18 Miss. Code. R. 6-1-F-III
MISS. CODE ANN. § 43-15-13(6) instructs "The State Department of Human Services, with the cooperation and assistance of the State Department of Health, shall develop and implement a training program for foster care parents to indoctrinate them as to their proper responsibilities upon a child's entry into their foster care."
DFCS uses a pre-service training curriculum to be completed by the applicant(s). All adults residing in the home who will participate in the care of a foster child are expected to attend pre-service training.
The applicant will be provided with at least three (3) invitations to attend a pre-service training in their area over a period of three (3) months. If the applicant has not begun pre-service training within three (3) months of attending orientation, the inquiry may be closed and the Licensure Specialist will send a notice of such to the applicant.
The required paperwork by the Licensure Specialist and applicant will be completed during the preparation training. The individual family assessment can be initiated at any point in the process based on the specialist's assessment that the applicant may be appropriate for licensure.
If the documentation to be completed by the applicant is not returned to the DFCS within 30 days following the completion of pre-service training, the application will not be processed. The Licensure Specialist will send written notification that the documentation must be submitted within 15 days or the application will be denied. A Notice of Action stating such will be mailed to the applicant.
In the event the applicant cannot follow through with the application process, the pre-service training is valid for a period of 24 months. Resource Parent training classes shall begin every 60 days in every region with individualized training available as needed and as at times convenient for the foster family.
Experienced licensed Resource Families may function as co-trainers/leaders in the training process when possible and as appropriate. Trainers will conduct only one 3-hour session of the MISSISSIPPI PATH (Parents as Tender Healers) pre-service training per week. Exceptions can be made for relatives allowing a faster track with the current curriculum.
All caretakers in the home are expected to complete 27 hours of pre service training which consists of:
* Mississippi PATH (15 hours)
* Universal blood borne pathogens (1 hour video)
* Car Seat Safety (up to 3 Hours)
* First Aid and CPR Training (up to 5 hours)
* Resource Parents who have a swimming pool or body of water on their property must be CPR certified.
* Travel/Finance Training (up to 3 hours)
Applicants are issued a "Mississippi PATH Participant's Handbook" that focuses on the following areas :
Resource Families will receive ongoing training through support groups as well as specific training that may be identified as needed by Resource Families and DFCS staff. All adults residing in the home who will participate in the care of a foster child must receive no less than ten (10) hours of ongoing annual training.
Training certificates (See Appendix P), letters, or verification of training shall be provided to each Resource Parent for each training session attended. Resource Parent(s) shall be required to remain in the entire training session to be eligible to receive a certificate or verification of training.
Home-based or on-line training modules are available to Resource Parent(s); however no more than (5) five clock hours of the required (10) ten hours of in-service training may be obtained through these types of training.
Resource Parent(s) will provide certificate or proof of completion of training to their Licensure Specialist within fourteen (14) days of receipt of certification. The Licensure Specialist will file the certificate in the Resource Family file and document in MACWIS.
If the Resource Parent(s) have exceeded the required number of in-service training hours, the Licensure Specialists' documentation shall reflect the actual hours. Up to three (3) in-service training hours may be carried over to the next year.
Resource Parents shall be permitted to attend any training session, seminar, workshop or conference specifically dealing with children or parenting issues that has been approved by the National Association of Social Workers, Mississippi Chapter or the Child Welfare Training Institute (CWTI).
The Licensure ASWS may approve in-service training hours for training provided in support groups, training provided by Licensure or Adoption Specialists, or any training approved for continuing professional education.
Certificates of the training provided by the support groups will be signed by the DFCS staff providing the training or by a representative of the agency who provided the training (i.e., Southern Christian Services). Training or training material may not be repeated for credit within any 12 month recertification period.
Resource Parents completing home-based in-service training (in the form of a video or book) will submit, within fourteen (14) days, a written or typed comprehensive report describing the material covered, what was learned and the implication of the material in their work with foster children.
The training material must be pre-approved by the Licensure ASWS.
When a licensed Resource Parent moves from another state into Mississippi, utilizing appropriate Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children (ICPC) channels, pre-service training may be waived for initial licensure in Mississippi. However, all adults residing in the home who will participate in the care of a foster child are expected to attend orientation prior to being licensed in Mississippi. The family must also complete Mississippi pre-service training requirements within their first year of Mississippi Licensing.
All other licensing requirements must be met, but documentation from the family's sending state file may be substituted (references, medicals, pet vaccinations, criminal background checks, etc.), if the Licensure Specialist and Licensure ASWS determine the information is within adequate timeframes.
According to the SAFE Home Study recommendations the Licensure Specialists shall conduct a minimum of three (3) home visits and a minimum of four (4) home study interviews with the applicants as outlined below. Each home visit should be conducted approximately one week apart.
All household members shall be interviewed privately and can be completed during one of the home visits above.
References may complete a written statement using the SAFE Reference Form which is returned to the Licensure Specialist or the reference may additionally be interviewed by the Licensure Specialist via phone or in person as needed.
All foster care settings, including relative, fictive kin placements, and court ordered non-relative placements, shall be screened prior to the initial placement of foster children to ensure that children receive safe, sufficient, and appropriate care. Additional screens shall be completed at least once annually thereafter and within two weeks of a reported change in the residents of a resource home.
Screens shall include criminal and local law enforcement checks and child welfare background checks (MACWIS checks) of all household members who are at least fourteen (14) years old. The Emergency Placement Checklist, which is included in the COR packet for Expedited Relative Placement must be completed by COR/County of Service (COS) Worker. (See Policy Section at http://dfcsmacweb/DFCSWEB/)
No foster child shall be placed in a home prior to the completion of the Emergency Placement Checklist during a walkthrough of the home and DFCS receipt of all background check results.
