COMMITTEE
REPORTS
February 2007
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. Children’s Services Committee
II. Youth Services Committee
III. Guardianship Services Committee
HARRIS COUNTY
CHILDREN’S PROTECTIVE SERVICES
REPORT OF BOARD COMMITTEE MEETINGS
COMMITTEE: Children’s Services Committee
MEETING DATE: February 12, 2007 12:00 pm
Conference Room 2A-17 Murworth
ATTENDEES ATTENDEES
B0ARD: CPS STAFF:
Micky Sheppard Deba Andrews Willie Nelson
Omawale Luthuli-Allen Kim Poré John Prior
Steve Gimenez Michelle Sears
RECOMMENDED ACTION :
Program Highlights: Each program director gave a brief status report of his/her program
and the 4Cs program presented their goals and objectives.
ANNOUNCEMENTS/INFORMATION ITEMS and EXCEPTIONS:
The meeting was called to order at 12:05 pm.
State Programs-
No representative this month due to conflict with DFPS program meeting.
Training Institute –
BSD PROGRAM UPDATE:
• Region 6 Training Institute was asked by DFPS Program Development Division to
develop the DFPS Statewide BSD Training Calendar for 2008-2009. The committee
decided on a random start date model.
The following is the BSD graduation schedule for the fourth Quarter:
BSD Class Start Date Anticipate Board Graduation
Schedule d class Representative Date
size
Class 106 November 27, 25 Carmen Nadolney March 1, 2007
2006
Class 107 January 2, 2007 32 Michael Sheppard April 5, 2007
Class 108 January 29, 2007 15 Omowale Luthuli- Allen April 30, 2007
Class 109 February 26, Unknown Steven Gimenez May 29, 2007
2007
Class 110 April 2, 2007 Unknown TBA July 3, 2007
HCCPS Continuing Education Course Offerings:
Three workshops were offered. 41 Harris County employees enrolled and 29 completed the course.
DFPS Continuing Education Course Offerings:
Four courses were offered with 95 staff completing them.
Johns Hopkins University:
On February 9, 2007, the Harris County Guardianship Program had its third videoconference training on
mental illness provided by Dr. Susan Bailey. This program has been renewed for 10 additional 2-hour
sessions in fiscal year 2007-2008. Ms. Andrews extended an invitation for other programs to join in on
the training as space allows. The next training is scheduled for March 23 and will focus on Bipolar
disorder.
Guardianship Training Track:
• On February 13, 2007, the Harris County Guardianship Program will launch a series of training
topics designed to assist the case managers in their preparation for the certification test later this
year. Six different sessions will be offered with each being offered at least two times.
• Four employees utilized this training program in January and February 2007.
Region 6 Training Consortium:
In January 2007, four workshops were offered to Harris County staff by community partners and 9 staff
attended. HCPS TI offered seats in three of our workshops to the consortium and 6 people from
consortium partner agencies attended.
BEAR-
BEAR the Load Luncheon: The luncheon will be held on March 1 at River Oaks
Country Club. The speaker will be Karen Quinn. To date over $110,000 has been
raised.
BEAR Necessities: The BEAR Board is working on the 5 year strategic plan which
should be finalized within the next two months. The BEAR annual audit is currently
taking place the week of February 12th. Two school groups (St. Agnes. is one) have
made donations of $1,000 each in the past few weeks.
Current challenge for BEAR is to find new warehouse space for BEARing gifts. Mr. Sheppard
may have a contact for BEAR.
Medical/Dental Clinic
Met with Immunization Coalition of Greater Houston Board to determine directions for coalition
this year.
New employee hired to perform drug screens, approximately 20% of clients tested have are
positive for using substances.
Four C’s-
DFPS identified Pat Shaw as their liaison to the Early Childhood Intervention programs
to come up with a plan for them to follow the federal mandate to screen all children with
a substantiated allegation of abuse and neglect. Kim Poré, Pat Shaw and Marlene
Hollier of MHMRA ECI have been collaborating to see how 4Cs fits into this mandate.
Kim Poré met with the DFPS permanency directors and staff as well as the new nurse
consultant to present our co-location project with MHMRA to assist foster children in
accessing mental health services. The team was very excited about the project and
suggested that the referral forms be made available at the permanency planning and
family conferences. A memorandum explaining this protocol will be developed by the
Permanency Directors and go out to all Harris County case workers. Ms. Poré will be
responsible for informing her permanency staff and conveners of this new protocol.
PITA
Mr. Prior reported that the PITA team is finalizing the overall agency annual review.
