Volume 1 THE CENTER FOR APPLIED MANAGEMENT PRACTICES, INC. Florida Association for Community Action, Inc. Guide to Using the Common Intake and Assessment Tool
THE CENTER FOR APPLIED MANAGEMENT PRACTICES, INC. Guide to Using the Common Intake and Assessment Tool The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 3609 Gettysburg Road Camp Hill, PA 17011 Phone 717-730-3705 Fax 717-730-3707 E-mail: info@appliedmgt.com The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 2007 2
Table of Contents Overview of the Common Intake and Assessment Tool 4 Characteristics Screen Client Intake 5 Characteristics Screen How to Enter a New Client 6 Characteristics Screen How to Retrieve a Client 8 Characteristics Screen Pre-Assessment 10 Income Screen 11 Client Assessment Screen 13 Outcome Scale and Outcome Matrix Principles 13 Assessment Screen Completing the Assessment 14 Characteristics Screen How to Delete a Client 17 Assessment Template Screen 18 The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 2007 3
Overview of the Common Intake and Assessment Tool In order to determine the status, baseline or well-being of a client, an initial intake and assessment will be conducted. The intake uses the Client Intake screen developed by The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc (CAMP). The intake screen contains the required data elements found in the IS report. The assessment uses the Client Assessment Form comprised of 19 dimensions of well-being developed by The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc (CAMP). The dimensions are also known as the building blocks of family stability and self-sufficiency and address, Income, Employment, Housing, Transportation, Health Care, Child Care and other key factors that contribute to and support well-being. Each of the 19 dimensions is comprised of a series of statements arranged in an Outcome Scale format using the continuum, In-Crisis to Thriving. Client responses are used to support placement on an outcome scale and when outcome scales are grouped together, form an outcome matrix. These responses can also be used to create a numerical score for each outcome scale and an overall score for the outcome matrix. The initial assessment is used to create a baseline for each client. Subsequent assessments are used to measure change resulting from direct services or case management services and other interventions offered by the agency or other community based organizations. It is the outcome scales and outcome matrix generated by the assessment process that determines client well-being, and influences any subsequent interventions or activities administered by the case worker/case manager and the CAA. The outcome scales and outcome matrix are written in true outcome language. All outcomes used in the assessment function are cross-referenced with the National Indicators of Performance (NPI s) and fully meet all required OCS/NASCSP reporting requirements. The Common Intake and Assessment Tool was developed to run in Microsoft Excel and uses all the Excel conventions. The Common Intake and Assessment Tool is comprised of five screens: Client Characteristics Income Assessment Matrix Assessment Template The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 2007 4
Characteristics Screen Client Intake Intake is the first activity or step in the process of qualifying or determining if a person is eligible for services. Regardless of the service (including provision of emergency services), an intake must be administered to obtain basic demographics and characteristics that are, in part, used to determine eligibility for a service or intervention. 1. The client intake is conducted using the Client Characteristics screen which is also the home page of the Common Intake and Assessment Tool. There are three command buttons located on the upper right side of the screen. Clicking on these buttons will take you to the other screens in the Common Intake and Assessment Tool, hereafter referred to as the Application. * Note: When first opening the Application, all of the fields will be blank. However, after you enter your Agency Information, it will be saved as the default agency identifier for each client. * Note: When closing a screen in the Application, and its subsequent reopening, the Application will bring you back to the exact place where you previously closed it. That is an Excel convention. The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 2007 5
2. The Client Characteristics screen uses a combination of text boxes, dropdowns, option, and check boxes. Enter your agency information by clicking on the field and typing in your information. Characteristics Screen How to Enter a New Client 3. When you first open the Application, all of the fields will be blank. The next time you open the Application, it will open to the screen and place on the screen where you previously closed it. If you want to have a blank screen each time you open the Application, always click on the button labeled Save This Case before closing the screen and when prompted, always save your changes. * Note: Clicking on the button labeled Save This Case will reset all of the fields to blank except for the agency information fields. The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 2007 6
4. The fields labeled First, Middle, Last, Address, City, State, and Zip Code are text boxes where the client name and address can be entered. * Note: The first and last names on this screen are the only required fields. You will not be able to continue without entering this information. 5. The fields labeled Gender, Age, Family Type, Family Size, Ethnicity, Race, Housing, and Education, are dropdowns. To select the appropriate response from the dropdown field, click on the cell. A dropdown arrow will appear on the right side of the box. Click on the arrow to display your choices and then click on the appropriate response to populate the field. * Note: The % of Poverty and Income Range are gray shaded and are populated by first clicking the button labeled, Go To Income. Do not enter data into these cells. Only use the Go To Income button. Additional details are provided on pages 11 and 12. The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 2007 7
6. The fields that are under the label Source of Income are check boxes. If the client has no income, click on the square field to the left of the label No Income. Do not check any other of the fields below the box. The fields labeled Medical Coverage and Disability are Option buttons. You will only be able to click, yes or no. Characteristics Screen How to Retrieve a Client 7. This application allows the user to look up clients for re-assessment. This can be accomplished by clicking on the button labeled, Get A Case. The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 2007 8
8. When the Client Selection window appears, select the client by clicking their name and then click on the button labeled Get This Client. * Note: All of the client information will re-populate on all of the screens and you will be returned to the Client Characteristics screen. The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 2007 9
