Mississippi Administrative Code › Title 18 - HUMAN SERVICES › Part 6 - Division of Family and Children's Services › Chapter 1 - DFCS Policy Manual › Section 18-6-1-B - INTAKE & ASSESSMENT › Section 18-6-1-B-II - DFCS PROCEDURES FOR SERVICE ACTIVITY

Current through June 25, 2024
A.
Family Centered Practice Principles
The purpose of child welfare services and child protective
					 services in a Family-Centered Practice culture or service environment is to
					 enable children to safely grow up in their own families. The primary and
					 essential component of a Family-Centered Practice approach is the engagement of
					 and the development of a relationship with the family through an active and
					 ongoing commitment to and execution of a practice approach which recognizes the
					 value and dignity of the family, consistently and genuinely displaying respect
					 and consideration for all family members, encouraging and allowing families to
					 make their own decisions and solve their own problems. The major practice
					 techniques causing effective engagement and resulting in meaningful
					 relationships are family team meetings and individualized service planning
					 through a family case planning process. The object is to solve family problems
					 so children can grow up safe and sound at home.
The technology of the Mississippi Division of Family and
					 Children's Services (DFCS) is Family-Centered Practice. The values, philosophy,
					 and principles must drive actions and decisions across the entire spectrum of
					 practice from Intake to Permanency. Relationships must be built with families
					 from initial engagement through case closure ? relationships built on faith,
					 honesty, justice, and trust. Each individual, each parent, each child, and
					 every family is different and unique. Family differences must be recognized,
					 acknowledged, appreciated, and respected. Judgment must be suspended.
					 Relationships must be formed, built, nurtured, and maintained. Strengths must
					 be identified and emphasized.
Family-Centered Practice identifies family strengths,
					 support systems, and community services that will assist families in acquiring
					 the resources, taking action, making decisions, and developing the skills they
					 need to safely take care of their children and reduce the risk of future
					 maltreatment. Strength-based assessment is an assessment protocol that looks at
					 families' capabilities, strengths, and resources throughout the life of the
					 case, supporting the development of strategies built on competencies, assets,
					 and resources. Reports of child abuse or neglect or other intakes received by
					 DFCS are subjected to a strength-based, structured intake process which allows
					 for the concerns of the reporter to be heard, documented, and screened by
					 intake workers. An effective intake process enhances both the quality and
					 consistency of the information collected and emphasizes the strengths of the
					 family about whom the report is being made. The initial relationship developed
					 within a DFCS case is the relationship developed with the reporter. Reporters
					 should feel valued, supported, and understood as the information provided by
					 reporters regarding the circumstances being reported about the family
					 significantly affects DFCS response.
B.
Definitions
Safe
A child is safe when there are no immediate
					 threats of serious harm due to the caregivers' actions or inactions, or the
					 protective capacities of the family are able to mitigate these
					 threats.
Unsafe
A child is unsafe when the caregivers' actions or
					 inactions present immediate threats of serious harm to a vulnerable child and
					 the family's protective capacities are diminished
.
Risk
A child is at risk when there is a likelihood that
					 maltreatment will occur in the future
.
Safety vs. Risk
Risk and safety are not interchangeable terms.
					 Safety applies to the need for action based on an immediate threat. Risk refers
					 to the likelihood of future maltreatment even when the immediate safety threats
					 are not present, and is seen on a continuum from low to high. Assuring child
					 safety begins with the report of maltreatment and continues through the
					 investigation, initial safety and risk assessment; ongoing safety and risk
					 assessment; developing a case plan; assuring safety during placement;
					 reunification and case closure. Safety and risk interventions are applicable
					 for all children whether they are in out of home placements or in their own
					 home.
Harm
*
Harm is the effect of child abuse or neglect
					 DFCS must address children at all levels of harm resulting from identified or
					 alleged maltreatment.
*
Harm is the consequence of enacting the
					 threat
*
When a child is physically abused, it is the
					 abuse or injury that is the harm.
*
Harm may be physical, psychological or mental,
					 or emotional
*
The extent of damage to a child who has been
					 harmed depends on the nature of the harm, the severity of the injury, the
					 dynamics and characteristics of the family, and the vulnerability and
					 sensitivity of the child
*
The harm to the child of abuse or neglect by
					 parents or caretakers must be weighed against the harm to the child and family
					 of DFCS' intervention strategy, particularly removal of the child from the
					 home.
Threat
The threat is the caregiver's underlying condition
					 or contributing factor and insufficient protective capacities that led to
					 serious harm or threatened serious harm. To assess the safety threat, the
					 seriousness of the harm must be assessed
Protective Capacities
Individual or family strengths, or resources that
					 reduce, control and/or prevent threats of serious harm from arising or having
					 an unsafe impact on a child are strengths that are specifically relevant to
					 child safety. Protective capacities must be accessible and actionable and fall
					 under the following categories:
*
Personal
*
Behavioral
*
Cognitive
*
Emotional characteristics and/or Resources
					 Protective capacities must be accessible and actionable.
