Roadmap to EFC

I have placement of a child who has been approved for Enhanced Foster Care. Now what?

First, let’s meet the team:

Regional
Program Field Representative

EFC Supervisor

EFC Coordinator

Mental Health Consultant
(DMHSAS)

Service Provider

Next up, the Consultation

The consultation is a 20-30 minute virtual meeting (held via TEAMS) that brings you and the child’s professional team together to share information and create a plan for services. An invitation to this consultation will be emailed to you with the date, time, and link to access the meeting.

The Child & Adolescent Needs and Strengths Assessment (CANS)

Once all parties are in agreement to move forward with Enhanced Foster Care, this child will be referred for a Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths assessment (CANS). A representative with the CANS team (through the OU Health and Science Center) will be reaching out to members of the child’s team, including you as the resource parent, to obtain information, complete the assessment, and make recommendations.

Crisis Planning

Children who qualify for Enhanced Foster Care typically have higher behavioral needs than their peers in foster care. Knowing this, Enhanced Foster Care is committed to ensuring that both children and resource families have a plan in case a behavioral or mental health crisis occurs.

Children in Enhanced Foster Care will have access to 24/7 crisis support if needed. As such, all children in Enhanced Foster Care are required to have a written crisis plan. This can be completed through your child’s identified service provider, with your assigned permanency worker or supervisor, or through a member of the Enhanced Foster Care team.

All members of the child’s team will receive a copy of this plan so everyone, including the child, knows what to do if a crisis occurs.

Pressley Ridge Training:
^{Competency Based Curriculum for Foster Parents}

All Enhanced Foster Parents will be required to complete an additional 15 hours of training to provide trauma-informed therapeutic strategies necessary to best care for children in the EFC program. This training is offered both virtually and in-person if needed. Your Resource Specialist will assist you in getting enrolled for a day/time that best meets your needs.

Pressley Ridge Training will cover the following topics:

Therapuetic
Communication

Understanding
Behavior

Changing
Behavior

Conflict
Resolution

Understanding & Managing Crisis

Treatment Team Meetings (TTMs)

Each Treatment Team Meeting, or TTM, brings together the child’s EFC team together virtually to connect, update, address barriers, and plan. For more information, ask your EFC Coordinator about the “What to Expect in a TTM” publication!

Supplemental Foster Care Rate

All children approved for EFC receive a supplemental rate of $400.00 per month.

Ending EFC Services

EFC services are approved in six (6) month periods. Oftentimes, once consistent services have been in place, a child’s challenges, behaviors, and/or mental health symptoms may begin to reduce. EFC seeks to equip caregivers with helpful and relevant therapeutic parenting strategies, including crisis management tools, so that caregivers feel empowered to manage their child’s needs with support from their support network, the community, and/or their child’s service provider. Team discussions surrounding stepping down from EFC level of care will be held at each TTM, so that every member of the team, including the caregiver, knows what to expect and can give input.

Questions? Reach out to your EFC Team or email us at EnhancedFosterCare@okdhs.org.