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A quick rundown of Ohio child protection news this week
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Weekly Update for May 7, 2018
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Association Updates
PCSAO launches bold reform plan with stakeholder support
More than 50 stakeholders, including representatives from state agencies, fellow associations, children’s hospitals, and think tanks, came together in Columbus May 3 to learn about PCSAO’s
Children’s Continuum of Care Reform Plan
. The reform effort, which started as a deep dive into data regarding residential care for foster youth, quickly broadened into an ambitious campaign to redesign the entire continuum within the foster care system, from developing new prevention and diversion services and modernizing foster care services including residential treatment, to ensuring sustained permanency for youth with reunification and after-care services. Each of the four broad strategy areas in the plan was reviewed during the meeting, led by Tim Schaffner, director of Trumbull County Children Services; Pam Meermans, deputy director of Clark County Job and Family Services; Kristi Burre, director of protective services at Fairfield County Job and Family Services; and PCSAO staff.
Learn more
.
Board of Trustees meets
PCSAO Board of Trustees met May 2 and approved April 4 and 11 meeting minutes and the April Treasurer's Report. The Board received updates related to PCSAO 2017 audit, ODJFS RFP for Eckerd Rapid Safety Feedback (ERSF) case consultation, Family First Prevention Services Act, Vorys Health Care Advisors' first quarter activities, and the recently released 2017 Annual Report. The Board discussed topics for the June Executive Membership Meeting, legislative bills, rules, and other Association priorities. The Board met with Carla Carpenter, OFC Deputy Director, to discuss the department's plans for moving forward with Family First and the ERSF RFP. The Board will meet next on June 6.
EDMS project kickoff
The Ohio Department of Administrative Services (DAS) held a kickoff meeting April 30 for the Enterprise Document Management System project. DAS has contracted with Northwoods to build a document management system statewide for the following programs: child care, child support, child protection, Medicaid, SNAP and TANF. All program systems must be built by the end of this year. Over 600 county representatives from agencies that have programs related to child protection, child care, and child support attended this event. Much appreciation was given to Deven Mehta, DAS, who is spearheading this enormous effort; to Greg Moody, Office of Health Transformation, for securing the Governor’s support of this revolutionary system for county programs; and to Joel Potts, OJFSDA, for coordinating this effort on behalf of counties. Northwoods will begin working with pilot counties (5 per program area), Subject Matter Experts, and county trainers. PCSAO will provide more information as this unfolds.
Community Education Committee meets
The committee met to debrief Wear Blue and Child Abuse Prevention Month, review the recommendations in the Foster Care Advisory Group report, prepare for Foster Care Month, and share updates. The committee meets next on June 1 at Marion County Children Services for a "levy boot camp."
HOPE workgroup meets
The HOPE (Helping Ohio Parent Effectively) workgroup welcomed Fairfield Children and Family Services as a new pilot site at the quarterly meeting May 1. The workgroup is pleased to see parent engagement spreading to other areas of the state. A HOPE Parent Partners Panel presented a workshop on parent engagement at the Ohio Association of Child Caring Agencies conference May 2. Learn more about
HOPE/Primary Parents
.
Rules updates
As of May 4, no children services-related rules are in clearance. The following rules are currently in pre-clearance at
www.ohiorulereview.org/
. Please review and comment.
- Chapter 5101:2-5 Child Services Agency Licensing rules are open for comments until May 10. These rules will be revised to clarify compliance expectations with applicable statutes.
- Chapter 5101:2-47 Title IV-E Foster Care Maintenance rules are open for comments until May 24. These rules are up for five-year review.
- Chapter 5101:2-48 Adoption rules are open for comments until May 10. These rules will be revised to clarify Child Study Inventory (CSI) requirements.
- Revised OAC rule 5101:2-44-05.2, “Covered families and children (CFC) Medicaid eligibility for state adoption subsidy recipient moving from or to Ohio,” was ruled on May 3. A public hearing is scheduled for May 29, 10 a.m. This rule was amended to include current forms and obsolete forms which are no longer available, as well as to simplify instructions.
To view the rule and public hearing notice, click
here
.
Five levies on ballot tomorrow
Join PCSAO in supporting children services levies on the ballot in tomorrow's election in five counties: Cuyahoga (human services levy), Hancock, Hocking, Jackson and Washington. The last four, if they pass, would mark the first-ever children services levies for those counties.
Susie Hill retires
PCSAO staff extend best wishes for a relaxing retirement to our colleague and friend, Susie Hill with the Ohio Job and Family Services Directors' Association. Susie concluded a long second career last week at OJFSDA, having retired before from ODJFS. She will be greatly missed around the office!
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Announcements and Resources
May is National Foster Care Month
May is National Foster Care Month, a month set aside to acknowledge foster parents, family members, volunteers, mentors, policymakers, child welfare professionals, and other members of the community who help children and youth in foster care find permanent homes and connections.
Learn more
from the US-HHS, Children’s Bureau, and click
here
for the Presidential Proclamation.
COA reimbursement available to PCSAs
Did you know ODJFS can reimburse public children services agencies for up to 50 percent of their Council on Accreditation (COA) costs? Ohio currently has 13 public agencies that are accredited. To request reimbursement, simply send an invoice and all supporting documentation to Alicia Allen at
Alicia.Allen@jfs.ohio.gov
or ODJFS Office of Families and Children, P.O. Box 183204, Columbus, OH 43218-3204. Click
here
to learn more about the COA standards and process.
Ohio’s opiate epidemic resources
NASW: Upcoming workshops
Get the latest on essential legal, ethical, technical, and clinical best practices; see information about the workshops below:
Learn more about training opportunities at
NASW
.
CAMS training
Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) training is being offered to all Ohio mental health professionals free of charge through funding received by SAMHSA GLS Grant SM062894. Participants will only be charged $35 to cover the cost of CEUs, lunch, and registration processing. Click
here
for more information and registration. For additional information and questions on the trainings, email
Austin Lucas
.
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Child Protection in the News
The attorney general's office estimated that half of the children in foster care are there because of substance abuse from one or both parents. And nearly 3,000 more kids are in the system now than they were seven years ago, when the opioid crisis emerged, the office said.
Portman is touring the state to discuss a bill he introduced in the U.S. Senate to reauthorize and substantially expand the federal government's actions in response to the crisis.
Last month, Vice put juvenile justice front and center with a one-hour HBO documentary hosted by Michael K. Williams, star of the network's acclaimed series "The Wire." The special - Raised in the System - uses Lucas County, Ohio, as a primary example of a system trying to reduce the use of incarceration in working with juvenile offenders, limiting lockup to only the cases involving very high-risk youth.
According to the 2016 national survey on Drug Use and Health, 891,000 people between the ages of 12 and 27 are abusing opioids. The news is especially bad here in Ohio, as reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the Feb.
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May 9 | Ohio START Steering Committee Meeting
May 11 | Conference Planning Committee Meeting
May 16 | Southwest District Meeting
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“Every child deserves a home and love. Period.” –
Dave Thomas, Founder of Wendy’s and The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption
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Public Children Services Association of Ohio | 614-224-5802 |
www.pcsao.org
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