Taking on Practice Model Implementation Challenges

1. Taking on Practice Model Implementation Challenges The New Mexico Experience Practice Model Peer Network Webinar September 10, 2012

2. New Mexico Background Information

3. New Mexico • Children, Youth & Families Department, Protective Services Division is the federally designated child welfare agency • Administration is centralized, with direct services offered through county offices located within five designated regions

4. New Mexico • 854.8 Positions • Current vacancy rate approximately 17% • Approximately 17,000 investigations annually • Average caseload 16.1 children per caseworker • As of July 2012: • 1752 in out of home placement • 122 children on trial home visits • 51% have a reunification plan • 39% have a plan of adoption • Approximately 3% have PPLA plan

5. Prior Change Initiatives Federal Consent Degree Structured Decision Making Concurrent Planning CFSR Round 1 Program Improvement Plan CFSR Round 2 Program Improvement Plan Safety Management Model

6. Previous Implementation Strategies • Identify best practices • Revise agency policy and procedures • Modify systems, e.g., SACWIS, forms, etc. • Provide training • Conduct quality assurance • Management Information reports • Case review • Provide more training • Provide additional training

7. New Mexico Practice Model • Piñon Project • Defines how we engage and work with children, youth, families, and stakeholders • Focuses on the safety, permanency, and well-being of children and their families • Underway since November 2009 • Supported by the Mountains and Plains Child Welfare Implementation Center (MPCWIC).

8. Doing Things Differently “Bottom Up” rather than “Top Down” approach Application of Implementation Research

9. Application of Implementation Research • Practice, program and systems change through fully integrated use of: • Implementation Stages • Implementation Drivers • Implementation Teams • Improvement Cycles

10. Stages in Implementation Two to four years Major Implementation Initiatives occur in stages: • Exploration • Installation • Initial Implementation • Full Implementation

11. Not all Implementation Challenges are Created Equally

12. Selecting the Correct Strategy • Different strategies for different challenges • Technical Leadership • Adaptive Leadership • Change efforts “get stuck” because we are using technical approaches for adaptive issues

13. Technical Challenges Perspectives are aligned (views, values) Definition of the problem is clear Solution and implementation of the solution is clear Primary locus of responsibility for organizing the work is the leader

14. Adaptive Challenges Legitimate, yet competing perspectives emerge Definition of the problem is unclear Solution and implementation is unclear and requires learning Primary locus of responsibility is not the leader

15. Discovering the Adaptive Challenge Your Aspiration Your Current Reality Adaptive Leadership ADAPTIVE CHALLENGE

16. New Mexico’s Approach • Continued with necessary technical solutions • Develop practice standards • Revise policies and procedures • Modify quality assurance practices • Communicate expectations • Expanded agency capacity to do adaptive work • National Resource Center for Organizational Improvement & Cambridge Leadership Associates

17. Tools for Practicing Adaptive Leadership Discovering the Adaptive Challenge Personalizing the Adaptive challenge Mapping the System Case Consultation Office Hours

18. New Mexico’s Approach • Series of planning sessions with NRCOI & CLA • Two Day On-site training in January 2012 • Involved staff from implementation sites • Implement Office Hours in implementation sites • Ongoing work by the staff on one of the four adaptive challenges • Monthly meetings with office team and executive sponsors • Design and implementation of a series of mini- experiments • Scaling efforts

19. Lessons Learned Diagnostic efforts are critical Experiments don’t always succeed – but you learn from successes and failures Important to identify measurements Anticipate and acknowledge loss and the various ways it may be expressed Be clear about why participants are being asked to change or experience the loss

20. Questions?

21. Presenters: Annamarie Luna Program Deputy Director Protective Services Division Children, Youth & Families Department Annamaire.luna@state.nm.us Brenda Manus Practice Improvement Bureau Protective Services Division Children, Youth & Families Department Brenda.manus@state.nm.us