Embed Size (px)
DESCRIPTION
Presented by Andrea White of Housing Innovations and Anne Melbin of NNEDV.Interest in voluntary models of case management is growing with the increased use of rapid re-housing and permanent supportive housing models. Speakers in this workshop will discuss engagement strategies and the organizational shift needed to serve families through a voluntary approach. Panelists will focus on services for young mothers and survivors of domestic violence.
Citation preview
Voluntary Case Management Strategies
NAEH Family Homelessness ConferenceFebruary 10, 2011
Anna Melbin, NNEDV&
Andrea White, Housing Innovations
Purpose of Our Work Social justice
People are the experts in their own lives
Our motivation, purpose
Our program’s purpose, mission, goal
Beliefs about the work Housing is a basic human right, not a reward
for good behavior
“When you do this work on behalf of other women, you become stronger”– Lynn Rosenthal
© NNEDV. All rights reserved
What are Voluntary Services?
Goal based
Structured around real expectations: Lease, eligibility standards, legal issues, CPS requirements
Provides information and choice
Addresses identified needs
Transition
Transition from an acute model to a long term model
From a symptom-based model to goal-based models
From crisis response to long term planning
Look at long term change
Provide housing as a base
What Are People Asking For
A Safe Affordable Place To Live
Community
Services Appropriate To Their Needs
Choice and Respect
Money Enough To Live On
A Role In The Community And In Their Families
A Chance For Their Children And Themselves To Get Ahead
Why Voluntary Services?
A critical component of Accessibility
Research indicates Best Practice
National trend and increasingly a grant requirement (OVW, FVPSA)
Participants support this approach
Don’t worry, be happy! staff say they’re happier, chaos didn’t ensue,
& the world didn’t end© NNEDV. All rights reserved
Common Misconceptions ~Voluntary Services means…
I can never ask participants to do anything, or initiate unsolicited contact. I always have to wait for them to come to me.
I can’t intervene, even for a concern about safety or emotional well-being.
I can’t institute any rules, even for legal reasons or safety.
© NNEDV. All rights reserved
Common Misconceptions ~Voluntary Services means…
Participants will ‘sit around and do nothing’
If I don’t require services, I’ll never know if the program is ‘working’.
I can never ask anyone to leave the program, unless for illegal behavior or if their time is up.
© NNEDV. All rights reserved
“It is not just an issue of whether problems are solved or needs are met, but rather the manner in which mobilization of resources occurs that is a major determinant of the empowerment of individuals and groups.”
Dunst, C. J.&Trivette, C. M. (1994). What is effective helping? In C. J. Dunst, C. M. Trivette,& A. G. Deal (Eds.), Supporting and strengthening families: Vol. 1. Methods, strategies and practices (pp. 162-170). Cambridge, MA: Brookline Books.
Consider this….
© NNEDV. All rights reserved
Tasks
Ask people what they want, where they want to be in 5 years
Connect people’s dreams and goals for their families to housing as the first step
Educate people about available housing options and expectations of each
Identify skills and supports needed to maintain chosen housing options
Establish housing access or housing stability as a primary goal
Assist people to secure an income
Tasks
Prepare for the expectations of each housing opportunity
Plan for and assist in maintaining housing (paying rent, apartment maintenance and upkeep, complying with the lease and following house rules, accessing aftercare services and supports)
Case Management: Engagement Strategies
• Pro-active outreach
• Introduce yourself and how you can be helpful
• Repeated, predictable, non-intrusive patterns of interaction
• Responding to felt needs
• Respecting boundaries
• Allowing people as much control as possible over interactions
• Be patient and persistent
• Listen
Goal Based Engagement and Assessment Strategies
Explore what the persons/ family’s choice means
History (i.e. housing, employment)
How person/ family became homeless, lost employment/ income
Preferences
Financial Issues
Implications of disabilities or service needs and how this relates to goal
Long term goals, particularly as relate to children
Finding Common Ground
Negotiation Strategies Link proposed option to client’s aspirations
Frame move as intermediate
Reflect on clients experience in housing to better understand current needs
Open up discussion of other options
Test available options with peers
Negotiate to improve skills/resources to access/maintain preferred option
Finding Common Ground
Worker should be forthright about the reasons for assessment and what they are able to access
Worker should anticipate reactions to disagreement and remain connected
Begin: Developing the Plan to Work Together
Elicit and listen to the parent and reflect back to clarify and check understanding
Goal setting is an individual process
Empathize about goal setting and unmet goals
Listen to resident’s perception of past successes and struggles in reaching goals
List and discuss strengths that may facilitate reaching goals
Engaging Participants Individualized services, policies and approach
Meaningful opportunities for participant-input, to increase relevance and appeal
Recognize the power of language
Informal opportunities to get to know participants – fun, recreation, interaction
Use resources as method (excuse) of checking-in
Rely on natural consequences to relationship-build © NNEDV. All rights reserved
Engaging Staff
Measure and reward what is important to your program: What does excellence look like?
Track changes over time (journals)
Create “VS Committee”
Explore and challenge personal biases, values and beliefs
Build staff relationships and trust. Have fun, foster mutual respect and self-care.
© NNEDV. All rights reserved
Program Level
Clarify program goal/mission
Let go of “savior” persona
Review policies and rules often (annually). Put them to the test: Effective? Necessary? Respectful? Enforceable?
Examine outcomes and measures of success
© NNEDV. All rights reserved
Community Level
Create buy-in - referral sources, program reputation, other’s funding issues
Manage funder’s expectations –outcomes, goals, definition of success
Re-define success: program and participant
© NNEDV. All rights reserved
A Word About Outcomes“An outcome is a change in knowledge,
attitude, skill, behavior, expectation, emotional status, or life circumstance due to
the service being provided”
Success is participant-defined; not defined solely by “numbers”
Adapt services to meet participant’s goals
Adapt grants and other funder-related documents
Some participants still may not be “successful”
© NNEDV. All rights reserved
Voices From The Field
“The VS approach is really based in trust, respect, removing power imbalances and focusing on how we as service providers are more alike than unalike the people we serve.”
“The only insight that I have in doing this work is that you will never figure it all out. Life is messy. Violence and trauma do horrible things to people. Poverty and oppression can bring out the worse in people. We can not develop the perfect set of rules (even the most well intentioned) and guarantee that everything will be perfect…we cannot and should not control other people. We truly do need to listen to what women are saying that they need. Not what we want them to have.” © NNEDV. All rights reserved
Food for Thought… Relationships are everything!
Attendance at classes and groups may decrease
Some participants may not need or have time for additional supportive services
Program may need to redefine program outcomes and meaning of Success.
Some participants still may not ‘be successful’ © NNEDV. All rights reserved
Resources National Network to End Domestic
Violence TA and training Template policies, program materials Interviews with survivors in transitional
housing
State “No Rules” Projects