They compile the different individual program reviews into a report for the whole
agency. They anticipate that it will be ready to share at the April Executive committee
meeting.
4Cs presented their goals and objectives. 4Cs continues to struggle with the
increased number of famliies and children coming into care. This impacts being able to
deliver services in a timely manner and meeting the goal of presenting reports at the
initial Permanency conference or Family conference. 4Cs is working with other
collaborative partners to address ways to increase service capacity as well as striving to
decrease staff turnover which also impacts service delivery.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:00 pm.
The next meeting will be held March 5, 2007 at 12:00 pm.
4Cs Performance Report – February 2007
I. Program Performance - January 2007
Children’s Assessments 153
Family Assessments 32
PC/Family Conferences 355/26
II. Program Report
DFPS identified Pat Shaw as their liaison to the Early Childhood
Intervention programs to come up with a plan for them to follow the
federal mandate to screen all children with a substantiated allegation of
abuse and neglect. Kim Poré, Pat Shaw and Marlene Hollier of MHMRA
ECI have been collaborating to see how 4Cs fits into this mandate and how
we can assist DFPS and ECI with meeting their goal. We will be meeting
with all of the directors of the Harris County ECI programs on February
13th to develop a plan to expand the pilot project we have with the MHMRA
ECI program as a way to ensure that all children coming into DFPS care
have a developmental screening as soon as possible.
Kim Poré met with the DFPS permanency directors and staff as well as the
new nurse consultant to present our co-location project with MHMRA to
assist foster children in accessing mental health services. The team was
very excited about the project and suggested that the referral forms be
made available at the permanency planning and family conferences so that
as soon as a need is identified the worker can fill out the form and have it
returned to 4Cs for faxing to MHMRA. A memorandum explaining this
protocol will be developed by the Permanency Directors and go out to all
Harris County case workers. Ms. Poré will be responsible for informing her
permanency staff and conveners of this new protocol.
HARRIS COUNTY PROTECTIVE SERVICES for CHILDREN & ADULTS
Children’s Service Report
January 2007
Met with Immunization Coalition of Greater
Houston Board to determine directions for
coalition this year.
New employee hired to perform drug screens.
261 clients had drug urinalysis screenings
performed. 2,610 tests were performed. There
were 2, 528 negative results and 82 positive
results. 18 of the clients had adulterated or
attempted adulteration of the urine samples and
14 clients did not provide or refused to provide
a urine sample. 61 of the 261 clients had one or
more positive results.
3000
2,610
2,528
2500
2000 Clients
Tests
1500 Pos.
Neg.
1000 Ref. Test
Adultrated
500
261
82 14 18
0
Clients Tests Pos. Neg. Refused Adultrated
The clinic scheduled 634 child clients ( 379 medical) and ( 255 dental) and provided
services for 406 child clients, (270 medical) and (136 dental).
Region 6 Training Institute Report
February 12, 2007
Program Highlights
BSD Program Update:
Region 6 Training Institute was asked by DFPS Program Development Division to develop the DFPS Statewide
BSD Training Calendar for 2008-2009. The committee decided on a random start date model based on the
following outcomes:
Benefits
• Accommodates both the rural and urban need for flexibility between classes.
• Meets standard requirements for Pre-BSD because students get the adequate number of days for pre-BSD without
having to adjust the hire dates.
• Allows PDD to add more classes if needed without using outside contractors.
• Increases the number of NEO dates from 2 to 3, which increases class size.
• Eliminates the need for multiple class rooms simultaneously.
• Allow trainers to assume more responsibility for trainee field development.
• Provides as many as 8 hire dates per quarter which would address any budgetary concerns.
• Accommodates CWEP students by providing starts in the months of September, January and May.
Concerns:
• Does not eliminate the need for rural areas to travel between sites.
• May have a negative impact on the Stipend program in Region 3 because of the start dates.
The following is the BSD graduation schedule for the fourth Quarter:
BSD Class Start Date Anticipated Board Graduation
Schedule class size Representative Date
Class 106 November 27, 2006 25 Carmen Nadolney March 1, 2007
Class 107 January 2, 2007 32 Michael Sheppard April 5, 2007
Class 108 January 29, 2007 15 Omowale Luthuli- Allen April 30, 2007
Class 109 February 26, 2007 Unknown Steven Gimenez May 29, 2007
Class 110 April 2, 2007 Unknown TBA July 3, 2007
HCCPS Continuing Education Course Offerings:
Three workshops were offered. 41 Harris County employees enrolled and 29 completed the course.
