1:56:57 PM [Visitor] What is the location for the Fair?
1:59:26 PM [Margie Weaver] We're still working on that.
1:56:54 PM [Visitor] If I have a current placement, I am I limited to transferring to an agency that you contract with? What about level of care? How will it be determined what my foster child's level of care should be? And will I then have to go with an agency that you contract with for that level of care?
1:58:28 PM [Margie Weaver] You can transfer to any public or private agency you choose. We will not disrupt placements if we do not have a contract. We will work with that provider to maintain the placement. We will reassess level of care at transition.
1:52:52 PM [Visitor] How can we put our bid in for a table for the Provider Fair?
1:52:40 PM [Visitor] Is it realistic to be licenses by an agency in Dayton, if you live in Cincinnati? Is it possible that they may have training and offices in Cincinnati?
1:53:56 PM [Margie Weaver] Most of our current contracted providers have offices in or near Cincinnati. You should ask the provider.
1:50:55 PM [Kim] When you say "public agencies" do you mean like a different county?
1:51:36 PM [Margie Weaver] Yes.
1:48:18 PM [Visitor] I was kicked off line. Will the transitioning of foster homes into private agencies that are not already contracting with you be done in the same time frame as those that are on your list?
1:51:00 PM [Margie Weaver] Yes. You are free to transfer to any organization you choose.
1:47:22 PM [Kim] I typically take children 0-3, do you know which agencies are most likely to get these ages or which agencies are going to be contacted first when a placement comes in?
1:49:58 PM [Margie Weaver] Most of our provider contracts have the ability to accept young children. Some may choose not to as part of their services. That is something you should discuss with the provider. Other public agencies may also be an option for you.
1:34:04 PM [Greg KELLY bAIR fOUNDATION dAYTON oH] Our agency is excited about the provider fair and the possibility of serving your homes
1:46:47 PM [Margie Weaver] Wonderful.
1:17:19 PM [Visitor] Are you planning on finishing licensing homes that were in the homestudy process when the announcement was made? What will be the process of transferring foster parent's files? Who do we send release of information forms to? How long can we expect it to take before we receive them? Are they coming in the mail or delivered/picked up?
1:43:36 PM [Margie Weaver] First part: We will finish any pending studies if that is what you choose. You will then be asked to transfer your foster certification or you can withdraw from us and apply to another public or private agency immediately. We will transfer any paperwork you have already completed except for criminal record checks and references. You can decide what is best. As for the files, please see answer below. If you are considering a withdraw and you are not yet approved, let us know who you will apply to. We will have you sign a release and send your information.
1:00:26 PM [Bradley Bahl] Hello. Is there a process set forth to meet with the potential foster parents or are we on our own?
1:03:50 PM [Margie Weaver] What do you mean by potential foster parent?
1:05:18 PM [Bradley Bahl] If my agency is interested in transferring any of the current county foster families into our private network how do we meet with them? is there a meet and greet opportunity?
1:15:10 PM [Margie Weaver] Are you a private provider?
1:15:23 PM [Bradley Bahl] Yes
1:39:36 PM [Margie Weaver] Attend our provider fair or you can host your own event and we will notify our active and pending parents.
12:57:58 PM [Visitor] I am under the assumption that some of these other agency are where hamilton county send the hard to handle cases?
1:01:56 PM [Visitor] Will we have to start all over with Home Studies and how many more hours does some of them need? How hard will it be for (other agencys) them to accept us.
1:38:32 PM [Margie Weaver] For the first question, these agencies do approve treatment homes, but many of our providers and all public agencies accept traditional placements. For the second, we will work with you to make your transition as smooth as possible and would recommend you attend the provider forum. Families may need to undergo additional training or perform additional duties to meet the requirements of new providers that will be unique to each agency.
1:32:39 PM [Visitor] Is a private agency on your list of providers able to submit updated contact information?
1:15:16 PM [Visitor] Hello-- have you decided a date, time and location for the provider agency forum? Thank you.
1:33:29 PM [Margie Weaver] Please see info in running transcript. Location is still pending.
1:12:05 PM [Visitor] Is there a place were we can check the ratings on the private agencies and determine how they have been performing and which ones have a better record?
1:14:05 PM [Visitor] Are adoptions still going to be done through the county? How does this change affect families pending the Adoption process, awaiting permanancy decisions in the near futre, etc?
1:32:25 PM [Margie Weaver] I not aware of where you can find that information. The private providers are all certified through ODJFS. Yes, adoptions will be done through the county. We will continue to approve adoption homestudies. See earlier comments. We will not disrupt child placements with current families. We will continue to make placements into currently active and HCJFS approved foster and adoptive families.
1:07:46 PM [Liz Ahlquist] Some guidance on choosing an agency would be very helpful. Some of our questions are: Which agencies work with birth-parents? Which work with younger children? Which do foster to adopt? How will you be deciding on where to send referrals?
1:28:33 PM [Liz Ahlquist] Will after hours call private agency homes then for emergency placements?
