Metropolitan Observatory for Street Children and Youngsters: A Chilean Experience of an Innovative Model

In Chile, street children and youngsters' situations have changed significantly over the last decades. The Metropolitan Observatory is an innovative organization that makes it possible to follow this velnerable group. The Observatory is becoming a pioneering actor in the subject, thanks to the participative work and agreed consensus of different institutions involved. The aim of this paper is to introduce the innovative cross-sectoral work done by the Metropolitan Observatory for street children and youth.

Institutionalizing Intensive Family Preservation Services: A Strategy for Creating Staffing Standards Based on Projections of At-Risk Children from Referral Sources

In spite of new legislation and much public and professional interest, intensive family preservation service (IFPS) remains in a vulnerable position as compared to other child welfare services. This article details a method to project ideal IFPS caseloads as a function of children who are at-risk for placement by various referral sources. Using this approach, resource allocation for IFPS can be more nearly on equal ground with the traditional child welfare functions and help IFPS to assume its needed place as a core service in the child welfare continuum.

Behavioral Outcomes of Home-Based Services for Children and Adolescents with Serious Emotional Disorders

The current study evaluates the effectiveness of an intensive home-based treatment program, Families First, on the behaviors of children and adolescents suffering from mental disorders and being at risk for out-ofi home placement. The sample included 85 youngsters and their families from a semi-rural community. The Diagnostic Interview for Children and Adolescents-Revised (DICA-R) was administered to the children, and the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) was completed by a parent at pretreatment and posttreatment. The families participated in a 4-6 week, intensive home intervention where crisis intervention, social support services, and needed psychological services were offered. The results indicated that both externalizing and internalizing behavior problems in youngsters with different diagnoses of mental disorders were significantly reduced at posttreatment as indicated by their CBCL scores. Furthermore, youngsters with a diagnosis of Oppositional Defiant Disorder seemed to benefit the most, as evidenced by the improved scores on most subscales of the CBCL. Youngsters with mood disorders and conduct disorders seemed to benefit in their most deficient areas, internalizing behavior problems and delinquent behaviors, respectively. Finally, after participating in Families First, more than half of the youngsters in the sample were able to stay home with their families

Behavior Problems of Maltreated Children Receiving In-Home Child Welfare Services

This study evaluates the level of behavior problems in a previously little studied group—children with founded cases of abuse and neglect receiving child welfare services in their own homes. A sample of 149 maltreated children, living at home, were evaluated on the CBCL as they entered a service program to which they were referred by a large public child protective service system. These children were found to have elevated levels of behavior problems, with 43.6% scoring in the problematic range, a rate similar to children entering foster care. Practice and policy implications of these findings are discussed and highlighted.

Translating Rhetoric to Reality: The Future of Family and Children's Services

These remarks were first prepared by the author for the inauguration of the Marion Elizabeth Blue Endowed Professorship in Children and Families at the University of Michigan School of Social Work. They were delivered on October 5, 1999, and originally appeared as a monograph published by the University of Michigan School of Social Work in December 1999. They are reprinted here by permission.

MEETING THE NEEDS OF HANDICAPPED CHILDREN: A STUDY OF EDUCATIONAL AND HEALTH CARE SERVICES PROVIDED TO PRE-KINDERGARTEN CHILDREN IN THE HOUSTON INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT EARLY CHILDHOOD PROGRAM FOR THE HANDICAPPED (PARENT SATISFACTION, FUNCTIONAL STATUS, PSYCHOSOCIAL DEVELOPMENT)

The Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975, P.L. 94-142, created a new challenge for the nation's public school systems. During 1982-1983, a national study, called the "Collaborative Study of Children with Special Needs", was conducted in 5 metropolitan school districts to evaluate the effectiveness of education and health care services of children in kindergarten to 6th grade being provided under P.L. 94-142 programs. This dissertation (the Substudy) was undertaken to augment the findings of the Collaborative Study. The purpose of this study was to develop a database to provide descriptive information on the demographic, service and health characteristics of a small group of 3 and 4 year old handicapped children served by the Houston Independent School District (HISD) during 1982-1983.^ The study involved a stratified sample of 105 three and four year old children divided into 3 groups according to type of handicapping condition.^ The results of the study gave a clearer picture of the demographic characteristics of these Pre-K children. Specifically, sex ratio was approximately one, lower than the national norm. Family and socioeconomic characteristics were assessed.^ The study used an independence/dependence index composed of 11 items on the parent questionnaire to assess the level of functional independence of each child. An association was found between index scores and parent-reported effects of the child on family activity. Parents who said that their child's condition had affected the family's job situation, housing accomodations, vacation plans, marriage, choice of friends and social activities were also more likely to report less independence in the child. In addition, many of the Substudy children had extensive care-taking needs reflected in specific components of the index such as dressing, feeding, toileting or moving about the house.^ In general the results of the Pre-K Substudy indicate that at the early childhood level, the HISD special education program is functioning well in most areas and that parents are very satisfied with the program. (Abstract shortened with permission of author.)^

