1. Multidisciplinary Intervention Team

2. Youth At High Risk of Gang Involvement
Have many areas of risk
Family disruption
School difficulties
Lack of access to positive alternatives
Negative life events
Mental health/substance abuse
Are difficult to serve
Require a team approach

3. Who should be on the team?
Targeted High Risk Youth
Law
Enforcement
Outreach
Worker
Juvenile Probation
Schools
Social Services
Mental Health
Grassroots Agency
Who should be on the team?

4. Coordinator Role
Convene the team, and keep the team members engaged and focused on the overall goals
Ensure that all program participants receive the right level of services and are regularly discussed
Keep lines of communication open between agencies
Market the program with partners (referrals) and provide follow-up information

5. Law Enforcement Role
Share information on criminal activities of program participants, their close friends, and family
Share information on safety issues and local gang trends that may affect the team, participating agencies, and the participants
Serve as liaison between team members and law enforcement
Refer appropriate youth to the program

6. Probation Role
Share information on participants’ history of court involvement and court requirements with the team
Ensure that court requirements address the participants’ needs, including gang involvement
Leverage services for clients
Hold participants accountable when necessary
Refer appropriate probationers to the program

7. Schools’ Role
Provide information about the participants’ educational status, learning issues, family background, and needs
Provide feedback to the team regarding participants’ educational performance, attendance, and school behavior
Support participants on-site at school
Ensure that participants have access to education services in a safe environment
Leverage services from within the school setting
Keep the school informed of safety risks
Refer appropriate students to the program

8. Mental Health/Social Services
Provide guidance on mental health/substance abuse/social services needs of participants and resources to address these needs
Help participants access services and follow- up on their participation
Support conditions of probation and other court requirements for clients
Ensure that service providers are aware of the special needs and safety risks of high risk youth
Refer appropriate clients to the program

9. Street Outreach
Reach out to high risk youth and their families and engage them in a supportive, mentoring relationship
Assess the needs of youth and families and link them to necessary services
Advocate for the needs of high risk youth and their families with other agencies
Provide a model of positive social behavior for participants
Provide crisis response directly to high-risk youth and their families
Work to implement the team’s plan with each participant

10. Steps for Implementing an MDT
Identify goals for the team, including the number and characteristics of youth to be served, and desired outcomes
Formalize information sharing protocols between agencies in writing
Formalize referral process
Develop client information-sharing consent forms
Determine how client data will be collected and stored to protect client privacy
Identify available services for client intervention plans

11. Structure of Intervention Team Meetings
Screen referrals
Conduct initial client staffing (create case plan)
Prioritize issues
Assign responsibilities
Review progress of existing clients
Discuss safety issues in target community

12. Information Sharing on the Intervention Team
The Intervention Team Is Vegas

13. Information Sharing Safety is paramount
Clients
Community
Team members
Information should not be used to penalize or handicap the youth

14. Information Sharing
Do not share information about youth without the consent of parent/guardian
Client information should be kept protected and confidential
Participating agencies may need to sign confidentiality contracts stipulating what information will be shared and how that information will be used

15. Creating an Intervention Plan
Information needed
Family situation
Criminal justice involvement
Individual client mental health/substance abuse issues
Educational level and issues
Employment status and goals

16. Developing an Intervention Plan
Once clients have been assessed, the team should
Prioritize the participant’s issues, particularly safety
Address specific areas of need
Consider the participant’s goals and desires
Break the plan down into smaller steps towards an achievable goal

17. Intervention planning with high risk youth is like eating an elephant…

18. Access to Resources is Crucial
Educational
Vocational/employment
Drug & alcohol treatment
Mental health services
Family counseling/assistance
Recreational
Outreach

19. Follow-Up
Team members should remain in touch outside meetings and share information as needed
If plans do not appear to be working, the team should revise the plan immediately
Follow-through on the plan by all team members is essential to client success

20. Maintaining a Successful Intervention Team
It takes time to build trust between team members
Turnover in membership will negatively affect the team and should be discouraged
Regular and consistent attendance by team members is critical
Each of the agencies represented on the team has an equally important perspective and equally important information to share at team meetings. No single agency should dominate the team

21. MDT Resources Multidisciplinary Gang Intervention Teams
ocuments/NYGCbulletin3.pdf
Implementing the OJJDP Comprehensive Gang Model: ehensive-Gang-Model/Implementation- Manual

22. Project BUILD Durham Cooperative Extension 721 Foster Street
Durham, NC 27701
(919)

23. Questions and Answers