations, employers, and purchasers. All are regarded as significant stakeholders served in a variety of agencies and practice settings.


	PLANNING The process of specifying objectives, evaluating the means for their achievement, and exercising deliberate decision making about appropriate courses of action.


	CASE CLOSING A voluntary or involuntary process which occurs when an organization no longer assumes responsibility for providing services to a particular individual, group, or family. Also known as "termination" or "discharge."


	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.


	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.).


	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."