	Family Preservation and Stabilization Services

Introduction

Administration and Management

Service Delivery Administration Standards

Service Standards

PA-FPS 11: Personnel

Personnel are capable of helping families resolve pressing issues and improve family functioning.

Note: When the agency is unable to fully implement one of more of the standards within this part, intensive efforts should be made to fully implement the other standards. For example, if the agency is unable to recruit personnel with specific qualifications, it can ensure that appropriate supervision and workload standards are implemented.

PA-FPS 11.01

Direct service personnel are qualified by:

an advanced degree in social work or a comparable human service field; or
a bachelor’s degree in social work or a comparable human service field and at least two years’ experience working with children and families.

PA-FPS 11.02

When personnel providing support services work directly with families, they are qualified by:

skills relevant to, and experience working with, children and families; or
available licensing, registration, or certification.

NA The agency's support personnel do not provide direct services.

PA-FPS 11.03

Direct service personnel have the competencies needed to:

understand child, adult, and family functioning;
identify strengths and protective factors;
assess risks and safety;
identify environmental factors that impact families;
empower, engage, and build relationships with families;
communicate respectfully and effectively with families from a wide range of backgrounds, cultures, and perspectives;
support and mentor families as they manage their homes, parent their children, and use community resources;
intervene in stressful and crisis situations;
link families with needed services; and
collaborate with community providers.

Interpretation: Competency can be demonstrated through a combination of education, training, and experience. New personnel should receive needed experiential and/or classroom training within three months of hire and prior to working independently with families.

PA-FPS 11.04

Supervisors are qualified by an advanced degree in social work or a comparable human service field and two years’ post-masters degree experience working with children and families, preferably in family preservation and stabilization.

PA-FPS 11.05

Supervisory personnel familiar with the needs of families served are available to direct service personnel by telephone 24 hours a day.

PA-FPS 11.06

Supervisors or experienced personnel provide additional supervision and support when personnel are new or are still developing competencies.

PA-FPS 11.07

Employee workloads support the achievement of positive outcomes for families, are regularly reviewed, and are based on an assessment of the following:

the qualifications, competencies, and experience of the provider, including the level of supervision needed;
case complexity and status;
the work and time required to accomplish assigned tasks, including those associated with individual caseloads and other job responsibilities;
whether services are provided by multiple professionals or team members; and
service volume, accounting for assessed level of needs of new and current families and referrals.

Interpretation: Case complexity can take into account: the intensity of child and family needs, the size of the family, and the goal of the case. Generally, caseloads do not exceed: (1) 12- 18 families in programs providing family preservation and stabilization services, and (2) 2-6 families in programs providing intensive family preservation and stabilization services. However, there are circumstances under which caseloads may exceed these limits. For example, caseload size may vary depending upon the volume of administrative case functions (e.g., entering notes, filing, etc.) assigned to the worker. Caseloads may also be higher when agencies are faced with temporary vacancies on staff. New personnel should not carry independent caseloads prior to the completion of training.

Note: The evaluation of this standard will focus on whether the assigned workload is manageable for staff, taking into account the factors cited in the standard and interpretation. The specific caseload sizes stated in the interpretation are only a suggestion of what might be appropriate. Each agency should determine what caseload size is appropriate, and reviewers will evaluate: (1) whether the agency’s designated caseload size reflects a manageable workload, and (2) whether the agency maintains caseloads of the size it deemed appropriate.

PA-FPS 11.08

The program director or designee ensures:

work schedules are flexible;
sufficient staff coverage at all times;
supports are in place to prevent burnout; and
non-exempt employees that work overtime are appropriately compensated.

Interpretation: It is expected that service delivery hours will be adapted to the availability and needs of the families served rather than provided only during conventional working hours, and that the agency will support this with a flexible set of human resources policies or procedures.

Interpretation: Non-exempt employees should be compensated for overtime according to the Fair Labor Standards Act.