THE EFFECTS OF COST-SHARING ON USE OF SERVICES AND CONSUMER CHARACTERISTICS IN A STATE'S CRIPPLED CHILDREN'S DIVISION

The present study analyzed some of the effects of imposing a cost-sharing requirement on users of a state's health service program. The study population consisted of people who were in diagnosed medical need and included, but was not limited to, people in financial need.^ The purpose of the study was to determine if the cost-sharing requirement had any detrimental effects on the service population. Changes in the characteristics of service consumers and in utilization patterns were analyzed using time-series techniques and pre-post policy comparisons.^ The study hypotheses stated that the distribution of service provided, diagnoses serviced, and consumer income levels would change following the cost-sharing policy.^ Analysis of data revealed that neither the characteristics of service users (income, race, sex, etc.) nor services provided by the program changed significantly following the policy. The results were explainable in part by the fact that all of the program participants were in diagnosed medical need. Therefore, their use of "discretionary" or "less necessary" services was limited.^ The study's findings supported the work of Joseph Newhouse, Charles Phelps, and others who have contended that necessary service use would not be detrimentally affected by reasonable cost-sharing provisions. These contentions raise the prospect of incorporating cost-sharing into programs such as Medicaid, which, at this writing, do not demand any consumer payment for services.^ The study concluded with a discussion of the cost-containment problem in health services. The efficacy of cost-sharing was considered relative to other financing and reimbursement strategies such as HMO's, self-funding, and reimbursement for less costly services and places of service. ^

Human Trafficking Victims and Their Children: Assessing Needs, Vulnerabilities, Strengths, and Survivorship

Given the increased awareness and attention to human trafficking, including the establishment of federal laws and policies, federally funded task forces that provide law enforcement responses, and specialized victim services, it is important to assess the impact of these procedures and services on survivors/victims of international human trafficking and their immigrant children. By federal definition, certified victims of international human trafficking are eligible for all services provided to refugees in this country, including reunification with their minor children. This research is based on a qualitative study conducted in Austin and Houston, Texas with human trafficking victims/survivors. The project’s goal was to gain an understanding of the needs of human trafficking survivors after their rescue, their overall integration into American life, and the subsequent needs of their immigrant children after reunification. The project objectives examined the factors that either promote or hinder self-sufficiency, the determination of social service needs, and policy and practice recommendations to strengthen survivors, their children and their families living both locally and abroad. For this project, nine (n = 9) in-depth interviews were conducted with adult foreign-born victims of human trafficking. Researchers gathered data using a semi-structured questionnaire that queried about factors that promote or hinder victims’ services and needs. Interviews were conducted in participants’ homes using bilingual research staff and/or trained interpreters, were digitally-recorded, and subsequently transcribed. Participation in this study was completely voluntary. Specific steps were taken to ensure that the participants’ identities were protected. Open coding of data was utilized and the data were subsequently organized or grouped into properties and later developed into contextual themes around the research questions. The findings are grounded with the use of direct quotes from participants. As a result of progressive U.S. policy, many victims of human trafficking are being reunited with their minor children. Immigrant children are one of the largest and fastest growing populations in the U.S. and for a variety of reasons are vulnerable to exploitation. Research also indicates that victims of trafficking are identified by traffickers because of their perceived “vulnerabilities” or lack of opportunities (Clark, 2003). Therefore, it is important that practices and policies are developed to address the unique needs of these families with an eye toward positive outcomes for parent and child safety and well-being. Social service providers are provided a toolkit that may be utilized before and during the reunification period.

Partnering with Parents: Promising Approaches to Improve Reunification Outcomes for Children in Foster Care

Family reunification is one of the central tenents of the child welfare system, yet research supporting effective practices to promote safe reunifications is limited. As a departure from previous initiatives, the Parent Partner (PP) program enlists as staff mothers and fathers who have experienced child removal, services, and reunification. This study examines outcomes for children served by the PP program. The experimental group includes 236 children whose parents were served by a Parent Partner and a matched comparison group of 55 children whose parents were served by the public child welfare agency in 2004, before the Parent Partner program was established. Cases were examined 12 months following case opening to determine reunification status. Results from the outcome study indicate that reunification may be more likely for children whose parents were served by Parent Partners. Although there are limitations to the data, findings from this study suggest that the Parent Partner model may hold promise as a child welfare intervention designed to support reunification.