DFPS Continuing Education Course Offerings:
1/9/07 Substance Abuse- Using Adolescent Clients & Their Families
28 Completed 1 Cancelled 5 No Show
1/11/07 Cultural Diversity: Building Bridges or Walls
29 Completed 4 Cancelled 14 No Show 1 Incomplete
1/25/07 Embracing Kinship Care
13 Completed 1 Cancelled 13 No Show
2/1/07 Growing up and Aging out of Foster Care
25 Completed 2 Cancelled 12 No Show
Johns Hopkins University:
On February 9, 2007, the Harris County Guardianship Program had its third videoconference training on mental
illness provided by Dr. Susan Bailey. This program has been renewed for 10 additional 2-hour sessions in fiscal
year 2007-2008.
Guardianship Training Track:
• On February 13, 2007, the Harris County Guardianship Program will launch a series of training topics
designed to assist the case managers in their preparation for the certification test later this year. Six
different sessions will be offered with each being offered at least two times.
• Four employees utilized this training program in January and February 2007.
Region 6 Training Consortium:
In January 2007, four workshops were offered to Harris County staff by community partners and 9 staff
attended. HCPS TI offered seats in three of our workshops to the consortium and 6 people from consortium
partner agencies attended.
HARRIS COUNTY
PROTECTIVE SERVICES FOR CHILDREN AND ADULTS
REPORT OF BOARD AND COMMITTEE MEETINGS
COMMITTEE: Youth Services Committee
MEETING DATE (S): February 2, 2007
MEETING ATTENDEES: MEETING ATTENDEES:
BOARD MEMBERS HCPSCA/TDFPS/CASE STAFF
Ron Davis Anna Bell Deborah Colby
Sean McPherson Bob Cook Sandra Haire
Andrew Schulz Ginger Harper LaQuita Horace
Janet Stansbury Joel Levine Lauren Moore
John Prior Stanley Tarrant
Pam Walker
RECOMMENDED ACTION ITEMS: N/A
ANNOUNCEMENTS/ INFORMATION ITEMS:
Presentation
Deborah Colby presented on the Logic Model for the TRIAD Program. There are 6
Programs within TRIAD: 1). JP Court Family Services Unit 2). Intake/Diversion
Program 3). Community Youth Development 4). Truancy Learning Camp 5). Services to
At-Risk Youth (STAR) Program and 6). Mental Health Services.
The Logic Model provides a formal template, model and structure for measuring program
growth and effectiveness. Due to the nature of the funding of several TRIAD Programs,
the CQI Program year is aligned with the state fiscal year, which begins on September 1
for reporting purposes. Ms. Colby reported on progress towards outputs and outcomes
for the period of September 1- November 30, 2006 for each program. The quarterly
review provides the ability to identify areas that are working well and those that need
more attention before the end of the year.
Youth Services Center Building Update:
John Prior reported that with the completion of the resurfacing of the Shelter bedrooms,
the Task Force would complete the evaluation process to study reactions of the youth to
the new shelter environment. An initial focus group had been conducted with Sandra
Jones of DePelchin and Dr. Linda Courtney with the PITA Team when the initial group
of residents transitioned from the Chimney Rock Center to the Kinder Emergency
Shelter. A meeting of the evaluation team is scheduled for February 9th.
Program Updates and Status:
Program Directors reviewed the information in the written highlights that were forwarded
to committee members prior to the meeting. The written highlights are below:
Kinder Emergency Shelter Program Report
• On January 19, 2007, YSC Director Robert Brewer participated in an Emergency Shelter
Provider Teleconference hosted by the Administration for Children Youth and Families
(ACYF) - Mountain Plains Region. The featured presenter, Jeff Bormaster, Senior
Consultant for the Child Welfare League of America, presented information on how some
emergency shelters in other states have transformed their service delivery activities in
order to continue to serve custodial youth, (and within federal regulations aimed at
limiting the number of placement moves that custodial youth experience on an annual
basis). The Kinder Emergency Shelter may adapt some of the ideas and models presented
during this teleconference in the future.
• The Kinder Emergency Shelter currently has one full-time (11:00 PM – 7:00 AM) Youth
Counselor I vacancy. Interviews will be held within the next two weeks; and it is expected
that several current Shelter relief staff members will apply for the position.
• As a member of the Texas Network of Youth Services (TNOYS) Shelter Task Force,
Robert Brewer is creating a cover letter and survey questionnaire that will be distributed
to all emergency shelters statewide in an effort to determine the amount and type of
additional services that could be provided to “intensive” and “severe” level custody
youth placed in emergency shelters, with “add-on” reimbursement rates provided by the
Department of Family Protective Services (DFPS).
