Goal is effective, integrated, family-centered services
Curriculum and Training Specialist Dr. Phyllis Jeroslow of the Child Welfare In-Service Training Program describes the significance of the California Integrated Training Guide: Recommendations Supporting Cross-System Practice and Training Delivery for Children, Youth, and Families.
Recent reforms in California are propelling the child welfare system closer towards realizing family-centric, collaborative practice, and integrated service delivery through the essential components of child and family teaming and timely access to behavioral health services. The collaborative process extends beyond child welfare professionals and family members to include the family’s informal support network and other major public service systems and community-based agencies. As with other systemic changes, workforce development is at the forefront of implementing these sweeping measures, and, in this regard, CalSWEC has taken a leadership role.
CalSWEC's Involvement
Under the auspices of the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) and the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) Mental Health Services Division, CalSWEC convened the Pathways to Well-Being Workgroup to develop the forthcoming California Integrated Training Guide: Recommendations Supporting Cross-System Practice and Training Delivery for Children, Youth, and Families. Stakeholders included the Regional Training Academies, the California Institute for Behavioral Health Solutions, the Child and Family Policy Institute of California, parent and youth advocates, and the state-level Pathways to Well-Being Community Team that commissioned the work.
The workgroup developed the training guide based on monthly discussions from January 2016 through January 2017. Drafts were periodically vetted by the aforementioned stakeholders and professionals affiliated with the County Welfare Directors Association of California, the County Behavioral Health Directors, the Children’s System of Care Committee, and the Chief Probation Officers of California. The guide, which will soon be finalized by CDSS, includes proposed trainings and related recommendations for a diverse array of practitioners and management from multiple disciplines. Parents and youth with lived experience with public systems play a role in curriculum development, training delivery, and serving as peer partners on child and family teams.
Embracing Diverse Viewpoints
While the drive for an integrated training plan originally emanated from the Katie A. v Bonta Settlement Agreement (2011), the Continuum of Care Reform (CCR) instituted at the start of 2017 provided added rationale for the merits of in-service training with cross-disciplinary content that embraced diverse professional viewpoints and the perspectives of families and youth. CCR mandates child and family teams for all children involved in the child welfare system, thereby increasing the demand for cross-system collaboration, particularly for children in need of Specialty Mental Health Services. In addition, CCR further extended collaboration with Juvenile Probation and the California Department of Education—two entities also noted in the California Integrated Training Guide.
The California Integrated Training Guide is one of four documents that outline the current landscape for integrated practice in California. The others are:
- the forthcoming California Integrated Core Practice Model for Children, Youth, and Families;
- the template for customizing Memoranda of Understanding at the county level for integrating services across local systems and agencies; and
- the forthcoming third edition of the Medi-Cal Manual for billing and documentation of Specialty Mental Health Services rendered by behavioral health professionals.
Together, these documents provide guidance and tools for implementing effective, integrated, and family-centered services.
For questions, please contact Dr. Phyllis Jeroslow, pjero@berkeley.edu.