Current Issue

Volume 8, Issue 3     
June 2010

Where Did the Time Go? Changes Ahead for Statewide Technical Assistance for Indiana Systems of Care.

The Choices TA Center has produced 29 editions of Collaborative Adventures since February of 2003, and this issue will be our last. As the saying goes all good things must come to an end, and this ending is full of possibilities for us.

Systems of care in Indiana has experienced tremendous growth and changes since the Choices TA Center was created eight years ago. The Indiana Family and Social Services Administration, Division of Mental Health and Addiction has reevaluated the needs and priorities for how communities should receive technical assistance and coaching to help them grow and sustain systems of care. Though we will no longer be able to produce a quarterly newsletter or updated resource manual, we are happy to let you know that we will do our best to use technology to keep you informed and up to date.

Choices will continue to provide information on emerging issues and trends in the systems of care industry on its website. To ensure you don't miss out, make sure you have signed up to receive emails from us at our Connect with Us page. You can also receive news by becoming a fan of Choices on Facebook or following us on Twitter.

Collaborative Adventures has provided a wealth of information. You can find articles in our archives about funding, treatment plan writing, national best practices and the stories behind the Phrases that Pay.

Additionally, we have completed the final edition of the resource manual, which was developed to guide sites through the research, planning and implementation phases of building systems of care. It was originally a large binder chocked full of examples from system of care communities across the country. The manual is now entirely electronic and can be found on Choices' website. It's in PDF format and searchable by keywords. I encourage you to reference it anytime you want to find out how another site does something -from hiring staff to building family advocacy groups.  

I am pleased that funding will continue for a statewide systems of care conference. Choices has hosted this conference for the past nine years, and to my knowledge it's the longest running statewide systems of care conference in Indiana.

Speaking of nine years ago, it's incredible to look back to 2001 and see only a few sites receiving funding for system of care development and now almost every county has received funding at some point in the last nine years.

Perhaps even more significant are the outcomes from this growth for youth and families. I had the good fortune of attending a presentation in March at the University of South Florida's Children's Mental Health Research Conference by Dr. Vicki Effland of Choices, Inc., Dr. Betty Walton of DMHA and Janet McIntyre, MPA of Choices. The presentation compared Wraparound Fidelity Index scores and Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths assessments scores among sites in Indiana. (Click for more information on the WFI). The full presentation is available online, but here are a few highlights.

  •  Two out of three youth improved on at least one CANS item (N=115)
  • 40 percent of sites studied achieved high fidelity, 36 percent achieved adequate fidelity
  • The average overall fidelity score for youth was 80 percent (84 percent is considered high fidelity)

I'd like to close this final newsletter with highlights of significant accomplishments from staff at the Choices TA Center. I am proud of the work they have accomplished. Thank you Dr. Vicki Effland, Director, site coaches Chris Cook and Rachel Lewis, and Trent Kuprewicz, their program support specialist. I also want to recognize Janet McIntyre who led the TA Center as director until January of 2010.

  • 31 regional trainings
  • 29 newsletters distributed to 1,700 people each quarter
  • 9 annual statewide conferences (peaking at 420 attendees)
  • Over one hundred thousand miles traveled to provide individualized coaching and mentoring
  • Listed as wraparound consultant for the National Wraparound Initiative
  • Provided training and consultation in Kentucky, Illinois and Maine
  • Trained technical assistance providers located at the Georgetown University Center for Child and Human Development on how to coach communities to effectively implement systems of care
  • Named "an innovative an exceptional practice in child and adolescent workforce education" by the Annapolis Coalition on Behavioral Health Workforce Education

Indiana has made huge accomplishments in the past decade and I am excited to see what the next 10 will mean for us. Thank you for your continued partnership and for being a subscriber to Collaborative Adventures.

Sincerely,
Knute Rotto
CEO Choices, Inc.

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