Community Youth Services Program Report
• CYS will conduct quarterly case documentation training for staff to improve
accountability in service delivery to clients. This training will occur after the quarterly
case record reviews addressing any consistent deficiencies notated as well as general
information on case documentation. Although certain staff may be required to attend, it
will be open to all staff. This training will also be incorporate in the CYS new workers
orientation.
• Omar Riopedre is the new CYS worker with the Dropout Prevention Program in Houston
Independent School District for Sam Houston and Robert E. Lee High Schools. Omar
recently moved to Houston from Los Angeles, California. He has a Bachelor’s of Arts
Degree in Psychology and Social Behavior from the University of California at Irvine.
Omar has bee at Catholic Charities working with the unaccompanied minors at St.
Michaels Home since he arrived in Houston. In Los Angeles, he worked in gang
prevention and as a hospital social worker for seven years.
• One position in the CYS remains vacant. This position is at the Juvenile Justice
Alternative Education Program (JJAEP). The position is posted and the interviewing
process if forthcoming.
• Miriam Hopkins Dennis a former CYS worker, passed away on January 21, 2007, after
a six-year battle with cancer. She was a CYS worker in the Spring Independent School
district for 12 years. Miriam retired on January 5, 1996. CYS will truly miss Miriam who
was a heroine to the many children she provided services to.
TRIAD Prevention Program Report
• Seven TRIAD staff – 4 STAR and 3 TRIAD Mental Health – have been deemed reliable on
the Child and Adolescent Functional Assessment Scale (CAFAS) after completing
training and passing a test. TRIAD Program Manager Jim Whitehead provided the
training for the staff along with staff participants from Systems of Hope and their partner
agencies.
• TRIAD submitted a request for $21,900 for the Stay in School Truancy program to the
Youth and Famly Services Family Protection Fee Fund. This was one portion of the
overall $47,900 request submitted by HCPS. If received the funding would provide for
Truancy Camp supplies, food provisions, curricula, media campaign materials and
evaluation costs.
• Houston Endowment conducted a site visit with Mr. George Ford, Ms. Ginger Harper
and Ms. Barbara Hermes in December. As a result of that visit, there was a request for
additional information concerning various aspects of the Stay in School Truancy
Initiative that had been submitted for funding. This information was compiled with the
assistance of the District Attorneys Office (Bill Hawkins and Helen Jackson) and CYS
(Ms. Ginger Harper). Mr. George Ford submitted all the material January 12. The
Houston Endowment Board is scheduled to meet March 20 to make a funding decision.
• JD Michaux has been selected as the TRIAD Intake Supervisor for the
afternoon/overnight shifts. JD has been with TRIAD Intake since April 2001and has held
supervisory positions in several of his previous employment situations. JD brings
dedication, knowledge and experience to his new role.
• The Community Youth Development (CYD) monitoring visit from Department of Family
and Protective Services (DFPS) Prevention and Early Intervention (PEI) staff scheduled
for this month was postponed due to the severe weather in Austin. DFPS staff was unable
to make the trip due to the icy roads and poor driving conditions. All of the HCPS staff
and subcontractors were prepared and ready for the visit, which will now be
rescheduled.
• On December 19 Commissioner’s Court approved the implementation of the JP Court
Case Management fee not to exceed $5.00 for defendants convicted of fine only
misdemeanors; however the county still plans to ask for an Attorney General opinion
prior to collecting the fee. It was approved to begin collection March 1, 2007; however it
may take up to a year to develop all necessary plans for collection and distribution.
Preparation for Adult Living Program Report
• Four PAL staff members attended the state PAL meeting in San Antonio, TX January 22 –
24, 2007. Participants at this event toured the PAL Transition Center and the new
Kerrville Transition Center operated by the Baptist Children and Family Services on the
first day. The second day was spent in training on the Ansell-Casey Life Skills
Assessment website taught by staff of the National Resource Center. During the last day
of the meeting, participants were updated on PAL policy changes and upcoming
statewide events.
• Following weekly scan calls throughout January, on January 31, 2007, PAL staff
participated in a planning meeting at the University of Houston main campus to finalize
plans to host an African American “Listening Session” scheduled for February 24, 2007.
