Systems of Care
Parents of children and youth who need mental health supports are often expected to communicate with more than one service system. These services might be related to juvenile justice, children and family services, special education, mental health, and developmental disabilities. When these services are not coordinated well, parents are left on their own to participate in meetings related to each separate service, complete duplicate and redundant paperwork, and participate in multiple plans of support written about and for their children. Families have historically faced these types of fragmented and disconnected services without support.
Systems of care is a framework that was created in response to these challenges in order to assist families who were advocating for their children by improving service coordination. The task of coordinating services across human and education agencies is achieved by forming local, regional, and state systems-level meetings, referred to as systems of care (SOC) meetings. These meetings include team members representing administrators, state professionals, agency directors, commissioners, and advocates representing families, children, and youth.
The guiding principles of Systems of Care include: inter-agency collaboration, individualized & strength-based services, cultural competence, youth & family involvement, community-based services, and accountability. Many states now consider systems of care to be essential processes for the effective delivery of services to children needing supports across child welfare, mental health, education, special education, and juvenile justice settings.
Systems of Care has proven to be effective in reducing; behavioral and emotional problems, suicide rates, substance use, juvenile justice interventions, and caregiver stress. There is also evidence to support an increase in; personal strengths, school attendance, grades, stable housing, and family functioning.
Click here to access a Toolkit for Expanding the Systems of Care Approach to learn more about how to get started implementing this practice.
Wraparound Planning
Wraparound is a team-based planning process as well as a service delivery model that provides coordinated and holistic, family-driven care in order to meet the needs of children and young people who receive supports across across multiple services. Wraparound planning has been described by leaders of this practice as a way in which to ensure systems of care values guide planning processes for children and youth who are at risk for out of home placements due to behaviors that are challenging in home, school, and community settings. The goal of wraparound is to build on the strengths of the child and family using culturally responsive planning processes that seek to improve quality of life. Some forms of wraparound planning are apparent in most states although the contexts and manner in which these practices are funded vary.
Core features of wraparound planning include the following: 1) children and families are full and active partners in the planning process, 2) informal community resources are used in the planning process, and 3) there is an emphasis on flexibility in funding so that services meet the unique needs of each child rather than forcing a child and family to use existing services that may not be appropriate to their needs. Wraparound plans are designed to address comprehensive needs of the child or youth across multiple life domains such as:
- Medical/Health/Wellness,
- Safety,
- Recreational,
- Cultural,
- Education/Vocational
- Legal Issues and Rights,
- Relationships,
- Spirituality,
- Social/Fun/Recreation, and
- Emotional/Behavioral Skills.
Meetings are organized using steps that result in a clear plan for moving forward:
- Begin Initial Conversations,
- Start the Planning Process by Reviewing the Strengths of the Child or Youth and Family,
- Develop a Mission Statement for the Team,
- Identify Needs Across Life Domains,
- Prioritize these Needs With Together With the Child and Family,
- Develop Action Items That Help Achieve Goals,
- Assign Task and Solicit Commitments from Team Members,
- Document the Plan and Evaluate and Refine it Over Time, and
- Monitor Plans Over Time and Anticipate Upcoming Transitions.