GOALS & VALUES
Cuyahoga County’s capacity to develop and deliver an effective service continuum can be evidenced through the county's Family and Children First Council (FCFC). FCFC is the policy and planning entity for children and families in Cuyahoga County. All the major public child serving agencies, health departments, schools, funders, community providers, parents, advocacy networks are members of the Council. State legislation gives authority to FCFC to develop and implement a service continuum for all children in the County.
FCFC has a philosophy that is articulated in its Child Well Being Plan. The plan is based on a framework that offers broad and inclusive visions of what children need to thrive and to be healthy and safe. It looks at what it will take for all families and communities to meet those needs. This framework proposes a countywide system of providing information, support, and services, as needed, to all families with children, prenatal through 18. It is designed to provide a full scale of quality services to all children and their families. It focuses on developing a coordinated and cooperative public system infrastructure that promotes cross system collaboration—at the policy, programmatic, and case levels. By developing a community-based infrastructure we are able to provide a wide array of accessible, community-based service options that address the individual needs of children, are family-centered, and culturally competent.
The state also mandated that each county develop a service coordination plan that will drive the development of protocols and procedures for serving multi-system children. Service Coordination in Cuyahoga County ensures that families receive the services they need, when they need them, to resolve a chronic problem or address a crisis. Three guiding principles have been adopted by the public systems: No Wrong Door, Lead System and Cross System Planning. All the child/family serving public systems have agreed on expectations of effective service coordination at the case, or program planning level.
SERVICE VALUES
FCFC member agencies shall incorporate these values within their own system. The values serve as a foundation for FCFC. They are:
- Services are family centered; driven by the needs of children, youth and families; and built on strengths.
- Services empower both parents to take personal responsibility for the needs of their families.
- Policies and practices of organizations always support and include both parents to enhance the parent-child relationship rather than undercut or isolate either parent from his/her child.
- Services are comprehensive, and a continuum of services are available.
- Services focus on primary prevention, early intervention, and strengthening the ability of children, youth, and families to help themselves.
- Services are accessible immediately to meet a child/family’s needs.
- Services are of high quality and developmentally appropriate, with timely evaluations.
- Services are provided by culturally competent providers.
- Services are community based and community delivered, allowing referrals to be made to contiguous communities. Services must be delivered in the least restrictive environment to meet the child and family's needs (e.g., placement of children out-of-home).
- Prevention, rather than intervention, is the underlying principle.
- Families with needs are identified as early as possible, and linked to the necessary services and supports.
- Education and awareness are the key components in all systems of care.
- All services must be monitored and assessed in a quantifiable, measurable, way. Service providers are held accountable for outcomes.
- Relevant data are collected to facilitate on-going comprehensive policy and program evaluation.