Chapter 2 : Section 13
Case Transfer
Policy
The Department will transfer cases that are opened for in-home case management to the identified DCS Specialist within two days, excluding weekends and holidays, of submitting the In-Home Referral to the dedicated In-Home inbox.
The Department will transfer cases that are opened for ongoing case management to the identified DCS Specialist as soon as possible, and no later than 12 calendar days of a Temporary Custody Notice (TCN) being served or a Dependency Petition being filed.
The Department will transfer cases to an adoption unit within two days, excluding weekends and holidays, of the court granting a motion for termination of parent-child relationship as to all named parents.
The Department will transfer cases to a permanency unit within ten days, excluding weekends and holidays, of the case plan goal being changed to Another Planned Permanent Living Arrangement.
When a decision has been made to transfer a case or person record to a different unit for case management, the Department will transfer the case or person record to the identified DCS Specialist as soon as possible.
Procedures
In-Home Case Transfers
If a decision is made to open a case for in-home case management, during the Prevention Planning for Safe Children or Safety Planning Clinical Discussion, the DCS Program Supervisor will send a referral to the dedicated In-Home Inbox for the Program Specialist to create an In-Home Case the same day the clinical discussion takes place.
The Program Specialist will review the case to ensure all case requirements are met within one day, excluding weekends and holidays, of the referral being sent to the inbox.
If more information is needed, the DCS Program Supervisor will review and correct any missing components identified by the Program Specialist within one day, excluding weekends and holidays.
The Program Specialist shall create the In-Home Case on the same day on which all information required has been entered and send a notification email to the Investigation DCS Program Supervisor and the In-Home DCS Program Supervisor receiving the case.
The In-Home DCS Program Supervisor shall assign a DCS Specialist to the case within one day, excluding weekends and holidays, of receiving the email notification from the Program Specialist and conduct a transfer dialogue within two days, excluding weekends and holidays.
The assigned DCS Specialist will complete the preparation activities in the Preparation and Introduction Supervision Discussion and attend the Clinical Discussion with their DCS Program Supervisor.
Upon assignment, the receiving DCS Specialist is responsible for all case management responsibilities. The DCS Specialist shall conduct the first child contact visit within five days, excluding weekends and holidays.
Out-of-Home Case Transfers
When a Safety Planning Clinical Discussion is completed and it is determined that the impending danger threat(s) is not able to be managed in the home, and an Out-of-Home Dependency is necessary to protect a child, the Investigation DCS Program Supervisor will send a notification of an Out-of-Home Case to the Section Program Specialist on the same day.
The Investigation DCS Specialist shall complete the Family Functioning Assessment – Investigation and all required documentation in Guardian and submit the Assessment to the assigned Program Specialist for case creation. All documentation must be complete prior to submitting the Assessment for case creation.
The Program Specialist shall create a case within one day, excluding weekends and holidays, of receiving the request from the Investigation DCS Specialist and send a notification email to the Investigation DCS Program Supervisor and the receiving Case Management DCS Program Supervisor.
The receiving Case Management DCS Program Supervisor shall assign the case to a DCS Specialist within one day, excluding weekends and holidays, of case creation and conduct the transfer dialogue within two days, excluding weekends and holidays, of case creation.
The assigned DCS Specialist will complete the preparation activities in the Preparation and Introduction Supervision Discussion and attend the Clinical Discussion with their DCS Program Supervisor.
Upon assignment, the receiving DCS Specialist is responsible for all case management responsibilities.
Adoption Case Transfers
When the court grants a motion for termination as to all named parents, the sending DCS Program Supervisor shall complete a case transfer request to the Permanency Program Specialist within two days, excluding weekends and holidays.
The Program Specialist will create an adoption case under the child’s name and assign the case to an Adoption DCS Program Supervisor.
The Adoption DCS Program Supervisor shall assign the case to a DCS Specialist within one day, excluding weekends and holidays, and conduct a transfer dialogue within three days, excluding weekends and holidays, of the case being assigned to the DCS Program Supervisor.
Upon assignment, the receiving DCS Specialist is responsible for all case management responsibilities. The DCS Specialist shall schedule initial contact with the child and out-of-home caregiver within five days of assignment, excluding weekends and holidays.
APPLA Case Transfers
When the court approves a case plan change to Another Planned Permanent Living Arrangement, the DCS Program Supervisor shall complete a case transfer request to the Program Specialist within ten days, excluding weekends and holidays.
The Program Specialist will create an APPLA case under the child’s name and assign to the receiving Permanency DCS Program Supervisor.
The Permanency DCS Program Supervisor shall assign the case to a DCS Specialist within one day, excluding weekends and holidays, and conduct a transfer dialogue within four days, excluding weekends and holidays, of the case being assigned to the DCS Program Supervisor.
Upon assignment, the receiving DCS Specialist is responsible for all case management responsibilities. The receiving DCS Specialist shall schedule initial contact with the child and out-of-home caregiver within five days of assignment, excluding weekends and holidays.
Case Transfer Responsibilities
A transfer dialogue is mandatory for all case transfers. The receiving DCS Program Supervisor will conduct a transfer dialogue, either in person or by phone, with the sending DCS Program Supervisor.
Prior to transferring the case, the sending DCS Specialist will submit immediate service requests for identified services such as Arizona Families F.I.R.S.T; random urinalysis testing; childcare; etc.
The sending DCS Specialist will inform the parent(s), child(ren), responsible adult(s) and out-of-home caregiver (if applicable) of the decision to transfer the case and will provide the name, contact information, and office address of the receiving DCS Program Supervisor and DCS Specialist on the same day the decision is made.
The sending DCS Program Supervisor will ensure the hard file is sent to and received by the receiving DCS Program Supervisor.
Documentation
DCS Ongoing Specialist documents the court’s order granting the motion to terminate the parent-child relationship in a Court Hearing note.
DCS Program Supervisor- Investigation:
Complete the Administrative Review Tool - Assessment, DCS-2096 prior to case transfer.
Legal
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