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Begins on day one
Utilizes the family’s expertise in problem
solving
Is discussed and planned for at each plan
of care meeting
Requires exceptional crisis/safety planning
Utilizes the Wraparound process in a planful
and concise manner
Instills hope for a better future
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Utilizes a well balanced team consisting
mostly of natural/informal supports
Providers coach and practice helpful and
sustainable skills and techniques with
families prior to transitioning out
Community resources and supports are
explored well before ending
Success is celebrated soon and often
The youth and family are able to mobilize
their own team as needed
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The ability to communicate and behave
with confidence and reassurance
Good planning and organizational skills
A working understanding and use of the
components of the Wrap Process
The ability to be introspective about
who’s needs are really being met
The ability to uncover and plan around
underlying needs
The ability to remain focused on families’
desired outcomes
Negotiate transition with the full team
 Allow Family Voice to be heard about
transition
 Plan for interventions to fade over time
 Set clear transition benchmarks
 Use life domains as a guide for system
exit
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Keep track of incremental progress – no
matter how small the increments
 Expect and plan for set backs – look for
the learning opportunity
 Celebrate success and transition the
family’s way
 Leave the family with a clear plan and
real way to access help when needed
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1.
2.
3.
4.
Engagement– Learning about the
family’s strengths, support system, and
building hope for a better future
Planning– Bringing existing supports in
and deciding how to build new supports
Implementation– Building bridges to the
community, enhancing or enlarging
competency, creating opportunities for
a better life
Transition– Help is in place. Team is
mobilized to act when needed.
If transition begins on day one then what does an
effective first visit look like?
 Facilitator allows time and space to really listen
 Facilitator clearly explains the Wraparound process
letting the family know there is an end point
 Facilitator meets immediate needs
 Facilitator begins exploring the family’s support
system
 Facilitator ends first visit by creating hope for the
future
Activity: In pairs or small groups discuss what else is needed for a first visit to set
the stage for effective transition planning. Be prepared to report out.
For a strengths discovery to utilized for
effective transition planning it must be:
 Robust in nature
 Reflective of the family’s culture,
preferences and skills
 Well-rounded in that it reflects all family
members, their supports and community
Activity: Review the plan(s) you have in front of you and evaluate
the strengths discovery for effective transition planning. Be
prepared to report out on what you have found
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Good Facilitation requires setting the stage in the first visit about what
makes Wraparound unique
Normalize the process of bringing support to the table for planning
purposes. Be prepared to give examples
Set a calendar of both visits and team meetings as soon as possible and
establish a mechanism for team member invites/reminders
Establish roles and responsibilities early in the process to keep everyone
on task and invested.
Utilize the family’s preferences and interests to add team members as
needed
Remember the families who transition the earliest and with the most
success have a support system in place to allow this to happen. It is our
job to help them get there
Activity: Evaluate the team list on the plans you have brought. Is the mix of
formal and natural/informal where it should be? Have you established
a routine where teams know what is expected of them?
Provides a clear sense of what a better
future would look like
• Is written in language that is meaningful to
the family
• Reflects the whole family’s hopes and
dreams
• Provides the family with ownership of their
plan and sets the stage for them to think
beyond system involvement
•
Activity: Evaluate the vision statement of the plan(s) you have to
determine if the vision meets the above criteria.
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Go beyond the surface of problems or
behaviors and represent the underlying
reasons or root causes
Answer the question why?
Are enduring in nature and reflect cause
or meaningful desire rather than action
Are prioritized to deal with the “big stuff”
When met will lead families closer to their
vision
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Sam needs help on his school work
Tammy will stop cutting on herself
The Smith family wants counseling
Sarah deserves to be in a loving and safe
home
Billy wants help understanding his angry
outbursts
Jason wants to be accepted for his choices in
partners
In pairs discuss and determine which need statement(s) could be utilized in
an effective plan that would lead to transition? Be prepared to report
out which need(s) you chose and why.
Benchmarks should:
 Represent what the team/family would see if a behavior
changed or diminished
 Be measurable in a realistic way (Scaling, counts, time
increments)
 Be attainable
 Reflect positive: more of what is wanted rather than not
 Represent steps that would get the family/team closer to
the need being met; answers the question, if this need
were met the behavior we would see is________.
Activity: Using the plan(s) you have brought, review the need statements and
corresponding benchmarks based on the criteria from this slide and the previous slide.
Be prepared to report out on what you have learned.
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Do the strategies demonstrate a clear call to action by the team
Do team members have delineated tasks and responsibilities
Are time frames in place
Have meaningful strengths and preferences been included in
the strategies
Do the strategies reflect more natural/informal supports rather
than formal systems or providers
Do the strategies lead to benchmark accomplishment
Have the formal team members contributed strategies that
reflect teaching and coaching of their skills and techniques?
Is the family’s community reflective in the strategies?
Activity: Review the strategies on the plans you have brought based on the above criteria. What
would you do to improve the strategies to promote a smoother transition for the family they
apply to?
Tell the family how to react immediately
and responsively to the events at hand
• Need to be practical and realistic
• Describe specifically safe alternative
behaviors
• Contain steps that are written in order of
use, least restrictive to most
• Have been rehearsed and are
accessible in times of need
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Crisis plan holds meaning to family
Is not reliant on formal services
List supports that are available when needed
Steps are in place that are clear and are applicable
to the environment(s) in which the crisis may occur
Tells the adult(s) in charge not only what to do but
how to do it calmly
Is concise and accessible if/when needed
Activity: Using the plans you have brought, review the crisis plans using the
criteria on the previous slide and this one. How would you improve the
current plans to prepare the family for transition? Be prepared to report out
on what you have found.
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Meet as least monthly
Use the process to evaluate progress
Add to the strengths list as you go
Review the Vision for accuracy
Continue to uncover and prioritize underlying needs
Assess progress by checking the benchmarks; needs closer
to being met not just services delivered
Provide the team with tangible evidence of progress
Change the strategies as needed to meet the
benchmarks
Add natural/informal supports to the team and keep
everyone invested with a task or responsibility
Celebrate success along the way
Keep the process creative, fun and moving
Contain the following:
 A copy of the final plan of care
 A crisis plan that has been tried or rehearsed by the
family
 Numbers to call for help if needed in the future
 A copy of any educational plan or evaluations that
have been done
 A letter of introduction or set of references for future
involvement with potential jobs, schooling, etc
 A certificate of accomplishments
Activity: In pairs or small groups, brainstorm other items that may be helpful to
add to a transition portfolio. Be prepared to share your ideas with the large
group.
The program mandates your ending
time
2. The money has run out
3. The team is out of ideas
4. The team is out of patience
5. The family, team or facilitator has lost
hope
1.
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Begin the process of transition early
Build continuously on strengths and accomplishments
Shift the balance from system activity to community
activity
Assure the prioritized needs have been met to the
point of the family being able to do it on their own
Support rather than abandon the family
Lets the family know they are able to call and run
their own team meetings when needed
Gives the family the sense of connection and support
by those that love and care about them
Mary Jo Meyers, Consultant and Trainer
E-mail: consultmjm@hotmail.com