Appendix E: Sample SACWIS Assessment Review Agenda

Day/Estimated Time	Activity/Description	Recommended State Participants⁶
Day 1: Introductions and system demonstration
45 minutes	Initial Federal and State team meeting Introductions and team member roles Confirm agenda and interviews Review of entrance conference topics: Assessment review process Federal and State expectations Outline preliminary findings Local office expectations	SACWIS project manager State central office team members participating in system demonstration and daily interviews
45 minutes	Entrance conference with executive staff Review agenda and interviews Assessment review process Federal and State expectations Outline preliminary findings Local office expectations Answer questions	Department administrators SACWIS project manager Staff selected by SACWIS project manager
Remainder of day	System demonstration System overview Intake management functions Eligibility functions Foster Care Adoption ICPC Independent living Case management functions Resource management functions Court processing functions Financial management functions Administration Interfaces Optional functionality listed in APD	SACWIS project manager Case Management Supervisor Workers familiar with functions Technical manager Database designer Interface programmer
Day 2: Complete system demonstration
Full day	System demonstration (continued from Day 1)	Same staff as listed above
Day 3: Site visits to field offices (Interviews conducted simultaneously by Federal team members)
Full day per office visited, including travel time. A minimum of two offices will be visited.	Local/county offices Introductions Answer questions Interview office manager Tour office Interview supervisory staff Interview line staff	Central office representative Office manager Case management supervisor Case workers (as available) from all functional areas Data entry clerks (if applicable)
Day 4: Central office interviews (Interviews conducted simultaneously by Federal team members)
2 hours	Central intake (if applicable)	Intake staff
2 - 3 hours	AFCARS interview Report status Overview of elements Review frequencies Significant problems	Record State questions Adoption supervisor Foster care supervisor AFCARS extraction programmer(s)
2 hours	Optional and mandatory interfaces interview IV - A interface IV - D interface XIX interface Optional interfaces	State program staff familiar with each interface. Interface developer(s)
2 hours	Central office program and policy staff interview System impact on program practice/policy Program management Quality assurance Eligibility determination	State program managers responsible for listed topics.
2 - 3 hours	Technical staff interview Hardware, software and network architecture Office automation Database management Maintenance/versions/documentation updates Security/archiving Help desk/user training Disaster recovery	State technical staff responsible for listed topics.
2 - 3 hours	Financial review/administration interview Track Federal funding Authorize/reconcile payments Produce Federal reports Meet administrative requirements Resource management	Financial/budgetary staff Licensing staff
2 - 3 hours	Interviews with categories of users not listed above Central office Other State users Private providers	Staff from applicable categories
Day 5: Review and confirm findings. Discuss draft report.
1 hour	Discuss findings/next steps	SACWIS project manager State central office team
1 hour	Follow-up meetings (if warranted by review)	SACWIS project manager Additional staff determined by topics
1 hour	Follow-up system demonstration (if warranted by review)	SACWIS project manager Additional staff determined by topics
1 hour	Formal exit conference	Department Administrators SACWIS project manager Staff selected by SACWIS project manager

Alternatively, in lieu of Day 5, hold preliminary exit conference and formal exit conference at a later to-be-determined date.

APPENDIX E: Sample State Exit Conference

Month DD, YYYY

Strengths:

Dedicated, conscientious State and county staff
Preparation for the visit is to be commended; extra effort for the visit team's comfort was appreciated
Nearly all outstanding SACWIS requirements have been addressed and completed since the last review; reflects effective collaboration and teamwork between program and project teams
Appropriate system access through security profiles
Improved usability heuristics since last review including:
- Tabbed windows
- Easier referrals
- Contact copy feature
- Definitions that are available for each assessment area
- Inclusion of word processing capabilities, e.g., zoom box, spell check
Case assignments/transfers and supervisory approval processes are effective
Have implemented a sufficiently automated IV-E determination/re-determination process that is typically a complex undertaking
- Monthly re-determinations are invoked prior to monthly batch executions
- Trend analyses are conducted on IV-E determination process
Strong set of online and ad hoc reports to support management decisions
Effective interface with the courts (e.g., petitions, hearings, TPR, court language), also a complex SACWIS area
Before and after snapshot of case and referral data resulting in history tables that provide audit trail capabilities (who changed, date, timestamp)
Freezing at strategic points in business processes, e.g., Investigation, Case Plan, Safety Plan, Case Notes
The Assessment System is an effective tool for creating referrals to providers who perform a battery of assessments that help determine if a child remains in the home or is placed out of the home; if the latter is recommended, the type of placement is also included
Training content seems helpful to workers (see worker suggestions below)
Case management activities appear more efficient with the incorporation and effective use of new technology
When a relationship is created in SACWIS, the system creates an inverse relationship
When used, Help Desk support is valued by the user community
- ACD (Add, Change, Delete) module to track application fixes/modifications
Progressive use of new technology includes:
- Workload listing, which is the gateway to the application with color coding: existing (black), new assignment (red), pending approvals (blue)
- Calendar display of ticklers with scrolling reminder bar for priority due items
- Export of report data to Excel for data manipulation and analysis
- Ability to send records to PDA and back again with a single button enabling offline capabilities for investigation, assessments, providers, contacts, child care checklist; also, PDAs have portable keyboards that enable direct data capture, and cameras for digital imaging that enable workers to:
Attach images (photos) to contacts
Print images on court reports
Identify missing children
- A Web-based application for providers that enables:
Tree navigation
Invoice select, filter and sort
Private agency management of their agencies
Online placement changes
Multiple home approvals
Worker notification after database update.

Concerns:

Outstanding requirements:
- Requirement #83 addresses the bi-directional capabilities between SACWIS and the IV-A system (system that supports TANF). During the visit, it was noted that the interface from was one way. However, the state had identified an action plan of completion in the latest SARR (dated MM-DD-YYYY). As of MM-DD-YYYY, the state has:
  - Modified SACWIS to complete data transfer capabilities between SACWIS and the IV-A system;
  - Provided documentation to ACF detailing the process that will be used to transfer data between SACWIS and the IV-A system,, including a data layout indicating what data will be transferred from SACWIS and the IV-A system
  This modification was implemented on Month DD, YYYY.
Technical Assistance:
- The state may want to consider associating email notes to ticklers to insure ownership of tasks through completion.
Workers' Suggestions:
- To make the merge function less time consuming
- To validate merge information between clients
- To have a more granular sort feature, e.g., additional filters, greater sort flexibility, sort combinations in addition to "and"
- To have fewer screens in SACWIS
- To consolidate the treatment plan into a single report document
- To combine the outcomes reports to render it more useful for court
- To make SACWIS more accessible prior to formal training class
- To make SACWIS available after workers have completed CBTs, and
- To offer advanced training to workers after they have received field experience.

Next Steps:

ACF will prepare a draft letter that indicates that the State has completed all requirements, or has an action plan in place to complete those requirements.
The State will have an opportunity to review the draft and provide feedback or make changes.
ACF will incorporate the changes/feedback and prepare a final letter to be distributed to the State and designated management.
The State must provide progress updates to ACF on the outstanding requirement in their annual APD Update.

⁶ The SACWIS project manager should consult with the Federal team lead to determine which interviews on Day 3 and 4 to attend. back