The primary purpose of the Child Protective Services Intake / Investigations / Assessment Unit is to receive and investigate/assess referrals of child neglect, abuse and dependency including immediate responses to crisis for at risk children in complex cases. Services to families in Nash County will enhance the family’s ability to function independently and will prevent child neglect or abuse from re-occurring. Services for maltreated children are aimed at strengthening family life by supporting and improving parental/caretaker abilities, which, in turn, assure a safe nurturing home for children. Services are home-based and are preventive, rehabilitative and non-punitive with efforts directed toward identifying, providing or arranging services as needed. Social workers may provide group, family or individual treatment to clients of any age and any developmental, medical, mental, substance abuse, financial or family problem. Child Protective Services is an advanced professional level of casework. Casework is accomplished through parent/caretaker cooperation and consent or if the child’s safety is at eminent risk, through court petition as the agency’s responsibility foremost to protect the child. The social worker will analyze situations and determine the course of action often under very stressful and at times dangerous situations. A second important purpose of the unit is to provide public education regarding risk of maltreatment, incidents of maltreatment reporting methods and procedures and the availability of preventive, protective and case management services.
Primary Purpose of the Position
The primary purpose of the Child Protective Services Investigative, Assessment and Treatment social worker is to provide services to families and children in an effort to secure a more protective environment. Duties rotate among IA&T staff as follows:
Work Schedule
Working hours generally rotate from 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Employees are given the opportunity to manage their workday in order to be available to accommodate client’s work and school schedules.
Change in Responsibilities or Organizational Relationship
None.
All responsibilities and duties described are essential to the effective performance of a Senior Social Worker IA&T in this position and are listed in ORDER OF IMPORTANCE.
The Social Worker IA&T will receive intake calls from the community and interview the reporter to identify the allegations of child maltreatment and complete the Nash County Child Protective Services Report form to be referred for proper screening. The worker will receive referrals that meet the NC legal definition for neglect, abuse or dependency and, following the Multiple Response System, will conduct a family or investigative assessment to determine if the family is in need of further services to ensure the protection of children. The process involves reviewing agency records to be aware of family history, interviewing the parents, children, and collaterals, completing safety assessments, risk assessments, strength / needs assessments throughout the fact-finding process. The work involves visits to the homes of clients, schools, medical and mental facilities, prison facilities and other agencies. The worker will involve law enforcement when investigating cases of physical and sexual abuse, or at other times when deemed necessary. When safety concerns are discovered, safety plans will be developed with the family to ensure safety of the children. The worker will refer clients to community service agencies to address identified needs. The worker will follow standards outlined in Volume I. Chapter VIII of the Children’s Services Manual and the Multiple Response Manual. The Senior Social Worker keeps documentation of all casework current within 7 days of last contact.
Decisions are often made under stressful and sometimes dangerous conditions. This requires a highly skilled worker who is very familiar with CPS policy, state and federal laws and agency expectations. Court action is necessary when a child is found to be at immediate risk of harm. The social worker will attempt to convene a Child and Family Team meeting to address the safety concerns and help the family consider appropriate options for the children. Depending on the emergent nature of the case, the worker will either work with legal staff to file a juvenile petition or assume non-secure custody. Placement options will be explored with a focus on the least restrictive environment. The worker will prepare the family and children for the legal process and separation if necessary. The worker will prepare a written report for court and work with the legal staff in case preparation that may include testimony from casework. Work in this area also frequently involves courtroom testimony regarding case findings when criminal child abuse charges are filed or civil proceedings in custody matters.
Function in the capacity as a lead worker to provide coaching/guidance to interns and to less experienced workers in case consultations that will help them achieve a higher level of performance. Provide guidance involving application of policy and other job functions including preparation of court studies. Accompany workers as a support in complex situations in absence of a supervisor. Keep supervisor abreast of any work performance or training concerns noted when coaching staff. Provide necessary support to resolve problems and ensure that quality services are provided. Function in the capacity as a lead worker to provide coaching/guidance. Provide necessary support to resolve problems and ensure that quality services are provided.
Supervisory conferences and staff development activities provide guidance, feedback and evaluation of the worker's interventions and an opportunity to upgrade skills and knowledge of substitute care. Such conferences also allow the opportunity to discuss program questions, agency mandates and monitoring issues as they arise.
These duties include public speaking, participation on community boards and committees, and participation in community affairs relating to substitute care and child welfare.
E.Other duties as required (5%)
seventy-two hours before assuming case responsibility.
call-in clients to appropriate resources within and without the agency, providing hours of operation. Worker may also make arrangements for emergency food, or medicine in emergency situations that cannot wait until the office is open.
III. Other Position Characteristics
Great precision is required in this work. The worker must correctly gather information to determine whether or not referrals meet the neglect/abuse laws; investigate each case according to standards to determine if neglect/abuse exists; correctly assess a child’s safety needs; and continually assess a family during intervention to assist in alleviating problems which led to neglect/abuse. The worker analyzes situation and determines appropriate course of action immediately or in short time spans and often under very stressful conditions. These stressful conditions sometimes include confrontation with batterers of domestic violence, known felons, drug addicts and those with mental illness. The worker must be able to meet state standards and assure compliance with CPS policy. Documentation, time reports, day sheets, and other state and county forms must be completed accurately and timely.
