Florida, Round 1, 2003 - 2004; Round 5, 2009/2010; and Continuation, 2010/2011 - 2011/2012

After participating in an initial round of IDTA, the State of Florida was one of four states selected in 2009/2010 to receive specialized TA services to improve their Child and Family Service Review outcomes. Building on the accomplishments of the initial IDTA, the State strengthened collaboration across multiple initiatives to improve outcomes for children and families served by multiple systems. The following summarize the major accomplishments and products of the IDTA and additional TA:

• Florida Integration Collaborative Capacity Instrument (PDF 146 KB) - A modification of the NCSACW's Collaborative Capacity Instrument (http://www.cffutures.org/files/publications/Collaborative_Capacity_Instrument.pdf (PDF 156.9 KB)) to include health care and mental health services.
• Teamwork with External Partners (PDF 640 KB) - Summarizes critical areas of importance and recommendations specific to working with partners, including law enforcement, Child Protection Teams (e.g. multidisciplinary forensic medical experts), domestic violence and substance abuse in the investigation of child abuse and neglect reports.
• Child Welfare Investigation Re-Design Paper - Recommendations on strengthening linkages between child welfare and substance abuse treatment.
• Services Integration Model - Incorporates substance use and mental health issues and strategies into a family-centered child welfare practice model.
• Case File Review - Review of two randomly selected repeat child maltreatment cases to identify how substance abuse was handled at all points in the life of the case. The review surfaced numerous break downs incurring extensive costs and time delays.
• State level Memorandum of Understanding (PDF 1.01 MB) - The memorandum was completed and released in July of 2004.
• Requirements established for localities to develop local level agreements (PDF 14 KB) - Contracts now require that local substance abuse treatment providers and lead agencies of child welfare services establish working agreements based on the model provided by the State and tailored to local needs.
• Integrated Collaborative Casework Practice: Screening and Assessment - Minimum Standards for Screening and Assessment (PDF - 59 KB) - Addresses clinical considerations in testing for alcohol and drugs, and on applications to collaborative casework.
• Preferred Practice Model Components and Comparisons for Demonstration Project Proposal - Model of Preferred Practice for Collaborative Casework (PDF - 59 KB) - Incorporates communication guidelines and federal confidentiality regulations.
  • An Analysis of Preferred Practice Approaches in Substance Abuse and Child Welfare (PDF - 193 KB) - Comparative Practice Elements
• Revised guidelines for substance abuse Family Intervention Specialists (case managers who assist families involved in both the child welfare and treatment systems) - The revised requirements have been included in treatment providers’ contracts.
  
  • Mental Health and Substance Abuse CBC Readiness Self-Assessment Tool (PDF - 120 KB)
• Online Tool Kit - A community-accessible website was established for posting of products and tools. A logo was created to build recognition of the project.
  • Prevention, Progress & Permanency - Project Logo (PDF - 840 KB)
• Evaluation - Performance targets were added to the FY05 child welfare and treatment contracts and a monitoring system was designed. The treatment client data system was modified to identify all admissions of families receiving child protective services.
  • Proposed Performance Outcome Measures for Dependency Drug Court Graduates - Outcome Measures (PDF - 316 KB)
  • Child Welfare Protection/Service and Family Substance Abuse Detection/Treatment Linking Practice to Outcomes - Outcome Measures (PDF - 29 KB)