CPS INVESTIGATIVE ASSESSMENT

Competencies

• Ability to integrate your investigation and family

assessment into one document• Ability to document solution

based casework • Ability to navigate through the

Investigative Assessment in FamLink

Let’s make today useful for you!

• What are your experiences?

• Do you have specific questions?

• Do you have feedback?

SAFETY IS PRIMARY• Safety is the primary and essential focus that

informs and guides ALL decisions made from intake through case closure.

• This includes removal and reunification decisions and assessing safety of children in all placement settings.

• Safety is reliant on good information gathering, assessments and analysis.

• The Child Safety Framework supports strength-based practice and CA Practice Model.

Let’s Get Started

Pull up the case you brought to work on during this training.

General TabMake sure the

roles are correct

Link to all intakes you are

investigating

Fields are required for federal reporting

Prior Involvement

Give a concise history of the intakes and the outcomes of the investigations and assessments.

Contacts• This information pre-fills from your documented

contacts on the intakes you designated on the general tab.

• If contacts do not appear here, check your case notes in FamLink.

Gathering Questions Tab

There are 8 gathering questions• Questions are consistent in the CFE and

FAR Family Assessment• Information from these fields will migrate to the CFE and FAR assessments

Gathering Questions Tab

• Starts conversation with family as to their understanding and discusses their everyday life challenges.

• We all reside in stages and have to complete daily tasks to meet the needs of our children.

• Responses are determined by the ages of their children and formation of the family unit.

Gathering Questions Tab

• Determines whether this is a past or current military family.

• This can impact any of the developmental stages or even change them.

• The military has significant services available to assist families.

• Check on the MOU with the military.

Q1: What is the nature and extent of the maltreatment?

• Information that answers this question includes:Identification of the child and maltreating

caregiverType of maltreatmentSeverity of maltreatmentHistory of maltreatmentDescription of specific events, what happened

before, during and after?Description of emotional and physical symptoms,

triggers, etc.

Q2: What surrounding circumstances accompany the

maltreatment?

This question provides the opportunity to discuss the context and the nature of the maltreatment.

Q2: What surrounding circumstances accompany the maltreatment?

• Duration -- how long has it been going on• Caregiver intent• Caregiver explanation • Family conditions (including who lives in the home, other

adults)• Caregiver acknowledgement and attitude • Sequence of events• Other problems occurring in association with the

maltreatment (substance abuse, mental health, domestic violence)

Q3: How does the child function on a daily basis?

• What is the child’s general behavior, emotions, temperament and physical capacity?

• How is the child day-to-day (not just points in time)?

• How does the child view him/herself?• How do others view him/her?• Does the child appear to be developmentally

on target?

Q3: How does the child function on a daily basis?

• Capacity for attachment

• General mood and temperament

• Intellectual functioning

• Communication and social skills

• Expressions of emotions/feelings

• Behavior• Role in family• Peer relations• Special needs• Physical and mental

health

Q4: How do the parents/ caregivers discipline the child?

This question provides the opportunity to discuss the manner in which caregivers approach discipline and child guidance. Discipline is generally considered in a broader context of socialization, teaching, and guiding.

Q4: How do the parents/ caregivers discipline the child?

• Disciplinary methods (don’t stop here)• What are children disciplined for• Differences in discipline between children• Duration of discipline• Who handles discipline• Purpose of discipline• How was the parent disciplined• Context in which discipline occurs• Cultural practices and norms

Q5: What are the overall parenting/ child care practices used by the

caregivers?This question explores the general nature and approach to parenting, which forms a basis for understanding the caregiver-child interaction in more substantive ways.

Q5: What are the overall parenting/ child care practices

used by the caregivers?

• Reasons for being a caregiver• Satisfaction in being a caregiver• Caregivers’ knowledge and skill in parenting

and child development• How the parents were parented and their

view on their own upbringing

Q6: How do the parents/ caregivers manage their own lives

on a daily basis?This question is concerned with how the adults/ caregivers in the family feel, think and act on a daily basis.

Q6: How do the parents/ caregivers manage their own lives

on a daily basis?

• How do the adults function separate from parenting?

• How do they “juggle” the responsibilities of adult life?

Q6: How do the parents/caregivers manage their own lives on a daily

basis?• Communication and

social skills• Coping and stress

management• Self control• Problem solving• Judgment and

decision making

• Independence• Home and financial

management• Substance abuse • Mental health• Support networks

Gathering Questions Tab

Disciplinary methods/What are children disciplined for/Differences in discipline/Duration of discipline/Who handles discipline/Idea and purpose of discipline/How parent was disciplined/ Context in which discipline occurs/Cultural practices and norms

Describe daily and weekly routine/How do they meet the child’s needs/What does the parent enjoy in their parenting role/What does the parent find challenging in their parenting role/Parent’s understanding of child development/ Parent’s understanding of child rearing practices

Communication and coping skills/Coping and stress management/Self-control/Problem solving/ Judgment and decision making/Independence/Home and financial management/Employment, Citizenship and community involvement/Rationality/Self-care and preservation

This area of assessment is directly related to developmental stages and sequence of events

Family and community supports/Additional supports/Areas in family’s life where additional supports may benefit the family/Any negative supports.

Evidence/Records Tab

• Do not just copy and paste current allegations

• Include a concise summary• Who/What/When/Where

Allegations/Findings Tab• Allegations pre-fill from the intake.• You can add allegations, victims and subjects.• Your documentation in the Support of

Finding/CAPTA Narrative will appear in the finding letter if the allegation is founded. Be concise, but clear as to the maltreatment and supporting evidence.

Disposition TabPrior to sending your assessment for approval, make sure you have completed the present danger, SDM risk, and safety assessments as well as the disposition drop

downs.

CPS LE Reports

• In some instances a worker may have to send a report to LE.

• This is done via the intake in FamLink.

• Click on the “Create Referral” hyperlink in the Options Pane.

CPS LE ReportsOnce the referral is sent/faxed to law enforcement, document in FamLink.