Characteristics Screen Pre-Assessment A pre-assessment is conducted to determine whether the client can best benefit from direct services (limited interventions) or from comprehensive case management. An agency should therefore administer a pre-assessment screening prior to assignment of services. It is also the objective of a preassessment screening to identify if a client has not achieved a satisfactory level of well-being and is in need of an immediate intervention. * Note: The Pre-Assessment function is not connected to the full assessment. This is further discussed on page13. To administer the pre assessment, the client is asked the questions located on the bottom right of the Client Characteristics screen. Click the appropriate option button response: NA for not applicable, or yes or no. The field to the right of the yes and no option buttons will change colors. Green indicates that the response is positive and red indicates a negative response. Having negative responses (as indicated by the red fields) in three or more dimensions could signal for a case management intervention. Please note that negative responses to the two dimensions, Income and Employment, may also be a sufficient rationale for referral to, or placement in, case management. The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 2007 10
Income Screen $ 9. To calculate household income, click on the button labeled Go To Income. Please note that the fields to the right of the Go To Income button are gray shaded but will be activated upon using the Go To Income screen. 10. When the Income screen opens, go to the column identifying the number of persons in the household and ask the client to identify their annual household income. The number at the top of each column is the number of persons in the household. Double click on the cell closest to their reported income without exceeding the upper range. The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 2007 11
11. A message box will appear indicating the range you selected. If this is correct, click OK and you will be returned to the Client Characteristics screen. If the range is incorrect, click the Cancel button and start again. 12. Once you click OK,you will be returned to the Client Characteristics screen and the gray shaded fields will be populated with, % of Poverty, and Income Range. In addition, the Program Eligibility list will populate providing possible eligibility for additional subsidized programs. The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 2007 12
Client Assessment Screen A comprehensive assessment is administered to determine a client s overall status or measurement of well-being. It provides the necessary information to support placement or referral into case management. It is recommended that intake and assessment be administered sequentially and not combined. If this is the first time an assessment is administered, it also serves as the baseline or starting point from which to measure incremental change. The Common Intake and Assessment Tool contains 19 domains: 1. Employment 2. Job Retention 3. Training 4. Housing 5. Transportation 6. Childcare 7. Household Budgeting 8. Subsistence 9. School Performance 10. Child Behavior 11. Juvenile Justice 12. Education English Speaking 13. Education Non-English Speaking 14. Adult Day Care 15. Behavioral Health 16. Credit Score 17. Community Involvement 18. Health Care Adults 19. Health Care Children Outcome Scale and Outcome Matrix Principles Outcome scales approximate actual conditions. Scales are written in broad outcome language and are used to measure incremental change. Scale benchmarks convey broad goals and are written in language that the client and the general public can recognize. Scales are used to measure movement towards and achievement of self-sufficiency. Outcome scales and assessment statements are presented in a strengthbased format. The statements in each of the 19 domains are written in a strength-based format representing the continuum of Thriving to In-Crisis. From The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 2007 13
the client s perspective, they represent the range of possibilities from the highest level of Self-Sufficiency or Thriving to most dependent or In-Crisis. Outcome scales and assessment statements are written in a multiplechoice format. The multiple-choice format asks the client to choose the outcome statement that best describes their situation. Scoring criteria in a multiple-choice format improves accuracy and reliability. Assessment Screen Completing the Assessment 13. To complete an assessment click on the button labeled Go To Assessment 14. There are 19 domains; each is identified at the top left of the shaded form. The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 2007 14
15. At the upper right side of the screen, enter the date the assessment was conducted using the format 0/00/0000. The date will populate the 1 st date field in all of the dimensions. * Note: There are four assessment opportunities. The 1 st is the baseline. The, 2 nd, 3 rd, and 4 th are subsequent assessments which could be completed quarterly or any timeframe used by the worker or agency. 16. To select the appropriate response in each domain from the dropdown menu, first click on the cell labeled 1 st on the left side of the screen. A dropdown arrow will appear on the right side of the box. Click on the arrow to display your choices and read the statement to the client. After the client has responded, click on the appropriate response to populate the field. The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 2007 15
* Note: Repeat this action for each domain selected and use the same process for subsequent 2 nd, 3 rd, and 4 th assessments. You can select any or all domains relevant to your agency or program. 17. The appropriate NPI code will appear to the right of the date. 18. After you have completed the assessment, click on the button labeled Go To Matrix to display the outcome matrix. Your selection of the statements associated with each domain on the Assessment Screen will automatically populate on the Matrix screen. The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 2007 16
19. Your responses will be displayed on the outcome matrix along with the date of assessment. 20. Click on the Assessment button to return to Client Assessment Screen. Characteristics Screen How to Delete a Client 21. To delete a client, click on the button labeled Delete This Case. The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 2007 17
22. A message box will appear stating You selected DELETE, are you sure you want to do this Now? If you want to delete the record click Yes, if you do not click No. * Note: Once you delete a client all of the information will be lost and can not be retrieved. Assessment Template Screen This screen contains the well-being statements for each domain, the associated NPI s and a scoring sheet. Changes made on this screen will automatically populate the Assessment screen. Please be very careful when working in this screen. Do not make changes to this screen without first consulting with CAMP. The Center for Applied Management Practices, Inc. 2007 18