Project Details
Florida’s Model Comprehensive Residential Services and Residential Group Care Evaluation
Description
In the 2001 Florida legislative session, Senate Bill 1214 added statutory requirements for the Department of Children and Families to institute comprehensive residential care pilot projects for children who have extraordinary needs as defined in s. 409.1676, F.S. Under this service category, providers were funded to provide food, shelter, medical services not covered by Medicaid, clothing, allowances, and respite while the children are in out of home placements. Specifically, these services were to be provided, at a minimum, to children in Districts 4, 11, 12, and the SunCoast Region. In addition, model comprehensive residential services programs were established in Dade and Manatee Counties (From the Heart in Manatee County and CHARLEE in Dade County). These programs were to be “implemented to the extent of available appropriations contained in the annual General Appropriations Act for such purpose.” This legislation also required the Department to evaluate the effectiveness of these services. (Sections 409.1676, 1677, and 1679, F.S.)
The purpose of FMHI’s evaluation is to understand how the model comprehensive residential services programs and comprehensive residential services programs are functioning. Specifically, the evaluation has been designed to be site specific and address each site’s level of performance on ten standards set forth in the statute. The evaluation uses secondary data to assess achievement of programmatic and child-level outcomes for both the Models (provider-generated reports) and the comprehensive residential group care programs (contract monitoring reports).
Based on previous findings, it is recommended that an individual or entity be designated to standardize and enforce data collection and reporting, to ensure fidelity to the Legislature’s original intent when it created the program, maintain consistency between district / lead agency contractual requirements and statutory requirements, and the Department review whether the Models and the comprehensive residential group care services program conform to the philosophical intent of CBC.