Alabama Administrative Code
Title 660 - ALABAMA DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES
Chapter 660-5-47 - INDIVIDUALIZED SERVICE PLANS
Section 660-5-47-.02 - Definitions

(1) Addendum - The acronym for "Case Planning Addendum for Children in Out-Of-Home Care." The Addendum is a funding source document for federal reviews and for assessing and case planning for children residing in out-of-home care pursuant to a court order granting DHR custody or an Agreement For Foster Care signed by a child's parents or legal custodians. It includes information that is documented in the ISP and/or record.

(2) Age-Appropriate Child - A child age 10 and older (except a child with severe mental retardation) or a child under age 10 who is intellectually capable of understanding and communicating ideas and opinions concerning the subject matter being discussed or considered.

(3) Assessment - A process of gathering and analyzing information, drawing conclusions, and making decisions in partnership with children and families, providers and relevant stakeholders.

(4) Child and Family Planning Team - The individuals involved in planning and/or delivery of services for a child and family. The team shall include the age-appropriate child, the parent(s), others requested by the child or family, the DHR worker(s), the foster care provider and other service providers if any. Their work product is known as the individualized service plan (ISP).

(5) Child's Home - The physical environment or location of the family unit in which the child (a) resides or (b) was residing with a caregiver in a significant relationship prior to removal or transfer of custody.

(6) Concurrent Planning - A case management method which emphasizes candor, goal setting, and completion of selected activities within specified time limits in work with children and families in order to facilitate a more timely achievement of permanence and stability. This method encourages all ISP team members to achieve the most desirable permanency goal while, at the same time, establishing and pursuing an alternate permanency goal. Such planning should occur from the time of initial engagement with a family rather than sequentially thereafter.

(7) Crisis Planning - A crucial element of dealing with potential situations that may arise in a child's and/or family's life. It includes developing contingency steps within a safety plan or ISP to be implemented in case the original steps are unable to be implemented as planned.

(8) Cultural Competence - The ability of individuals and systems to effectively provide services to people of a different culture, race, ethnicity, background, and religion in a manner that recognizes values, affirms and respects the worth of individuals, and protects and preserves their dignity.

(9) Decree Goals - The goals of the system of care are to protect children from abuse and neglect, and to enable children to live with their families; and when that cannot be achieved through the provision of services, to live near their home; achieve stability and permanency in their living situation; achieve success in school; and become stable, gainfully employed adults.

(10) Emergency Situation - A situation where the child is at imminent risk of serious harm and action to protect the child must be taken before a child and family planning team can be convened to develop an ISP.

(11) Family - A biological, adoptive or self-created unit of people residing together consisting of adult(s) and child(ren) with the adult(s) performing duties of parenthood for the child(ren). Persons within this unit share bonds, cultural practices and a significant relationship. Biological parents, siblings and others with significant attachments to a child living outside of the home are included in the definition of family.

(12) Family Focused Practice - Meeting the needs of individuals within the context of families.

(13) Foster Care - Children are considered to be in foster care when they are residing outside their own homes and any one of the following conditions is met: a child is in DHR's protective custody (due to a summary removal), temporary custody, or permanent custody; or a child is the subject of a voluntary placement agreement; or a child was in DHR custody immediately prior to entry into an institution operated by the Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation (DMH/MR) or the Department of Youth Services (DYS) which requires a transfer of custody prior to placement and the plan is to return to DHR custody upon discharge from the institution.

(14) Foster Care Provider - A provider of out-of-home care for a child in any of the following settings: a relative's home (kinship care) which is approved as a related foster family home, a foster family home, a therapeutic foster family home, a group home, a shelter care home or facility, a child care institution, a hospital, or another residential facility.

(15) Goal - The desired outcome of a child and/or family meeting an identified need.

(16) Individualized Service Plan (ISP) - The case plan that is created in partnership with the members of the child and family planning team. It includes identification of the child(ren) and family's strengths and needs; goals the child(ren) and family work toward to reach the desired case outcome; and steps to be taken by individual child and family planning team members to authorize and deliver services, and to measure progress toward goals.

(17) Intensive Family Preservation Services -Short-term services of varying duration and intensity that are provided in the family's home or community by competent staff available on a seven-day, 24-hour basis (e.g., counseling, support services). These services are structured to protect children while keeping families together and enhance the natural support networks of children and families.

(18) Needs - Physical or psychological conditions that will be addressed to reduce or eliminate risks to assure a child's protection, sense of permanence, and sense of well-being. Surface needs may be, and frequently are, symptoms of the underlying conditions or issues that have caused or contributed to the family's inability to adequately protect the child from harm. Surface needs may be interfering with the family's progress toward addressing or meeting the underlying conditions.

(19) Parent - A child's birth mother/father, adoptive mother/father, or stepmother/stepfather.

(20) Permanency Goal - The permanent living situation for the child that the ISP is designed to achieve. Permanency goals, in order of preference, are remain with parent; return to parent; permanent relative placement with transfer of custody to the relative; permanent relative placement with DHR retaining custody; adoption by current foster parent; adoption with no identified resource; another planned permanent living arrangement, court approved; and adult custodial care. Permanency goal options for child protective services cases in-home/ongoing are: remain with parent; remain with relative/ caretaker; return to parent; or return to relative caretaker.

(21) Primary Caregiver - The adult who assumes the parental role and has the major responsibility for a child's care. This may include, but is not limited to, a parent, stepparent, adoptive parent, another relative or a non-relative rearing a child for an absent or incapacitated parent.

(22) Residential Provider - A foster care provider other than a foster parent, including providers who deliver care in any of the following licensed or license-exempt settings: group home, child placing agency, child care institution, DYS facility, or DMH/MR facility.

(23) Restrictive Placement - An out-of-home placement in a setting other than a child's own home, a relative's home, a family foster home, a therapeutic family foster home, or independent living.

(24) Safe/ Child Safety - The absence of a safety threat or the family is willing and able to manage safety threats.

(25) Safety Plan - A plan developed in partnership, whenever possible, with age-appropriate children and families to protect the children from safety threats when the parents'/primary caregivers' protective capacities are insufficient. There are three (3) types of safety plans (i.e., in-home; out-of-home non-foster care, and out-of-home foster care) which are based on children's living arrangement and listed in order of preference.

(26) Service Providers - Individuals, families, agencies or organizations that provide or could provide service(s) to children and families.

(27) Siblings - Full, half and step brothers/sisters, and children raised together.

(28) Steps - Small, incremental, behaviorally specific interventions that are designed to meet specific needs and achieve identified goals.

(29) Strengths- - Positive attributes, characteristics and/or resources that children and families have that enable them to provide protection from harm or loss. Strengths are utilized alone or in combination with interventions to address the needs and minimize or alleviate the risks which resulted in the family's involvement with the system of care.