The founders as well as the current board of directors of this organization felt very strongly about treatment services being provided in a family setting. There was also a strong commitment to permanency for these emotionally troubled foster children. The strong commitment and the documented positive results created identification of the following major purposes for the organization.
- Provide therapeutic foster care services for emotionally troubled foster children and youth. Referrals on foster children/youth are received from all over the state. These foster children/youth have experienced serious trauma and are diagnosed with severe emotional and/or behavioral problems; have been physically, sexually and emotional abused; have been placed in three or more foster homes resulting in disruptions; have been in psychiatric hospitals and/or residential treatment centers; and may also have educational difficulties.
Currently there are twenty-five approved therapeutic foster homes. Some of the homes have indicated an interest in providing respite only services for children in the TFC program. Twenty-two families indicated an interest in becoming therapeutic foster parents. However, only nine families are participating in the training pending completion of the approval process. Continuous recruitment efforts are under way to increase the number of therapeutic foster homes and the goal is to continue recruitment of foster families in response to the increased demands for placement of foster children/youth with emotional difficulties. - Provide highly trained foster parents who function as a member of the treatment team and are committed to maintaining placement until the child returns to his family or is placed in an alternative stable/permanent situation.
As a licensed child placement agency, Treatment Homes, Inc. is responsible for the recruitment, training, approval and ongoing supervision of therapeutic foster homes. We presently have twenty-five approved treatment foster families and continue to recruit additional families to meet the needs of foster children referred for treatment and placement. Prospective foster parents are required to complete thirty hours of pre-service training (Pressley Ridge Treatment Foster Care Curriculum) prior to approval. Approved therapeutic foster families are required to complete sixty-four hours of training (forty hours for single parents) each year for continued approval. All therapeutic parents and professional staff are required to complete Community First Aid and CPR every two years and Crisis Prevention Intervention (CPI) which is renewed annually; basic child development, parenting and behavior management techniques as well as other child specific training as required. Monthly training is provided and TFC parents participate in community education as well. - Provide support services to foster families to ensure the stability of the placement and to secure the community services necessary to reach treatment goals. Support services for the therapeutic foster parents include weekly home visits by agency treatment staff to discuss progress and problems presented by the foster child. Additional support services include visits with the birth family, coordination of services with the school, the courts and the Division of Children and Family Services. Collaborative efforts with other mental health service providers are provided as the foster child may also be involved in day treatment services with other mental health providers. Crisis management and support services are provided and flexible creative planning is often required to maintain stability of foster home placements. Clinical staff members are available to foster parents on a twenty-four hour basis and respite services are also provided as a support service to foster families.
- Provide support and advocacy services to parents of children placed in foster care. Considerable emphasis is placed on family reunification and endless attempts are made to achieve this goal. Birth parents are included as team members in the treatment planning process and may be invited to participate in training as appropriate. Appropriate referrals are made by treatment staff and services are coordinated with the Division of Children and Family Services for identified needs of birth parents. Birth parents are made aware of the significance of court appearances as well as their legal rights. Because of this emphasis, contact is maintained with birth parents after reunification or even if the child is placed for adoption. This priority ultimately benefits the child. Post placement services may be provided to the birth family or adoptive family as appropriate.
- Have a planned evaluation system to identify strengths and weaknesses of the organization. The board of Treatment Homes develops priorities through a strategic planning process. Internal reviews of outcomes and progress by staff and periodic reviews by the board has resulted in priority changes as well as improved services. The agency’s management information system allows for more extensive monitoring of service goals, performance standards and criteria as well as progress. The organization undergoes multiple evaluations and monitoring by the following entities: Division of Aging, Adult and Behavioral Health Services, Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education – Placement and Residential Licensing, quality monitoring by Beacon Health Options and other members of the PASSE – the managed care companies for Medicaid eligible services. Additionally, the organization completes the accreditation process with the national accrediting body – the Council on Accreditation for Children and Families. Reviews by regulatory bodies and periodic consultation with others in treatment foster care will provide the necessary feedback for continuous quality improvement in program services. Internal quality monitoring also results in improved service delivery.
- Agency Affiliations
Recognition of the important role of therapeutic foster care in the states system of care for children’s mental health services resulted in the executive director being appointed by the governor to the Arkansas Children’s Behavioral Health Commission in 2008 and reappointed again in 2014. Treatment Homes remains a member of a national treatment foster care organization, Foster Family Based Treatment Association (FFTA), of which the executive director has served as a board member for several years, a former national past president and the past and incoming Chairman of the Arkansas Chapter of FFTA. We are committed to meet the national treatment foster care standards as well as state therapeutic foster care standards. As an approved Medicaid provider, the agency is also subject to state mental health standards and is certified as a Behavioral Health Organization by the Division of Adult, Aging and Behavioral Health Services. The importance of partnership and collaboration to improve services to children and families are evidenced by the current and past representation of the executive director on the multiple state and national committees. A major achievement of Treatment Homes, Inc. was national accreditation in 1998 by the Council on Accreditation for Children and Families (COA) who was the first national accreditation association to adopt the FFTA national treatment foster care standards. The agency completed its sixth re-accreditation in 2022 and is accredited for four more years until 2026 to provide therapeutic foster care services as well as outpatient mental health services. Finally, Treatment Homes has served as a training facility for the graduate (MSW) and undergraduate (BSW) Social Work programs with the University of Arkansas at Little Rock for over thirty years. - Board Involvement
The board of directors was aware of the critical success factors necessary for the development of a successful program when Treatment Homes was organized in 1983. The success of therapeutic foster care services is well documented by numerous programs and groups around the country including the President’s Commission on Mental Health and the Pew Commission. This success is determined by several critical success factors including being agency planned with an investment from all levels and a philosophy that supports treatment in the foster family. Other factors include intensive services with limited caseloads by well trained staff; adequate supportive services; training opportunities and a planned evaluation system. The involvement and leadership by the board provides direction for the organization through an annual strategic planning process. Two new members were recently added to the board of directors to increase diversification in the area of knowledge, skills, experience and age.