PA-FPS 11.09

Workers and supervisors are knowledgeable about job relevant provisions of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) including:

the importance of ICWA and special considerations for working with Indian children;
the identification of Indian children;
determination of jurisdiction;
appropriate notice and collaboration with the child's tribe;
active effort requirements to prevent removal or reunify families; and
court procedures.

Interpretation: The agency can consider the average number of cases where the Indian Child Welfare Act applies when determining which personnel need to be trained. Screening personal must be trained on the relevant provisions of the Indian Child Welfare Act.

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	PURPOSE: Family Preservation and Stabilization Services improve family functioning, increase child well-being, ensure child safety, reduce the need for placement in out-of-home care, and enable children in out-of-home care to return safely to their families.

RELATED FILES


	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."


	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.


	OUT-OF-HOME CARE Services for persons living in environments outside of their usual households. Foster Care Services are considered to serve persons in out-of-home care.


	PERSONNEL The body of employees and/or volunteers that carries out the organization's tasks under the organization's administration and/or supervision. This definition does not include foster parents who are specifically referenced in relevant standards


	SUPERVISION Assumption of responsibility for directly overseeing and evaluating the work or work products of personnel within an organization. Also includes inspecting the act or process of accomplishing a function or activity.


	WORKLOAD The amount of work assigned to or expected from a person within a specified period of time. See also CASELOAD.


	ADVANCED DEGREE A degree at the Master's level or beyond from an institution of higher education. An advanced degree does not include a Bachelor's degree, an associate's degree, or an educational certificate.


	SOCIAL WORK Professionally responsible interventions carried out by persons with formal, professional education at the BSW or MSW level from an accredited school of social work and appropriate licensing, certification, and registration credentials. Interventions are directed toward improving the transactions between people and environments to enhance the adaptive capacities of the participants and improve environments for all that function within them. Social work is a professional practice with a consumer group consisting of individuals, families, small groups, organizations, neighborhoods, and communities and involving the disciplined application of knowledge and skill.


	CERTIFICATION Assurance from a state or professional association that a person or organization possesses certain attributes, knowledge, or skills.


	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.


	COMMUNITY A specific group of people living in the same locality and who may share a common culture, values, and norms. Communities can also be defined by race, religion, ethnicity, age, occupation, political status, tribal affiliation, interest in particular problems or outcomes, or other common bonds. The term "community" encompasses worksites, schools, tribes, residential neighborhoods, business districts, recreational areas, and health and human service sites.


	TRAINING Instruction so as to make fit, qualified, or proficient in a skill or body of knowledge.


	ASSESSMENT An evaluation, which utilizes professional expertise and skills in the collection and analysis of data to understand and describe the nature of service needs of an individual, family, or group. Assessment, as in needs assessment, is also used to determine priorities of program planning and service development for the organization as a whole. See also DIAGNOSIS.


	CASELOAD The aggregate number of clients and/or consumers of service (including individuals, families, and groups) for whom a given employee is responsible. See also WORKLOAD


	EMPLOYEE Paid member of an organization. Foster parents are not considered employees and are specifically referenced in relevant standards.


	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.


	REFERRALS Resource suggestions provided to consumers to address problems or needs that are beyond the scope of the organization's mission.


	PROGRAM A system of services offered by an organization. For example, an organization providing a mental health service may offer several mental health programs to different populations, e.g., a mental health program for adolescent teens. The word "program" can be used interchangeably with the word "service" or to describe specific programs.


	NON-EXEMPT EMPLOYEE Employees subject to the Fair Labor Standards Act based on duties performed and manner of compensation. Non-exempt employees must account for hours and fractional hours worked, are guaranteed at least minimum wage compensation, and are compensated for overtime hours at the premium, time-and-one-half, rate


	HUMAN RESOURCES A department or service that is responsible for recruiting, hiring, and retaining personnel and monitoring the regulations and services applicable to a particular organization.


	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.).