DFCS shall maintain an expedited process for licensing screened relative, fictive kin caregivers and court ordered non-relative placements to enable a child to be placed quickly with relatives/fictive kin/court ordered non-relatives upon entering foster care. The licensing process for these placements shall take place in two steps:
DFCS may waive non-safety licensing requirements for relatives/fictive kin foster placements in individual cases, in accordance with federal regulations. All placements approved for expedited placement shall undergo the full licensing procedure within 90 calendar days of the child's placement in the home.
study will be considered expedited when a foster child has been placed in an unlicensed home and the COR/COS Worker has completed the COR packet for Expedited Relative Placement or if the court has ordered such placement prior to a home being licensed.
The following steps shall be completed by the COR/COS Worker within 24 hours of a child entering MDHS custody and placed in an unlicensed home:
* The COR Worker shall complete the COR packet for Expedited Relative Placement prior to a child physically being placed in an unlicensed home.
* Once completed, this packet must be scanned and emailed or faxed to the Licensure ASWS and copied to the Licensure Specialist for the county in which the child is placed. This email should be copied to the COR ASWS/RD. The original packet shall be placed in the child's file. The COR/COS Workers should work together to compile this packet at the time of placement; however this is ultimately the responsibility of the COR Worker.
* The COR Worker will enter the Resource Inquiry/Expedited Relative Placement Intake in MACWIS.
* The COR Worker shall enter the child's placement into MACWIS as Expedited Pending Relative Resource.
* The Licensure ASWS or the Licensure Specialist shall initiate the home study by presenting the Resource Unit Packet for Expedited Relative Placements to the Resource Parent applicant within three (3) business days.
The Licensure Specialist will have thirty (30) calendar days from the date of placement to complete the initial home study, which shall be approved for placement only if requirements are met. The Permanency Unit Packet forms, an interview with the Resource Parent applicant(s), statements from references, and a home visit shall be completed.
This completed packet and interviews give the Licensure Specialist enough information to enter the basic home study information in MACWIS. When the home study information is initially submitted, the Licensure ASWS shall approve the home study as Approved/License Pending.
This is the first level of approval that must be completed in thirty (30) days. A start date for licensure will not be required.
The full licensure procedure must be completed within ninety (90) calendar days of the child's placement in the home. When all documentation for licensure requirements is submitted, the Licensure ASWS shall review, approve (if requirements are met), and enter the licensure start date in MACWIS.
The Licensure ASWS shall issue a Resource Home license to the family as outlined in License Approval (See section V.C. below) naming the specific child(ren) for whom the home is licensed. The Licensure ASWS shall notify the COR ASWS, COR Worker, and RD that the home is licensed for a specific child(ren) and the family is eligible for a board payment from the day of licensure. A copy of the license shall be sent to the State Office Eligibility Unit and the Licensure Specialist for the family file.
The COR Worker shall complete a placement change in MACWIS within two (2) working days of the notification that the home has been fully licensed, showing the child placed in a licensed home.
Any barriers to licensure and all efforts to get the home licensed must be documented in the child's file and Resource Family file. If the home remains unlicensed after forty-five (45) days of the child's placement in the home and it appears that the home will not become licensed within ninety (90) days of the child's placement, the assigned Licensure Specialist will staff the case with his/her Licensure ASWS, the COR Worker, the COR Supervisor and the COS Worker (if applicable) to discuss barriers, solutions, other placement options, and to agree on a recommendation to the court regarding placement.
If it is an expedited placement whether court ordered or not, the COR worker will notify the court in writing of licensure action taken by DFCS. If the home is licensed, DFCS may recommend the child remain in the placement. If the home cannot be licensed, DFCS will recommend the child be moved.
Federal guidelines allow states to waive non-safety related standards for the licensure of relative/fictive kin Resource Homes. The guidelines clearly state that waivers are to be used only on a case-by-case basis and that "all foster care licensing standards should provide equal protection in terms of safety, sanitation, civil rights, and admission policies for all children in care, regardless of their special situations. Children living in the homes of relatives are entitled to no less protection than children living in non-relative foster homes."
Source: Federal Child Welfare Procedures Manual; ACYF-CB-PIQ-85-11 Legal Reference: Social Security Act, § 471(a)(10), and 472(c) |
When considering a waiver, the Licensure ASWS, Licensure Specialist, COR Worker, and COR ASWS shall discuss and document the following in both the child's file and the Resource Family file:
All waivers must be submitted in writing to the Licensure ASWS for first approval and then submitted to Permanency Unit at State Office for final approval. A copy of the request should be sent to the RD where the home is located.
State Office Permanency Unit will respond within two (2) working days of receipt of request for waiver. The waiver request and Permanency Unit response should be entered into a narrative in both the child's file and the Resource Family file.
The following DFCS standards have been identified as non-safety related standards that may be waived in certain circumstances. These standards are NOT to be waived as a matter of general practice when licensing relative caregivers.
* Must be age 21 or older
* Employment validation
* At least one bathroom accessible without going through a bedroom
* Must have access to schools and churches
* Adequate play area
* Married or single/unrelated adult in the home
* Proof of income without board payment
* Bed space (Children 18 months and under must sleep in a crib)
* Bedrooms must have doors which can be opened and closed
The "Interim" selection on the MACWIS home study approval tab will allow a Licensure ASWS to create a "Placement Only" resource. No license will be created when the Interim is selected. This selection is used when an Expedited Home Study is not licensed, but is needed to show placement in MACWIS for the children who were placed in the home pending licensing. Once the Interim is selected, the Licensure ASWS will have to choose one of the following reasons for this type of selection:
* Home doesn't meet requirements
* Child no longer in custody
* Child removed
* License not wanted
18 Miss. Code. R. 6-1-F-III