Karl Dennis

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Karl Dennis AssociatesKarl Dennis,
PresidentKathy Dennis, Vice President

• 51 Tryon Farm Lane
• Michigan City, IN 46360
• Kaltrain_at_aol.com
• 219-874-5367

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A person working alone has all the power
of social dust. Saul Alinsky, Community
Activist (1909 - 1972)
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Definition of WrapAround
A WrapAround intervention is developed and/or
approved by an inter-disciplinary services team,
is community-based, family focused, cost
effective and unconditional. It is centered on
the strengths of the child and family, is
culturally competent, and includes the delivery
of coordinated, highly individualized services in
the life domain areas of a child and family.
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Meeting the Needs of Children
1
1/3
12-13
In The Service System
1/3
1/3
Categorical 87
(Gilmore et al)
Prevention
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Elements of Family Start

• Inter-Agency Collaboration
• State
• Community
• Child Family Teams
• Family Focused
• Unconditional Care
• Community - Based
• Strength - Based

• Individualized Services
• Culturally Competent
• Cost Effective
• Meets Needs of Family
• Outcome Driven

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Are You Lonely??Dont like working on your
own?Then call an interagency Meeting

• YOU CAN
• Feel important
• Draw flowcharts
• Turf responsibility
• Impress colleagues
• Develop release forms
• Confuse each other with acronyms

ALL ON COMPANY TIME MEETINGS !!! THE PRACTICAL
ALTERNATIVE TO WORK
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What Makes It Work

• Access
• Parent/Child has valid option at inclusion in
  decision making process

• Voice
• Parent/Child were heard, listened to at all
  junctures of planning

• Ownership
• Parent/Child agree with and are committed to any
  plan concerning them

• Consistency
• Parent/Child were served by a consistent team of
  workers for services and crisis

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Dos and Don'ts for Working with Families

• Take the time to form opinions about a family
• Be direct
• Trust familys instincts
• Speak language that families understand
• View families as a whole, not as a case

• Assist families with life plans not treatment
  plans
• Dont be just a voice on the phone
• Dont be condescending
• Involve families in every level of planning

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Dos and Don'ts for working with Families (Cont.)

• Keep families informed
• Accept lifestyles and cultural differences
• Help to preserve privacy
• Follow house rules
• Respect familys schedules
• Be patient

• Be accessible
• Follow through
• Dont become another layer of bureaucracy
• Be a partner
• Look at services that families need, not whether
  they are billable

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Three brick layers were asked what they were
doing. One said, Im laying bricks. The
second replied, Im building a wall. The
third stated, Im constructing a
temple. Anonymous
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Governmental Level Successful
Initiatives Grassroots Level
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Community Team CompositionLocal Stake Holders
including

• Parents
• Child Welfare, Juvenile Justice, Mental Health,
  Education, Health
• Private Providers
• Business Cultural Leaders

• Religious Community
• Universities
• Civic Groups
• Housing, Visiting Nurse, Law Enforcement
• Local Government

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Community TeamMust Haves

• Small Jurisdiction
• Family Input Participation
• Top - Down Authorization
• Bottom - Up Support
• Authority to approve plans and funding
• Commitment to Unconditional Care
• Strong Outcome Data

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Child Family TeamWhos On It

• Parents Children
• Four to eight people who best know the strengths
  and needs of the family
• Chosen by the family and lead agency
• All members must agree to actively participate

• Some possibilities
• Teacher - Counselor
• Social Worker
• Service Coordinator
• Therapist
• Clergy
• Friend - Neighbor
• Big Brother/Big Sister
• Grandparents - Relatives

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Child Family TeamMeetings

• Time
• Set times so all can participate
• May involve evenings or weekends
• Place
• Where the family is comfortable

• Frequency
• Weekly for four weeks
• Monthly for next several months
• Quarterly thereafter
• Change frequency to meet family and/or crisis
  needs

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Child Family TeamsTasks

• Assess family strengths
• Develop Plan
• Plan for Crisis
• Develop community support network for plan
  implementation
• Advocate for the family

• Monitor services and plan
• Evaluate plans effectiveness
• Redo plan as needed
• Be creative entrepreneurs
• Never Ever Give Up!

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Child Family TeamPlanning Agenda

• Get to know family
• Determine team membership
• Get agreement to participate
• Set up meeting schedule
• Establish ground rules
• Assess strengths
• Determine of needs currently met

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Child Family TeamPlanning Agenda - Continued

• Brainstorm family and individual needs
• Prioritize needs
• Give parent veto power
• Match strengths with needs
• Assign task responsibility
• Assess percent of needs plan will meet
• Set next meeting date

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Effective Crisis Planning

• Plans anticipate crisis based on past knowledge.
• Assume the worst case scenario
• Research past crisis for cause, best
  interventions and consequent behaviors.
• Clearly defined plans help teams function in
  difficult times

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Crisis Planning (2)

• See crisis as a process with a beginning, middle,
  and end.
• Change plan based on what works
• Build plans that triage for differing levels of
  intensity and severity of crisis.
• Build plans early with child family team
• Begin by asking family what can go wrong with
  plan as a first step.

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Crisis Planning (3)

• Always build in 24 hour response.
• Clearly define roles for team members including
  family and natural support people.
• Create time for team to assess management of
  crisis within two weeks of event.
• Decide that no major decisions will be made until
  at least 72 hours after the crisis event.
  (Grealish Vandenberg)

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Whats The Good News

• Living
• Family
• Psychiatric/Psychological/Medical
• Educational/Vocational
• Recreation/Social
• Legal
• Spiritual
• Safety

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Individual Needs
Sandys Needs
One Consistent Therapist
After School Job
Privacy
Medical Care
College Application
Family Activities
Music Lessons
Friends
Live with Mom Dad
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Family Needs
Help with food
Visiting Nurse
Car Repaired
Larger Living Space
Family Activities
Furniture
Attend Church Together
Free Time for Mom Dad
Move Grandma in with Family
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Desired Outcome
Need Strategies Who When Where
Funding Outcomes Crisis Priority
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Sample Referral Criteria

• Child is at imminent risk of placement in a
  residential setting
• Child and/or family have had contact with
  multiple systems
• Child is at risk in current placement
• Child and/or family is in need of services from
  multiple agencies (two or more systems).

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Benefits to Systems Agencies

• Fosters Interagency Collaboration
• Decision making given to family and direct care
  givers
• Promotes top down and bottom up change
• Increases community responsibility
• Creates flexible funds
• Services monitored by multiagencies

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Referral Criteria Continued

• Safety of child/family can be maintained
• Child/family would benefit from individualized
  services
• Child possesses an I.Q. measured at 50 or above