Initial assessments, investigations, and case management decisions directly affect the safety of children including possible severe injury, neglect or child fatality. Incomplete or inaccurate documentation or reports may affect agency funding negatively and may lead to sanctions against the agency.
Instructions are provided in written and oral form by the supervisor through scheduled conferences, at agency staff meetings, and in workshops and professional training sessions attended by the employee. In addition, an on-call consultant is always available to assist as a second party decision-maker during all phases of CPS intake and initiation, in all child placement responsibility decisions, and in all other situations when a second party is needed.
Employee receives review through scheduled conferences, meetings, informal interaction, reports, and an annual performance appraisal. Review for timeliness, quality, and accuracy is also received through periodic random case reviews by the supervisor, Children’s Program Representatives and the Child and Family Services Review conducted by State staff.
Employee has contact with unit staff, other units within the agency, clients, Health Department, other Social Services departments, Guardian Ad Litem Program, Mental Health, medical personnel, crisis organizations, churches, civic organizations, judicial system, law enforcement, Emergency Services personnel, and the general public. Contacts are often used as a means to assist in planning and/or meeting the needs of clients as a part of the human delivery system and to aid in assessing client’s current situation.
Employee must be able to move within and without the agency, climb stairs, and use office equipment described in section I below on a frequent basis. Employee occasionally lifts small children, camera, suitcases, toys, car seats, etc. in performance of duties. Employee must travel to meetings within the county as well as workshops and meetings out of the county. Overnights stays are sometimes necessary.
H.Work Environment and Conditions
Work is performed in a county social service agency with contacts in the field. Employee encounters hostile clients, some of whom are dangerous. Clients include mental patients, alcoholics, and substance abusers who are sometimes verbally abusive and threatening. All staff are also trained in the use of fire extinguishers. Field contacts are sometimes in adverse weather conditions such as snow, sleet, extreme heat and natural disasters. Employee may be exposed to infectious diseases and all staff are aware of precautions to take when exposure occurs.
Employee uses personal computer, printer, copy machine, calculator, camera, automobile, land and cell phones, car seat, and DVD player in order to perform duties. When conducting investigations, employee sometimes finds it necessary to use anatomically correct dolls.
Close visual attention is required when operating a motor vehicle. Intake, investigations, and case management duties all require visual attention and mental concentration. Body language, eye contact, and behavior of family members assist the Senior Social Worker in assessing the family situation and must be viewed carefully. Preparation of court reports, development of protection plans, and completion of risk assessments require very intense mental concentration as does reviewing placement options for children. The Senior Social Worker must carefully document times, dates, and other factual information so that accurate assessments and recommendations are made. Employee must have physical dexterity required to successfully and efficiently operate machinery and tools outlined in section I above.
Employee makes decisions daily that affect the lives of clients. Employee devises Safety Plans, completes Strengths and Needs Assessments and Risk Assessments in investigations. Employee also makes recommendations regarding the removal of children when homes are not safe and the return of children when homes are safe. Employee must carefully evaluate the needs of children in placement responsibility and their caregivers to determine the best plans for children. Worker abides by confidentiality guidelines to protect clients and uses caution when operating a motor vehicle when transporting clients. See section H above for issues confronting the employee and for precautions.
Child Protective Services is periodically affected by changes in methodology, guidelines, legislation, and shifting program emphasis.
1. Thorough knowledge of social work principles, techniques, and practices and their application to complex casework and community problems in order to effectively work with the wide cross section of clients and their presenting problems including medical, mental and substance abuse issues.
2.Considerable knowledge of family and group dynamics and a range of intervention techniques.
3. Considerable knowledge of developmental stages and tasks, human behavior, and socioeconomic problems and their treatment as the worker is responsible for identifying children who are abused, neglected, or dependent, assessing the contributory factors and making recommendations for solutions to the identified problems.5.Considerable knowledge of laws, regulations, and policies which govern Child Protective Services.
6.General knowledge of methods and principles of casework supervision and training.
7.Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with clients, associates, administrative superiors, social medical, legal, civic and religious organizations.
8.Ability to supervise, train or orient lower-level employees, students, or interns.
9.Ability to express ideas clearly and concisely—orally and in writing.
10.Ability to plan and execute work effectively.
11.Ability to operate an automobile.
12.Ability to use a personal computer and access the State Network.
13.Ability to intervene in crisis situations and to effectively function under stress and to deal with conflict situations and hostile personalities.
14.Ability to function with a high level of autonomy.
15.Ability to function cooperatively with members of a team.
16.Ability to accept constructive criticism.
17.Ability to refrain from causing or contributing to disruptions or hostility in the workplace.
18.Ability to make thorough assessments through intense observation skills, interview and social work practice and be able to accurately communicate orally and in writing.
Required Minimum TrainingTwo years directly related experience in NC Department of Social Services.