4.34 Ongoing Assessment for Out of Home Care Cases

Introduction

​​​​​During the course of ongoing work, there should be a continual assessment of the family. This assessment includes face-to-face contact with the parent, face-to-face contact with the child, contact with service providers, contact with caregivers, and other collateral contacts. The overall goal of ongoing work with a family should be to eliminate safety threats and reduce behaviors contributing to risk factors. The family’s progress and the ongoing assessment of the worker is reflected through documentation of service recordings and the case plan evaluation.
​​

Practice Guidance

Procedure

The SSW:
  1. Creates the ongoing case plan evaluation/ongoing assessment: 
    1. At least e​very six (6) months; 
    2. Prior to the periodic case planning conference;
    3. Change in the compositon of the family and/or household members; ​and 
    4. Prior to case closure; 
  2. Considers the safety threats that brought the family into contact with the agency; 
  3. Utilizes information gathered during contact with the services providers and collateral contacts; 
  4. Considers the level of progress and efforts made by family members to reduce risk factors and address safety threats; 
  5. Assesses for safety threats in the family; 
  6. Assesses whether or not the family has achieved their case plan objectives and demonstrates behavior change that is free of safety threats and reduced behaviors that are contributing the risk factors; 
  7. Outlines the services necessary to achieve the elimination of safety threats and/or risk factors; and 
  8. Submits the evaluation/assessment for supervisor approval.




Revisions