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Running Head: CRITICAL ANALYSIS REPORT

Critical Analysis Report

Maggie ONeal
Wilmington University, AHS8100
March 29, 2015

CRITICAL ANALYSIS REPORT

Critical Analysis Report
A program within the Division of Family Services that is crucial to its mission is
Treatment. Treatments primary goal is to minimize risk and to keep children safe. Treatment
accomplishes this in a variety of ways. In Sussex County, there are two treatment units with a
total of twelve full-time workers and one part-time worker. Between the two units, they split
approximately 150-200 cases. One unit is located on the western side of Sussex County and the
other unit is located on the eastern side of Sussex County. Predominantly, cases are assigned to
each unit geographically, unless there is a conflict of interest.
What is Treatment?
In treatment, families are encouraged to cooperate with services to maintain
independence and stability, or for cases where children have been removed from their parents
care, parents are given a case plan to work towards reunification with their children. Treatment
workers meet with parents or guardians and determine what services could benefit them. Then
the treatment workers are able to make referrals for the parents to various outside agencies to
assist the parents in obtaining the necessary services. The services that treatment workers can
routinely assist parents in procuring are parent aide services, parenting classes, counseling, drug
and alcohol evaluations/treatment, mental health evaluations/treatment, domestic violence
evaluations/treatment, daycare services, rental assistance, transportation services, etc.
For families that were not substantiated for child abuse or neglect in investigations,
treatment is an optional service. However, they are often sent to treatment because the
investigator feels they could benefit from further services or the investigator feels the children
could be at risk in the future and wants treatment involved to continue to keep an eye on things
and to address any issues that may arise.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS REPORT

Managing Treatment
The two treatment units have a Family Crisis Therapist Supervisor at each site. The
supervisors are responsible for the day-to-day operations and major decision-making functions of
each unit. Family Crisis Therapist Supervisors play an integral role in assisting the Division in
meeting the Mission to promote the safety and wellbeing of children and families through
Education, Support, and Administrative Management of the unit. They provide the direct
frontline workforce with best practice tools, strategies and models needed to achieve positive
outcomes. Supervisors link their assigned staff, the practice/policy standards of the Division,
and effective implementation of best practices and initiatives. The supervisor provides continual
oversight of direct service to clients in the treatment unit, (Family Service Specialist Series
Performance Plan, 2014). Treatment supervisors are responsible for monthly unit meetings as
well. Its at these meetings where the unit is provided with any policy updates and any issues
that may be happening within the State or the Division. The supervisor routinely has
conferences with the treatment workers regarding the workers cases. This is to ensure that the
supervisor and worker are on the same page and that the supervisor knows what is going on with
all of the cases in the unit. The treatment workers also seek the supervisors advice and guidance
when necessary on cases regarding case planning, services, court, custody, etc.
If I Were the Director
If I were the Director of the Division of Family Services, I would change the program
first by adding more treatment worker positions. This would allow caseload numbers to come
down, effectively allowing treatment workers to be better able to focus and dedicate valuable
time to their cases, where needed. Besides adding more treatment worker positions to assist in

CRITICAL ANALYSIS REPORT

the caseload numbers, I would not change the way treatment is managed. Treatment is an
excellent program.
Treatment and the rest of the Division of Family Services has recently adopted a new
practice, called Outcomes Matter. Family Engagement is the central unifying theme that
supports the Outcomes Matter Initiative. Children and families deserve trained, skillful staff to
engage and assist families. The Division is elevating family engagement as an overarching
value, philosophy and practice, based on the belief that such engagement is fundamental in
achieving improved outcomes for all children in safety, permanency, and well-being. Outcomes
Matter is a Division of Family Services initiative which presented the Division with a Safety
Organized Practice Model. Safety Organized Practice includes safety mapping, integrating the
childs voice, harm and risk statements, safety planning, safety networks, and safety goals,
(UCDavis, 2013). These tools make up a small part of Outcomes Matter. Outcomes Matter
also includes Structured Decision Making, Team Decision Making, Recruitment, Development
and Support, Family Search and Engagement, and FACTS II (data-entry system). All of these
initiatives and practices have ranging effects on treatment, from minimal to the extreme,
complete overhaul. Treatment has done an amazing job of adapting to the new initiatives and
participating in all required trainings.
Due to unforeseen difficulties in the FACTS II system, treatment has had to process
certain events both in the computer and by hand. This is because the new system has many
glitches and has been delayed for the foreseeable future. Unfortunately, the Divisions new
initiatives were created with FACTS II in mind and were developed to be completed on the
computer within the FACTS II system, but cannot be completed in the old FACTS system, so
treatment workers have to complete events the old way as well as the new way. They are doing

