VOL 1 - Center for Effective Collaboration and Practice - American ...

Promising Practices in Children’s Mental Health
Systems of Care - 1998 Series
families in using the wraparound process to develop their plan of care. The services of Parent Support
Specialists and Wraparound Facilitators are Medicaid reimbursable, so they are provided at no cost to
families. Keys for Networking, Inc., the Kansas statewide organization of the Federation of Families for
Children’s Mental Health, has developed a training curriculum for Parent Support Specialists and
Wraparound Facilitators.
In addition to having completed the Wraparound Facilitation training, Parent Support
Specialists receive training in:
n appreciating the family culture of living with a child with serious emotional disabilities;
n assessing special education and Section 504 policies, procedures, and rights;
n defining outcomes;
n negotiating to get the services you need;
n designing strengths-based interventions;
n using positive reinforcement to shape behaviors;
n keeping and maintaining records; and
n assisting families during crisis periods.
Parent Support Specialists in Kansas can perform the following services for families. A letter
introducing the role to families states that they can:
n coach and assist by increasing your knowledge of your child’s needs, the process of
interpreting choice offered by all service providers and explaining and interpreting policies,
procedures, and regulations that impact your child living in the community;
n coach and assist in ensuring you voice, access, and ownership in developing the plan of care
within desired costs and budget; 13
n coach and assist in ensuring all resources are developed and delivered; and
n coach and assist in looking at the progress being made and assessing your satisfaction with
the outcomes for each service in the plan of care. 14
13 Voice, access, and ownership are concepts fundamental to the wraparound process. Families must have their say
in the discussions (voice), all meetings and information must be easy to get to and understandable for families (access),
and families must buy into (own) the plan that is developed.
14 Letter to Parents, Keys for Networking, Inc., February 1998.
Volume I: New Roles for Families 33