This “Listening Session” will include meetings to hear the voices of 50 young black men,
ages 14-22, who have experienced life in foster care and representatives from 30
community partners/stakeholders who work with them. Sponsored by the Joint Center for
Political and Economic Studies, the Robert Woods Johnson Foundation, and the Black
Administrators in Child Welfare, this project was developed to determine what is needed
and what is currently working to help this population of foster youth become successful
when transitioning into adulthood. Three states with large populations of foster youth
were selected for this project, including Texas, Illinois, and Florida. Results from the
three “listening sessions” will be provided in a report to over 500 federal and state
legislators in order to inform new policy. PAL staff is helping in the identification of
young people who will attend the meeting in the Houston area and in coordination
activities during the meeting at the request of DFPS staff in Austin.
Systems of Hope Project Report
• The Systems of Hope sponsored a CAFAS - Child and Adolescent Functioning
Assessment Scale Training for HCPS staff on January 11, 2007. The CAFS is a national
assessment given to children and families to determine how well the child functions at
home, at school, and the community. The creator of the CAFAS, Dr. Kay Hodges, has
put together a strict training and delivery protocol to achieve standardization for the
instrument. Its validity as a measure is very high. A score of 100 or above is required to
admit a child into the Systems of Hope.
• With all the Systems of Hope direct care staff hired, the co-locations have intensified
their referrals to these care teams. Harris County Juvenile Probation and MHMRA lead
referrals with 9 and 10 each, respectfully, since the program began. The SOH teams are
finding that many of the referrals are for more than one child in the family. In fact, two
families have three children each enrolled. This will be an interesting trend to follow
over the next few months.
• Patty Tremble, Project Director, and Michelle Hollander, Social Market/Community
Development, represented the Systems of Hope at the quarterly Texas Integrated Funding
Initiative (TIFI) Consortium Meeting in Austin on January 11th. The consortium was
updated on important legislation related to children's mental health and consortium
members' processes. There continues to be an interest in the mental health parity,
meaning that children with mental illness should have equal access to their behavioral
healthcare as their physical healthcare. Agencies and advocates throughout Harris
County have adopted a One Voice document that highlights specific interests for child
and adolescent services.
• The Systems of Hope continued its work toward including systems of care children in
Medicaid reimbursement streams. MHMRA is in the last phase of negotiation with the
Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) to clear the way for Targeted Case
Management Billing. Patty Tremble, Janise Bane, and Lauren Moore attended a
teleconference with HHSC to explore other potential avenues for reimbursement:
Paraprofessional (Parent Partner) billing through the Rehab Option, application to open
an unused Medicaid funding stream for Home and Community Services (HCS)
specifically for children with mental illness at risk for placement, direct billing for
Targeted Case Management without going through an MHMR center, and initiative
funding that could bundle systems of care services for a flat or stratified reimbursement
rate.
• A system of Hope Social Marketing is continuing to develop. In additions to
presentations at schools, co-location sites, and community meetings, the SOH now has t-
shirts to purchase for $10 as a joint advertising and fund raising effort.
Region 6 Training Institute Report
• Beginning in February 2007, the Training Institute will offer one hour in service
trainings to the Kinder Emergency Shelter staff during their monthly staff meeting. The
Kinder Emergency Shelter staff selected the training topics that will be delivered to them.
Understanding Homelessness will be the first topic. The training institute has begun
interviewing for a Part Time Contract trainer who will facilitate various trainings for
State and County employees, beginning with the Kinder Shelter Initiative.
Department of Family and Protective Services Report
• The Promoting Safe and Stable Families grant and incentive is still a major priority at
this time for sub-care staff. We have seen great progress and achievements being made
at this time in seeing our children and families each month face-to-face and getting
contacts documented within 7 days. We are so encouraged about our outcomes thus far.
We hope a great number of staff will receive the monetary incentive in May 2007 for
these efforts. We will soon be implementing a similar program for FBSS families and
children to monitor their face-to-face contacts also.
• The legislative session is in progress at present so we are prepared to assist
within the region any time anything is needed in the process either from our State
Office or the legislature or Governor.
• We continue to have the new Program Directors hiring the new supervisors for
the new units and get them all on board. We are also in the process of hiring the
temporary staff in conjunction with the sub-care initiative discussed above.
• We are also embarking on training for all support staff in the region regarding
tasks and duties within their units, some are already handling and some that have
been redefined and added for them to be able to best support the caseworkers and
supervisors in the field. This training includes some specialized computer
training for assisting with case documentation and other tasks needing entering in
case files.
