Embedding the Notion of Child- and Family-Centered Care into Organizational Practice: Learning from Organizational Visioning

Abstract

Child-and family-centered care has permeated the practices of child welfare as a means to address fragmentation. Case management appears promising, but the approach is still in its infancy. This article aims to provides an understanding of the emergent organizational vision of a new approach to case management at multiple organizational levels. The authors conducted a case study on the implementation of Intensive Family Case Management in a Dutch organization that provides child and youth protection services. The focus is on the continuous and bottom-up process of visioning, which has helped to define the shared organizational vision. The key finding was an emerging, widely shared vision that is congruent at many organizational levels and that contrasts starkly with the old work approach. The conclusion is that innovative child-and family-centered approaches to case management are inherent to a multi-level organizational system that is consistent with the approaches it advocates, being embedded in organizational structures and embodied in practitioners' mindsets. ARTICLE HISTORY

Child- and Family-Centered Practices in a Post-Bureaucratic Era: Inherent Conflicts Encountered by the New Child Welfare Professional

“…In both the interviews and FGDs, together with the participants, we made a comparison between the old work approach and IFCM. This comparison is elaborated upon in an earlier research paper (Van Veelen et al, 2017). Further, in the interviews a timeline was constructed of all events that respondents considered particularly meaningful in the change process, during and after the implementation of the IFCM pilot, including internal and boundary conflicts that participants encountered.…”

“…In line with the post-bureaucratic trends in child welfare, CYPSA in the Netherlands initiated a radical transformation in 2010 and developed IFCM as a child-and family-centered practice (Busschers, Boendermaker, & Dinkgreve, 2016;Van Veelen, Regeer, Broerse, Van De Poel, & Dinkgreve, 2017). This practice is based on the core values of being pattern-oriented, tailor-made, strengths-based, and purpose-driven care, and aims to provide long-term value for the children and families under CYPSA's supervision (Van Veelen et al, 2017).…”

“…In a previous study (Van Veelen et al, 2017), we have shown that IFCM differed fundamentally from earlier approaches in child welfare and required radical transformation at multiple levels of the organizational system and a profound change of its professionals. Child-and family-centered and postbureaucratic approaches require re-professionalization; professionals need to adopt a new mindset-but what does this mean?…”

“…Professionalization is a continuous process embedded in the structure of the organization. By adopting the attitude of a reflective practitioner (Schön, 1983), IFCM case managers are driven by purpose while continuously monitoring child safety (Van Veelen et al, 2017). From this perspective, the primary process and structures of IFCM are a means to support professionals in their daily work rather than ends in themselves.…”

“…This practice is based on the core values of being pattern-oriented, tailor-made, strengths-based, and purpose-driven care, and aims to provide long-term value for the children and families under CYPSA's supervision (Van Veelen et al, 2017). The development and implementation of IFCM helped CYPSA to break the cycle of bureaucracy and redundant procedural rules, to restore the case managers' professional autonomy, and to develop an organizational system that optimally supports case managers in child-and family-centered practices (Van Veelen et al, 2017), thus entering the postbureaucratic era in child welfare. This pioneering work was recognized in winning the Dutch Public Sector Award in 2014 and the European Public Sector Award in 2015.…”