Maltreatment
An act, or failure to act or pattern of behavior
					 that results in death, physical, medical, sexual, emotional harm or mental
					 injury or presents imminent threat of harm to a child.
Imminent Danger
Clearly observable behavior or a situation that is
					 actively occurring, is about to occur, or is likely to occur in the present
					 time and cause serious harm.
Emerging Danger
A safety consideration that arises when the
					 underlying conditions and contributing factors associated with a danger-related
					 risk element in the family are escalating and/or protective capacities are
					 diminishing.
Sex Trafficking Victim
An individual subject to the recruitment,
					 harboring, transportation, provision or obtaining of a person for the purposes
					 of a commercial sex act, in which a commercial sex act is induced by force,
					 fraud or coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such act has not
					 attained 18 years of age as defined by the Trafficking Victims Act of
					 2000.
Removal
In the context of DFCS policy, removal is when a
					 child is removed from their home and placed in DFCS custody.
C.
Intake
1.
Who May Make a Report
Per MISS. CODE ANN. §
												43-21-353,
					 any person who has reason to suspect the abuse and/or neglect of a child must
					 make a report by telephone to Mississippi Centralized Intake ("MCI"), DFCS' 24
					 hour statewide Child Abuse Hotline for the reporting of abuse and/or neglect at
					 1-800-222-8000, or electronically at
www.msabusehotline.mdhs.ms.gov
.
When a reporter comes to the county office to make a
					 report, he/she shall be educated on the report process and allowed to use a
					 DFCS phone to call MCI. If the reporter does not choose to make a report from
					 the office phone, the county staff shall make the report to MCI immediately.
a)
Mandated Reporters
Professional Mandated Reporters
are those
					 required by law to report suspicion of abuse or neglect. Professional Mandated
					 Reporters include, but are not limited to, any attorney, physician, dentist,
					 intern, resident, nurse, psychologist, social Worker, family protection Worker,
					 family protection specialist, child caregiver, minister, law enforcement
					 officer, public or private school employee or any other professional, who
					 becomes aware of information leading them to believe abuse or neglect to a
					 child has occurred.
Professional Mandated Reporters are required to provide
					 written reports of suspected child abuse and neglect. These written reports
					 should be forwarded to DFCS as soon as possible after the oral report is made.
					 Professional Mandated Reporters are encouraged to report suspected abuse and
					 neglect electronically because it will eliminate the need to send a separate,
					 written report. Refer to MISS. CODE ANN. §
												43-21-257 which
					 requires that any records involving children, including valid and invalid
					 complaints, be kept confidential and not be disclosed except as provided by
					 MISS. CODE ANN. §
												43-21-261.
As child welfare professionals, all DFCS employees
					 are mandated to report any suspicion of child abuse or neglect.
Maltreatment, including the use of corporal punishment by a Resource Parent
					 (relative or not) on foster children, is strictly forbidden by the MDHS, DFCS'
					 policy. (
See
Section F, DFCS Resource Policy).
If any DFCS staff has suspicion that a child in DFCS
					 custody is being maltreated in any way, or that corporal punishment is being
					 used within any placement type, the DFCS staff member, as a mandated reporter,
					 will formally report to MCI any suspicions of maltreatment, including corporal
					 punishment.
b)
Immunity from
				  Liability
Any attorney, physician, dentist, intern, resident, nurse,
					 psychologist, social Worker, family protection Worker, family protection
					 specialist, child caregiver, minister, law enforcement officer, school
					 attendance officer, public school district employee, nonpublic school employee,
					 licensed professional counselor or any other person participating in the making
					 of a required report pursuant to MISS. CODE ANN. §
												43-21-355,
					 participating in the judicial proceeding resulting there from, shall be
					 presumed to be acting in good faith. Any person or institution reporting in
					 good faith shall be immune from any liability, civil or criminal, that might
					 otherwise be incurred or imposed.
c)
Anonymous Reporters
DFCS does not require a reporter to identify him/herself
					 as a condition for reporting suspected child abuse, neglect or exploitation.
					 The MCI intake Worker should encourage anonymous reporters to leave contact
					 information. This will allow the Worker responsible for responding to the
					 report to contact the reporter for any information which would be helpful in
					 assessing the report and working with the family.
Reporters may be reluctant to share their identities due
					 to fear of personal repercussions or other factors. Anonymous reporting does
					 not permit an opportunity for future contact by DFCS; therefore, it is crucial
					 that the intake Worker gather as much information as possible before the intake
					 call is terminated.