The Family Partners Credit Card: A Token Economy System Adapted for Intensive Family Preservation Services to Enable Families to Manage Difficult Behavior of Adolescents

Increasingly, families referred for Intensive Family Preservation Services have not experienced a crisis of maltreatment, focused on the parent; rather these families have children with chronic behavioral difficulties for which their parents lack the skills to cope. These are the same families whose children were formerly placed in residential programs. This paper presents The Family Partners Credit Card System, incorporating behavioral techniques developed to treat children in out-of-home placements into a family preservation model. Two case examples illustrate how the system has been modified to train biological or adoptive parents in parenting skills, enable them to teach their children pro-family behaviors, and reinforce new behaviors through a credit card that monitors an ongoing balance of credits and fines.

Family Reunion Services: An Examination of a Process Used to Successfully Reunite Families

Family Reunion Services, an intensive-home-based service for families whose children are unlikely to return home without additional services, was evaluated. The 196 children who received FRS services and remained home had fewer previous placements, were more likely to be black and to come from families where the FRS worker intervened in the areas of parenting skills or communication. FRS workers' activities are described.

The Effectiveness of Court Mandated Intervention Versus Voluntary Services in Child Protective Services:

The general objective of this research was to compare the relative effectiveness of court mandated services versus a voluntary service plan in preventing in child maltreatment recidivism. Four-thirty-two children were selected at random from among children in a large California County who were receiving in-home services under a court mandate or a voluntary plan. Protective services files of study children were reviewed to derive study data. Type of plan did not make a difference on case outcome. Children were more likely to remain in the home at the end of the service delivery period in families that received voluntary plans. However, when other factors are controlled, the advantage of a voluntary plan disappears. Moreover, similar rates of recidivism were noted between both types of plans after the case was closed.

Coordination of Family Preservation Services in a Rural Community: A Case Study

Family preservation programs designed to prevent the out-of-home placement of children depend on the coordination of services from multiple agencies. Little is known regarding how coordination occurs. This case study examined this issue. Information was sought from all workers who provided services to each of five families and 'from families' case records. Thirty-one workers were interviewed with a semi-structured interview schedule containing rating scales and questions with open-ended response formats. Case records were reviewed with a case record review form. Analyses of data revealed the following. Services were coordinated to a moderate degree but that coordination deteriorated over time. Workers elaborated how aspects of communities, human service agencies, workers, and families affected coordination. Implications of findings for future research were drawn.

Intensive Family Preservation in Children's Mental Health: Predictors of Placement

This article examines the predictors of placement following IFPSfor a sample of child mental health service recipients and their families. Risk and protective factors vary depending on the time frame under consideration. Immediately following service, children 's level of Social/Legal functioning, a previous group home placement, and the presence of mental health problems for other family members increase risk of placement, while the number of follow-up services serves to lessen risk. Three to six months after service, the presence of a child behavior presenting problem and a projected placement in foster care serve as protective factors, while two service targets, alcohol monitoring and time management, serve to increase risk. Appropriate use of results for program design and for structuring access to services is discussed.

Family Preservation Services to At-Risk Families: A Macro Case Study

Although the literature has provided many critiques of research done on family preservation programs, these critiques have usually been limited to the studies ' assumptions, approach, or methodology. Because of the nature of these critiques, suggestions for future research in this field of practice have been scattered throughout the literature and have not benefited from a wider historical perspective. This paper examines the historical evolution of family preservation studies in child welfare and suggests future directions for research in the field. Among the suggestions the authors posit are (1) research questions should be framed by what we know about improvements in the lives of families and children served by family preservation programs; (2) future explorations should include areas that have received relatively little attention in current research, including the impact of organizational conditions on service fidelity and worker performance; (3) newer treatment models, particularly those that provide both intensive services during a crisis period and less intensive services for maintenance, should be tested; (4) data collection points in longitudinal studies should be guided by theory, and measures should change over time to reflect the theoretically expected changes in families; (5) complex measures of placement prevention and other measures that capture changes in family functioning, child well-being, and child safety, should be utilized to obtain a full picture of program effects; and (6) multiple informants should be used to provide data about program effectiveness. In addition, the authors will argue that the field should carefully consider the amount of change that should be expected from the service models delivered.