1:28:58 PM [Margie Weaver] We will assist you by providing information regarding public and private agencies. We are in process of gathering profile information for each of those agencies. Click here for a list of private agencies under contract with the agency: http://www.hcjfs.hamilton-co.org/hckids/FosterAgencies.pdf Also, we are hosting the provider fair next week. You are again free to choose any public or private agency for transfer. We want you to choose an agency that will best meet your needs.
1:29:19 PM [Margie Weaver] As for your second question, yes.
1:15:41 PM [doris robinson] what way can i notify u by Feb. 5 of my intent to transfer
1:25:25 PM [Margie Weaver] Call me at 946-1666 or complete a form you received in your letter and send it back.
1:20:42 PM [Cathy] How and who will handle emergency placements?
1:23:33 PM [Margie Weaver] After hours and the Utilization Management Unit during business hours.
1:24:01 PM [Margie Weaver] We will seek input from adoption staff when a child is identified as "legal risk."
1:02:01 PM [Visitor] What do you mean by 'intent to transfer'? Do we just need to say that we will transfer to one of the agencies but not have the specific one selected by Feb 5th? That doesn't seem enough time to figure out which one meets our needs.
1:04:03 PM [Karen] Do you have any information on what the 'personality' of each of the private agencies are? Some basic information on what type of children and families they support would help in narrowing down a possible match for us.
1:07:49 PM [Karen] When a child comes into the system how does the county determine which agency to contact for placement?
1:22:00 PM [Margie Weaver] Yes. We only want to know by Feb. 5 whether you intend to transfer your license or close. You can select a specific agency later that best suits your needs. If you are not able to commit by Feb. 5, please just let us know that as well. As for your second question, we have links to their Web sites. We will be gathering some basic information from each provider and posting this information. Also, you can attend the provider fair. Finally, we first determine level of care. We then send referrals to agencies we hold contracts with for that level of care. The contract agency provides placement options. If there is more than one potential family, the caseworker may initiate pre-placement visits with families and ultimately select the foster parent based on the child's needs. We consider close proximity to family, school, and maintaining sibling sets.
1:02:45 PM [Visitor] can you give us info on the provider forum
1:12:32 PM [Visitor] where can we get info on number of FC placments Hamilton makes and what kind ie: family, treatment ect.
1:16:08 PM [Margie Weaver] Please see running transcript for forum details. We'll post the info you mention on our Web site.
1:03:56 PM Once a foster parent has selected an agency, how does the agency get the records to review? Who should the release go to?
1:14:09 PM [Margie Weaver] The selected agency will have you sign a release and will forward that release to HCJFS. We will send your record shortly thereafter. You can always contact us and let us know your intentions beforehand and we will begin to prepare the record for transfer. We cannot send your record until we receive a signed release.
1:08:44 PM [Visitor] The list that is presented to the foster parents is not a list of all the surrounding agencies. What's the process for signing with another licensed agency in Cincinnati that is not on your list, but I feel more comfortable with them.
1:11:28 PM [Margie Weaver] You can initiate a transfer with any public or private agency. You should contact them to initiate the process.
1:00:36 PM [Visitor] How are referraks going to change? "legal risk"
1:10:01 PM [Margie Weaver] We are continuing to evaluate that process. When we receive a referral and that is the desired placement, we will notify the private or public agency in the referral. We will continue to certify and approve families for adoption. We will also continue to conduct expedited studies for adoption approval. And we will continue to manage child adoptions for children for whom we have permanent custody. Families can choose to continue to maintain their adoption homestudy with us or they can transfer the adoption study to another private or public agency that is able to approve and maintain adoption homestudies or families who are interested in adopting can be approved as foster parents. And complete an expedited homestudy after a child has been in their home for a period of six months and is available for adoption.
1:00:37 PM [Visitor] What is the time frame of transitioning the foster parents
1:02:52 PM [Margie Weaver] We have a soft deadline of Sept. 1 to have all homes transferred. However, we will continue to be flexible to accommodate individual circumstances.
1:00:10 PM Have there been times set for the providers fair?
1:01:46 PM [Margie Weaver] Yes. Feb. 4 from 4:30-6:30 p.m., Feb. 5 from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. We'll be notifying all of our active and pending applicants and public and private agencies via mail and e-mail.
12:54:59 PM [Visitor] What is the deadline to transfer the licenses?
12:58:15 PM [Margie Weaver] We want everyone to notify us by Feb. 5 of their intent to transfer or close. From there, we want families to have identified an agency and begun the transfer process by April 1.
12:51:11 PM [Liz Ahlquist] My husband an I were 3 weeks away from finishing the licensing process (we had finished everything on our end and were supposed to receive our license by Feb 21) and are wondering if it would be possible to push the license through. We obviously are willing to go through the transfer process, but if you are giving licensed foster homes until April to transition, it seems like we should have the same time allowance. If our home study were complete, the transition to a private agency would be much more seamless.
12:56:23 PM [Margie Weaver] We will complete your homestudy and assist you in transferring your foster care license.
