Team-based Approach
The Family Intensive Treatment team model was designed to eliminate barriers to treatment by providing intensive, team-based, family-focused, services to families in the child welfare system struggling with parental substance abuse. FIT Services are designed to support the recovery, health, and well-being of the parents and families served; enhance the quality of life of the person served; reduce symptoms or needs and build resilience; restore and/or improve functioning; and/or support the integration of the person served into the community. Appropriate intervention services are designed to maximize the parent’s potential and provide program support to re-establish healthy functioning. FIT offers intensive, community-based, treatment to encourage positive parental behavior change related to substance use and mental health and educate parents on ways to foster their ability to provide parental care.
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Counseling | Individual, in-home, therapeutic services designed to promote behavioral health goals and increase Caregiver Protective Capacities.
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Case-Management | Services designed to address the basic support needs of the family and to coordinate the therapeutic aspects of services provided to all family members.
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Peer Support | Services designed to promote recovery, engagement, and retention in treatment, as well as recovery skill development.
Eligibility
The FIT Team can accept parents referred by the child protective investigator, child welfare case manager or Community-Based Care Lead Agency. Providers and stakeholders working with child welfare families, such as engagement programs and the dependency court system, can also refer eligible parent(s)/guardian(s).
FIT Team Providers shall deliver services to parent(s)/guardian(s) who meet all the following criteria:
- Are eligible for publicly funded substance abuse and mental health services pursuant to s. 394.674, F.S (Florida Statutes).; including persons meeting all other eligibility criteria who are underinsured.
- Meet the diagnostic criteria for a substance use disorder.
- At the time of referral to FIT: A child in the family has been determined to be “Unsafe”, with priority given to families with children 0-10 years old;
- At the time of referral to FIT: For children in out-of-home care, the family must have a child welfare case management plan with the permanency goal of reunification;
- At the time of referral to FIT: The parent(s) are willing to participate in the FIT Program or the parent is court ordered to participate in FIT services.
