1.1.2 Assessment

This section covers the case management assessment process. It contains assessment standards for services provided by mandated child and family services agencies.

• Legislation

  The Child and Family Services Act
  The Adoption Act

   

• Policy

  Children in Need of Protection

  As required under Section 17 of The Child and Family Services Act, priority must be given to assessing potential risk to the life, health or emotional well-being of a child.

  Risk assessment is an integral and ongoing part of the case management process. It identifies factors that pose a risk to children and assigns priority to a case. Risk assessment begins at intake when a worker gathers information, identifies issues and conducts an assessment as part of the Intake Module. It continues in the assessment phase through a more in-depth assessment and in the evaluation process when reviewing cases.

  Assessment Decisions

  The case management decisions at the assessment stage are:

  • What information is needed to:
  • determine the level of risk to any children
  • ensure the ongoing safety of any children
  • determine the family's needs
  • determine the special needs of any child
  • identify strengths within the individual, family or community
  • match the individual or family to appropriate, effective services
  • determine if abuse has occurred
  • return a child to the care of a parent or guardian
  • develop a permanency plan for a child
  • What conclusions does the information support?
  • What priority for service does the information support?

   

• Standards

  Family Assessment

  1. Family Assessment Process - The case manager makes at least four contacts with the family to complete a family assessment. At least one of the contacts must be with key family members in the family's home.
  2. Participation in Family Assessment – Through the family assessment, the case manager and the family identify those individuals who need to participate in the planning process. Excluding children 12 or over from the planning process requires supervisory approval.
  3. Completion of Assessments and Updates - The case manager completes the family assessment and updates, forwarding them to the supervisor within:
  • one month of a Safety Assessment that determined the children were unsafe
  • two months of an intake where there were no protection concerns or a Safety Assessment determined that the children were safe
  • at least 10 days before any time frame established by a court
  4. Updating Family Assessments – The worker updates a family assessment:
  • when there is significant change in circumstances
  • at least every six months when a high or medium risk has been assigned to a case
  • at least annually when a low risk is assigned to a case
  • when a review shows no positive changes after three months
  5. Reviews of Family Assessments – The supervisor reviews the family assessment and updates to it within five working days of receiving it to ensure that all necessary information is included and conclusions are appropriate, particularly the priority given to the case.

  Child Assessment

  6. When Child Assessment Required - The worker does an individual child assessment:
  • within 30 days of the placement of a child
  • prior to returning a child to the family
  • within one month of a family assessment that suggests a child has needs that cannot be managed by the family
  7. Updating Child Assessments - The worker updates a child assessment at least annually and more frequently when:
  • monitoring suggests the need for a change in services to the child (for example, before returning a child to the family, or a change in placement)
  • a review shows no positive changes after three months
  • a review indicates a need to revise a child's permanency plan (for example, that reunification with the child's family must be postponed or reassessed)
  8. Contact with Parents of Permanent Wards - At least once a year, the case manager attempts to contact the parents or former guardians of a permanent ward to assess the potential for reunification or re-involvement when this is in the best interests of the child and contact is possible.

  Child Protection Investigation

  9. Medical Examination of Abused Child - When physical abuse or sexual abuse involving physical contact of a child is alleged or suspected, the case manager arranges for the child to be medically examined within 24 hours when:
  • the child has a physical injury or appears to be in pain
  • sexual abuse was alleged to have occurred within the previous 72 hours
  • a medical practitioner believes an examination to be necessary and appropriate
  10. Client Contact in Child Protection Investigation - receiving a report of abuse, the case manager completes the following steps according to the response times outlined in Standard 10 of 1.1.1 Intake:
  • has face-to-face contact with:
  • the child alleged to be in need of protection
  • any other children living in the household
  • any caregiver, custodial parent or guardian (other than an alleged offender
  • the alleged offender if authorized by the police or if there is no plan for police involvement
  • completes a Safety Assessment 
  • identifies all persons involved in the investigation and the case (for example, police, medical system, school, other agencies)
  • establishes and documents a process for sharing information on the current incident
  • completes a report on the investigation and forwards it to his or her supervisor within five working days of the initial contact with the child or family
  11. Reviews of Child Protection Investigation Reports - The supervisor:
  • reviews and approves child protection investigation reports as to their completeness and the appropriateness of the conclusions and recommendations
  • ensures that all reports pertaining to an investigation of alleged child abuse are referred to the agency child abuse coordinator within 10 working days of receiving the referral
  • provides the branch with copies of all reports where an alleged abuser is a person who provides work for or services to the agency (for example, a social worker, foster parent or child care worker)

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