State Standards and Practices for Content of Caseworker Visits with Children in Foster Care DHHS-OIG Report OEI December 2005

Objectives Determine written standards States have implemented for the content of worker-child visits Determine practices of States without written standards

Background No federal standard for content ACF considers whether visits are focused on issues pertinent to case planning, service delivery, and goal attainment CFSR: of 35 states reviewed , 14 cited as needing improvement in content of caseworker visits OIG focused on children in foster care Examined State standards for content of visits and reported activities for States without written standards

Limitations Content analysis entails judgments Reviewed only documents pertaining to visits with children in foster care Did not examine county, local or private agency standards

Findings: Written Standards 41 of 51 States report implementing standards addressing content of visits 38 States have written standards specific to caseworker visits 3 States have written documents addressing content, but as part of broader program areas

Findings: Visitation Standard Activities Most commonly cited related to: – relationships and/or communication between caseworker and child – caseworker addressing needs and services to the child

Findings: Visitation Standard Activities Most common categories: – safety of the child – case planning – physical health of the child – private discussions with the child – adjustment of the child to placement – addressing the child’s concerns

Findings: Visitation Standard Activities Most common categories: – progress of the child – mental health needs of the child – educational needs of the child – child’s relationships or visits with parents, siblings, and other relatives – well-being of the child

Findings: States without Written Standards 10 States did not provide written standards – 8 of these States reported caseworkers routinely perform activities during visits – 2 of these States reported activities depend on the case or are determined by local policy

Findings: Activities in States without Written Standards Most common activity categories: – adjustment to the placement – child safety – physical health of the child

Findings: Activities in States without Written Standards Most common activity categories: – educational needs of the child – addressing the child’s concerns – relationships and/or communication between caseworker and child – case planning

Findings: Reasons States Do Not Have Written Standards Exploring development of standards (3 States) Caseworkers are expected to follow best practice (2 States) Content addressed in the PIP (3 States)

Findings: Reasons States Do Not Have Written Standards Content depends on the case (2 States) Caseworkers discuss activities with supervisors (1 State) Declined to implement standards imposing additional work on caseworkers (1 State)

Prepared by: Susan Dougherty National Resource Center for Family Centered Practice and Permanency Planning At the Hunter College School of Social Work A Service of the Children’s Bureau/ACF/DHHS