Phoenix Homes Program Description

Purpose

Phoenix Homes’ mission, goals, and values are all geared to the purpose of providing intensive treatment foster care and related services to children with serious emotional, behavioral, medical, or psychological conditions. Phoenix Homes is committed to protecting children’s health, safety, and well being. The purpose is to provide those services in a time-limited, goal-oriented, family-focused approach that assists a youth to a permanent arrangement.

Philosophy

Phoenix Homes firmly believes in the mandate that any youth can change and develop a positive set of values if you develop a comprehensive system of care for the youth. We hold the view that the delivery of services must be coordinated and that an effective network of local resources, who communicate among themselves, is an essential component of effective service delivery. Phoenix Home’s service delivery system is youth-centered and family-focused. Treatment foster homes are developed to serve those difficult to place youth with serious emotional, behavioral, medical, or psychological conditions. Phoenix Homes will work with the youth’s primary family and engage them as much as possible in all aspects of the treatment program. Staff are trained to work in a collaborative manner that includes all other youth and family service agencies with which the youth and family are involved. It will be a partnership of various systems including mental health, child welfare, juvenile justice, community health, education and others, with the common goal of creating a successful outcome for the youth served.

Target Population

Phoenix Homes is a "different" type of therapeutic foster home program and has customized the program to meet the needs of male and female adolescents in a therapeutic home setting. These youth exhibit behavioral, emotional, or social problems that are of such a nature that they disrupt academic and developmental progress, family relationships, and hinder overall functioning. Phoenix Homes can take all ages of children, but has focused efforts on youth from 10 years of age to 18 years of age. These children should be able to attend public schools. Some children may require special educational programs or day treatment. We sincerely believe not only that we can effectively deal with the majority of these youth but also that they will have a much greater chance of becoming productive citizens not having to be placed in a residential type facility. Those youth, who are actively psychotic, homicidal, or suicidal, and refusing treatment will be excluded from the program.

Description of Services

Services delivered as part of the per diem include:

Foster parent recruitment, training, and licensing
Intake – assessment and matching
Case management that includes, treatment planning, arranging school enrollment, medical/dental/vision appointments, therapy (when needed), visitation, and activities
Development of individualized service plan (ISP) within 30 days and 90 days thereafter
Caseloads of no more than 10 youth per staff (Family Treatment Coordinator)
Weekly visits by Phoenix Home’s social worker (Family Treatment Coordinator)
Primary family involvement and contact (monthly as approved)
Monthly written reports of treatment progress
Discharge and after-care planning
Final discharge report
Monthly foster parent support groups
One week of paid respite per year
Weekly youth allowance of $15.00 to each youth in care (by foster parent)
Monthly clothing allowance of $50.00 (by foster parent)
Ongoing foster parent training

Phoenix Homes’ treatment for these youth will vary clinically and individually, based on each youth’s needs. Upon notification of placement, consideration the Phoenix Home’s staff will gather all relevant testing and diagnostic materials as well as full disclosure of social and clinical treatment issues. The available therapeutic foster parents will be evaluated for the ideal match. No more then two youth will be placed in a home except for the possibility of a sibling group.

From the beginning, the youth will have support services wrapped around him/her. Phoenix Home’s staff will attempt to arrange for as normal a daily schedule as possible in consideration of the youth’s age and behavior. Youth will be expected to attend school, do household chores, and have social interactions (4-H, athletics, clubs, Scouts, etc.) reasonable for their age and mental state.

In consideration of the types of youth in treatment foster care, our Masters level Casework Supervisor (Divisional Treatment Administrator) will be responsible to design and oversee a clinical intervention program for each youth in the program. Because of the youth’s history, we know there is much anger and resentment, as well as poorly developed social and communication skills. They will have the ability to vent their frustrations in a socially acceptable way and through the use of Cognitive/Behavioral counseling will be able to better understand what triggers their anger and how to control it. If additional therapy is needed, it will be provided through links with local providers.

The Caseworker (Family Treatment Coordinator) will review the issues of supervision, transportation, recreation, skills building, educational progress, counseling needs, etc. with each family during weekly visits. The FTC will also address with the treatment foster parents any issues raised by the youth in their weekly contacts. Case notes will be maintained to monitor each family’s activities and needs in these areas. Discipline procedures will also be discussed on a regular basis to re-emphasize what pre-service training taught.

Treatment foster families are prohibited from using corporal punishment, chemical restraints, or mechanical restraints in disciplining or controlling youth placed in their care. When indicated a behavior management plan for use with the youth placed in their home will be developed. This plan must be approved by the agency with which the family is affiliated and be maintained in the agency’s case file for each child.

Staff and treatment foster parents are instructed that they are one component in the youth’s overall treatment plan, and teamwork and communication are required and mandated for the success of these youth. Caregivers are trained and treated as co-professionals and as a valued part of the treatment team, as opposed to the traditional foster parent who simply provides food and shelter.

Each foster family will be given a completed copy of the Foster Home Placement Checklist when a child is placed in their home. Each treatment foster parent will also be given a copy of the Phoenix Homes’ Foster Parent Grievance Procedure, which will be used to resolve any disagreements between staff and treatment foster parent. Unlike traditional foster homes our treatment foster parents are much more active in the decision making for the youth. They will attend school conferences and professional appointments as active participants rather then just providing transportation. Phoenix Home’s staff will facilitate primary family participation as appropriate.

The Phoenix Homes’ Family Treatment Coordinators have the responsibility of monitoring overall compliance with the treatment plan. They will rectify any problems and non-compliance in an efficient and rapid manner. Continued non-compliance by the caregivers could result in their removal from the Treatment Foster Homes’ list. Evaluations of the caregiver and their performance will be completed annually. This evaluation will become a part of the caregiver’s record and will be considered in future placements.

Discharge planning is integral to successful permanency for each youth. Planning begins upon admission with goals and objectives established within 30 days. Progress toward permanency is monitored and reported monthly. All efforts are made to have detailed and specific plans for after care developed prior to discharge. A detailed discharge summary will be provided within 30 days of discharge.