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Q&A
ACS processes and challenges in notifying attorneys about placement changes
1:11:57
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118 sec
Council Member Williams inquires about ACS processes for sharing information regarding changes in foster care placements with children's attorneys. Commissioner Dannhauser explains the communication channels and challenges faced in this process.
- ACS's Family Court Legal Services (FCLS) team oversees the process of notifying attorneys
- Foster care agencies communicate with FCLS attorneys, who then share information with children's and parents' attorneys
- Multiple redundancies are in place to ensure timely communication
- Placement preservation conferences are held to potentially avoid moves and facilitate better communication
- Emergency moves can sometimes lead to communication breakdowns
Nantasha Williams
1:11:57
Thank you.
1:11:58
How has ACS ensured that caseworkers are sharing information regarding notice of change in false secure placement with the child's attorney?
1:12:06
What barriers has ACS been facing that has prevented this information from being shared with attorneys?
Jess Dannhauser
1:12:12
So our family court legal services team oversees this process, so agencies will communicate with the FCLS attorney who will share that with the child's attorney will share it with the parents' attorney.
1:12:27
There are, you know, sometimes challenges in communication, but we are we speak to the providers regularly to make sure that they're communicating with everybody and that they're communicating in a ways that are timely.
1:12:41
We think by and large, we are meeting the mark here because we've got lots of redundancies put in place.
1:12:49
So each agency is required to put this in the system to make sure that the right foster parent is getting paid, that they have QI systems in place, and that they're flagging immediately to the FCLS attorney.
1:13:02
We also have in place conferences that come together when there's a potential for a move.
1:13:09
Say a young person suggests that they wanna move or a foster parent needs help.
1:13:15
We try it with placement preservation conferences.
1:13:17
We try to come together and say what services could be could happen here is there services we could do together for a parent, a young person, or a parent, and see if there's a way to preserve that.
1:13:28
If that doesn't if it's not able to preserve in the child's move, now we're doing a more planful move, and we're able to.
1:13:35
So the more often we're doing those planning conferences and doing a plan for move, the easier it is to make sure we're communicating around it.
1:13:42
When it happens on an emergency basis, which is more rare, but happens, that's where we sometimes see some breakdowns on communication.
1:13:50
But we are we really wanna make sure that their attorneys now and are working hard to do it.