Type of services provided:
HOMEBUILDERS® is an intensive in-home family counseling program for families with children at imminent risk of out of home placement into foster, group, other residential treatment program and settings; families with children in placement and are about to be reunified; and foster families where the placement is about to disrupt. A highly trained practitioner meets with the family within 24 hours of referral and provides an average of 8-10 hours of direct service (face to face) each week. The Homebuilders practitioner is on available 24/7 with back up for crisis situations. Sessions are scheduled based on the families’ schedule, and when the identified problems/concerns are likely to occur, including evenings, weekends and holidays. Services are provided in the families’ homes and include cognitive behavioral interventions, motivation interviewing, relapse prevention, skills teaching (e.g. behavioral parenting skills and behavior management, social skills, emotion regulation, effective communication and assertive skills, problem solving and decision making etc), and advocacy and accessing social and concrete supports (e.g., assistance with transportation, budgeting, food, clothing, household maintenance and repair). Practitioners complete the North Carolina Family Assessment Scale (NCFAS) v.2, an evidence based assessment tool developed and validated for Homebuilders and similar services, at the beginning of services and at closure, and specific goals are developed based on the assessment, reason for referral and the concerns and challenges identified by the family. Throughout the program the Homebuilders practitioner works collaboratively with other community supports and resources and at service closure develops a “progress maintenance plan” with the family to help them maintain changes and when needed connects family members with ongoing supports and services. The program engages families by delivering services in their natural environment at times when they are most receptive to learning and enlisting them as partners in assessment, goal setting, and treatment planning. Reunification cases often require activities related to reintegrating the child into the home and the community such as enrolling a child in school or helping a child connect with clubs, sports and other community groups.
Program setting:
Adoptive home, birth family home, kinship care home, foster home
Length of program/number of sessions:
Typically, 3-5 sessions weekly for 4 to 6 weeks, and aftercare booster sessions (typically up to 5 hours per family) during the six months following referral. Families typically receive 38 or more hours of face-to-face contact during the intervention.
Type(s) of trauma/concerns addressed:
This program is targeted to families with one or more children who are imminent risk of out-of-home placement or with children who have been placed out of the home and need intensive services to reunify with the family. The families are usually experiencing problems such as child abuse and neglect, family violence, juvenile delinquency, behavioral and/or mental health concerns, and/or substance abuse. The program can also be implemented to prevent foster care or adoption disruption, and to stabilize these long-term placements.
Symptoms addressed:
Family conflict and violence, ineffective parenting skills, depression, aggression/anger, children/youth behavioral problems, substance abuse, child abuse and neglect.
Education level of providers:
Master’s level (social work, counseling, marriage and family therapy) preferred. BSW/BA in related field with relevant experience allowed.
Additional information:
None
Unique/Innovative Characteristics:
This intervention provides highly accessible and responsive, intensive in-home services to meet the needs of families at high risk for out of home child placement, or have a child that has been placed in out-of-home care, or to stabilize long term foster and adoptive placements. Practitioners and their supervisors and managers are available 24/7 for emergencies, and work a very flexible schedule with sessions scheduled at times the problems occur and based on the families’ schedules. Sessions are routinely provided during the day, evenings, weekends and some holidays.