October 2006

Contract Deliverables between Family Organizations, Lead Governmental and/or Non-Profit System of Care Agencies

Our lead agency for the system of care is working on developing a contract with a local family organization that became a non-profit about a year ago. We are looking for sample contract language that will identify deliverables for the family organization to help support the system of care towards becoming family driven; continue the development of the family organization; and be able to provide family support services within our system of care. How do we know that the family organization is ready? 

Family Organization Infrastructure Development

First it is great that your system of care recognizes the need to support the development of the family organization. Every family organization is in a different stage of development and readiness to take on certain deliverables with their system of care. Every system of care is unique in their approach and the special populations they are working with. It is important to do a proactive assessment of the family organization and their readiness to receive a contract. Key areas of assessment include:

• Have incorporation and IRS tax exemption status been completed?
• Is a Board of Directors established that has a majority representation of family members who have children/youth with serious mental health challenges?
• Is the family organization under a fiscal agent or independent?
• Does the organization have insurance?
• What are the fiscal accountability systems that are in place?
• Does the organization have operating policies and procedures?
• Does the organization currently have staff hired?
• Does the organization currently have other sources of funding?
• What is the organization’s knowledge of system of care and the special populations to be served?

There are some system of care communities that have supported families representing the mental health population to develop a local family organization from inception. This means that the system of care community provided funds for IRS tax exemption, board development, focus groups, strategic planning, and insurance. This process itself has helped to identify deliverables in partnership with the families. The above assessment areas have been seen as deliverables of an established partnering agency that is willing to help birth and fiscally manage the family organization. Local Mental Health Associations or Community Mental Health Centers have been very helpful in doing this across the country. Some family organizations even after they receive their tax exemption status have stayed with their fiscal sponsor due to additional administrative supports and benefits they can continue to receive while they develop and mature. Other family organizations have found that they were unable to make autonomous decisions and wanted to be independent right away. This means that the contracting agency needs to make sure that the organization has the above areas completed to a level of satisfaction in order to establish a contractual relationship with a family organization.

If an organization is only a year old there will be a need to support the basic infrastructure development of the family organization while contracting with the organization to perform direct deliverables for their infrastructure development. The sample contractual language could be the following:

• The family organization will develop program descriptions, protocols and quality assurance for peer support services delivered.
• The family organization will develop work with the lead agency to develop a database and instruments that will collect information to measure performance and quality assurance.
• The family organization will complete board development training in the area of fund development and sustainability.
• The family organization will develop a fund development and sustainability plan.
• The family organization will seek additional funding to support current contract deliverables.

Family Driven System of Care

Sample contract language for your system of care to become family driven will be based on the system design model your community has chosen. You may be looking to hire your lead family contact as an employee of the family organization and other key system of care positions. Contract language should support the partnerships and work that need to be completed to support the development, implementation and evaluation of the system of care initiative. Here are some samples of contract language:

• The family organization will hire a full time staff person as the lead family contact who is a family member with direct experience caring for a child/youth with serious mental health challenges and is from the community. The lead family contact will work in partnership with the system of care administration and will attend all system of care governance board meetings, subcommittee meetings and administrative team meetings.
• The family organization will conduct four family driven trainings across the region for all system of care partners and families to increase commitment to family driven approaches and practices.
• The family organization will conduct four trainings across the region on system partner training for effective engagement and support for families in the child and family team process.
• The family organization will hire a social marketing/communications coordinator and conduct ongoing social marketing activities in partnership with families, youth and community. Activities should include the development of a system of care website, brochure, and orientation packet.
• The family organization will hire a youth coordinator and develop a youth group that meets weekly and is representative of youth being served by the project.
• The Family organization will conduct family friendly training on evaluation and quality assurance with families and youth. Families and youth will participate in monthly system of care evaluation meetings.
• The family organization will increase family and youth participation on local and state policy committees and workgroups as organized under the system of care.
• The family organization will provide family and youth stipends, childcare, and transportation to support participation in system of care activities.

 Family Support Services

Family organizations that have an infrastructure in place are able to deliver direct family support services with families and youth. It is important that the contractor and the family organization have adopted shared values and principles to guide family support. The family support programs and/or service components need to be defined within the contract for common understanding. There should be data collection tools and a database in place to evaluate the quantity and quality of services delivered. It is also important that the database can support a mailing list of families and community partners working with the organization. Below are some sample contract deliverables for family support services that family organizations have offered as a service component within the continuum of care:

• The family organization will provide a toll-free help line that provides ongoing emotional support, information and referral and connection to family organization and system of care activities. The toll free help line will be staffed from at least 9 am to 5 pm during the weekdays. This line should have at least bilingual English/Spanish capacity. All calls should be tracked using agreed upon data collection forms and entered into database.
• The family organization will develop a clearing house of information and resources that can be shared with families, youth and the community. Resources should reflect knowledge across all child and family service systems, community providers across all life domains and policies and laws impacting the population. Resources that are mailed or shared with families should be tracked.
• The family organization will develop a brochure to market family support services.
• The family organization will provide at least one support group in each of the system of care regions per month. Sign in sheets will be used that include a statement that all participants agree to confidentiality. Numbers of attendees should be tracked.
• The family organization will provide at least 6 training during the year on topics that families have identified as necessary for helping them support their abilities to be proactive advocates for their children and family; provide empowerment and support self suffiency. Attendance will be tracked and participants should receive an evaluation on each training experience.
• The family organization will hire at least 8 family partners to work with care coordinators across the system of care at the individual child and family planning team level. The family partners will work with the families to provide an explanation of role and function of the family organization to newly enrolled families; ensure family voice is incorporated into the individualized family service planning process through communication with the care coordinators; listen to family needs, concerns from peer perspective, offering suggestions for engagement in the care planning process; help families identify and use natural support system and other community resources; encourage and refer family to attend peer support groups and other family organization and system of care activities throughout the individualized service planning process; and maintain records of all family contacts and meetings attended.
• The family organization will hold at one monthly social activity across the regions that enrolled families and their children/youth can attend. Activities may include picnics, potluck dinners, outings, etc. Attendance numbers will be tracked.
• The family organization will develop a family satisfaction survey and offer it at least once a year to all families to evaluate the family support services provided. The family satisfaction survey will include how participants rate the family organizations support of families in a proactive manner; the family functioning; the child’s behavior; and satisfaction with the family support services provided.

The sample contract information shared in this frequently asked question by no means should constitute a contract alone, but rather provides ideas for approaching a contract between a family organization and a lead agency. Agencies at times are required to issue a Request for Information that allows the agencies to learn about the family organizations interested in applying for a contract. A Request for Proposal provides an opportunity to gain input about how a family organization and/or agencies will approach deliverables.

Family organizations are instrumental to system of care work because as a 501c3 nonprofit they have the ability to a receive contracts and funding to perform specific services. Family organizations based on their mission are able to connect with many families who have children and youth with mental health needs and related challenges. Sometimes the family organizations are a critical bridge to support families to become involved with their system of care at the individual child and family, practice and policy levels.

It is important to understand and discuss the contract deliverable together and come to agreement. The first time around this can take some negotiation as everyone is learning together. It is important to make sure that the budget reflects all the capacity to implement each deliverable to a level of quality. There needs to be efficient staffing with the skills sets to perform the functions needed. There should be at least annual reporting if not quarterly. Performance standards should be developed that identify outcomes to be achieved along with indicators. Contracts should clearly state the deliverable and expectation of both parties, activities/tasks related to the deliverables; time frames for completion; and measurement and reporting requirements.