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twice the work because of the system problems, but they are doing a great job of staying up-todate and on-task.
Funding
It is imperative to maintain adequate funding for the entire Division of Family Services.
However, treatment is sometimes seen as the redheaded step-child and is often neglected when
it comes to additional funding. Funding is crucial for treatment because it helps to ensure
treatment worker positions, as well as necessary services for families. Additional services for
families are important to enable families to maintain or regain their independence.
In order to acquire funding for the Division of Family Services, and specifically
treatment, I would collect reports demonstrating caseloads and the number of children in
Division custody. This would be a starting point for funding committees to see and understand
the work that treatment workers are responsible for on a daily basis. Essentially, any child that is
on a treatment workers caseload, they are responsible for that childs wellbeing. That is whether
that child is in the Divisions custody or not. It would also be helpful to prepare a presentation
to allow the committee to observe an example of the daily functions of a treatment worker. This
would include phone calls, emails, home visits, counseling appointments, doctors appointments,
court hearings, and placement activities.
Employees and Interns
In hiring employees to work for the Division of Family Services in the treatment units, it
is important to recruit individuals who have knowledge of substance abuse and mental health.
Treatment workers must be able to demonstrate the ability to prioritize competing assignments
and multi-task. They also must have the ability to consistently complete workload and tasks
within prescribed time frames (Family Service Specialist Series Performance Plan, 2014).

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Treatment workers should also be knowledgeable of services and resources in the community
that are available to families to assist them in their functioning and case planning. Treatment
workers must also be mindful of diversity and be willing to access necessary resources to assist
them in making contact with diverse populations if needed.
Interns for the Division of Family Services treatment units can be beneficial in many
ways if the correct individuals are chosen. It is good practice for the Division to maintain
positive relationships with local colleges and universities by accepting placement of their interns.
An intern wanting to complete their internship with the Division of Family Services treatment
unit should be outgoing, personable, intelligent, thoughtful, and dedicated. Interns must want to
learn and be willing to do the job in order to learn about the treatment unit. Bachelors level
interns often receive their own case during the second half of their internship. They are directly
supervised by a treatment worker, but they are responsible for meeting with the family and
completing referrals and updating notes regarding that family. Interns should take the initiative
and jump in where they see help may be needed. This includes such areas as trivial as answering
the phones, filing case records, watching children during a meeting, etc. This will leave a lasting
impression on the workers and the Division.
Conclusion
Through the Division of Family Services treatment units, many families are able to
regain their sense of independence by completing their recommended case plan. Other families
are able to successfully complete their case plan and eliminate risk and safety concerns and
regain custody of their children. Treatment units are the backbone of the Division in my opinion,
as this is where a case will spend the majority of its time. A case can be in treatment for three

CRITICAL ANALYSIS REPORT

months up to several years. Treatment workers build relationships with the families they work
with and are able to gain their cooperation and trust.

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References
Family Service Specialist Series Performance Plan. (2014). Retrieved from
U://DFS/OCSPerformancePlans/2014DFSPerformancePlansRevised.
UCDavis Extension, Center for Human Services. (2013). Practice Profiles for Safety Organized
Practice: Handbook. University of California, Davis: Northern California Training
Academy.