• Adoption planning and usage of the regional allocation for enhancing adoptions
is well under way. We hope to reach even further heights with these added
resources for adoption. Along with this, there will be a statewide adoption
promotional campaign targeted for Child Abuse Prevention Month this April for
media and other recruitment promotions for prospective foster and adoptive
parents. This is a statewide media event, which will be carried by most major
television and radio stations throughout the state.
Cooperative for After School Enrichment (CASE) Project:
A CASE report for January 2007 was not transmitted.
The next Youth Services Committee Meeting will be held on March 2, 2007 at the Harris
County Youth Services Center
DAILY REPORT
SITE Referred to Enrolled On Hold Discharged
SOH
City of Houston/Key 5 3 1 1
Middle
DePelchin 3 1 0 2
HCJPD 9 6 1 2
HCPS/CRCG 6 4 0 1
MHMRA 10 4 1 5
TOTAL 33 18 3 11
TODAY’S DATE: January 25, 2007
HARRIS COUNTY
CHILDREN’S PROTECTIVE SERVICES
REPORT OF BOARD COMMITTEE MEETINGS
COMMITTEE: Guardianship Services Committee
MEETING DATE: February 7, 2007
ATTENDEES ATTENDEES
BOARD: Dianne Bynum, Hector HCPS STAFF: Jan McLaughlin, Cecelia
Longoria, Carmen Nadolney Hedges, Betty Portal, Mary Hathaway-
Evans, Nichole Christoph
ANNOUNCEMENTS/INFORMATION ITEMS and EXCEPTIONS:
The Minutes of the January 2007 meeting were approved as read.
Ms. McLaughlin introduced Betty Portal and Cecelia Hedges. Ms. Portal is the new
supervisor for the clinical unit and Ms. Hedges is the new supervisor for unit 4.
PROGRAM ACTIVITIES UPDATE:
Ms. McLaughlin shared a recent article from the Houston Chronicle regarding changes
made to Medicaid rules. As of January 31, 2007 Medicaid will no longer reimburse six
of the major stand-alone psych hospitals in Harris County for the treatment of mentally ill
adults. This will have a great impact on the program and the wards because many of our
clients are Medicaid recipients. Judge Olsen is expected to speak with legislature
regarding this issue soon. This will be a serious challenge for the program because two
thirds of our client population suffers with mental health issues. Ms. McLaughlin is
working pro-actively to meet with DADS and STAR + to gain a better understanding of
how we can work through this.
Ms. McLaughlin gave an update on the programs training efforts for Guardianship
Certification. Mr. Ford attended the Guardianship Certification Board meeting on
January 19th. The issues that concerned the program most are being addressed and they
are; an apprenticeship period and whether or not staff would have to take both the State
and National tests. Ms. Bynum expressed concern about what would happen to staff
that cannot become certified. Ms. McLaughlin assured her that the program would not
let anyone go. Waivers will be sought for case managers that do not pass after several
attempts. It was also reported that the Houston testing session has been pushed to May.
This works very well with the current training schedule. Ms. Evans has developed six
sessions that will be offered twice. The training will include sessions on ethics, rules,
standards and a wrap up and review session. The last training will take place on May 3rd.
Ms. Bynum thanked Ms. Evans for her hard work on developing the training track. Mr.
Longoria asked if there was any indication as to what will happen if staff continues to
work without certification. Ms. McLaughlin reported that enforcement and consequences
have yet to be discussed by the Board but it is anticipated this will occur before the fall.
Ms. McLaughlin also gave an update on a recent article that was published in the
Houston Press. The article featured a ward, Ms. Hill and her sons’ efforts to get her out
of guardianship. Ms. McLaughlin reported that Ms. Hills former employer Lise Liddell
has filed to become successor guardian. The hearing will take place next week and it is
expected that Ms. Liddell will be named successor guardian. Ms. Hill is currently being
moved to a new nursing home, The Hampton, near South Post Oak.
Ms. McLaughlin reported that a nursing home that the program had 15 wards in is in the
process of closing. All of our wards have been relocated.
The program is currently working on a collaborative effort with Adult Protective Services
and physicians at local hospitals. The initiative is expected to provide a better insight
into the guardianship process for the physicians.
PROBATE COURT UPDATE:
Ms. McLaughlin reported that Ms. LeVrier has been working with the courts to address
their recent issues. A meeting was scheduled but has since been cancelled since the
issues have been resolved.
FINANCIAL AUDIT REPORT UPDATE:
No reports at this time
The next meeting is scheduled for 2:00 pm on Wednesday, March 7, 2007 at 2525
Murworth, room 128.