Ohio IPV Collaborative

Since 2004, the Supreme Court of Ohio's Advisory Committee on Children, Families & the Courts has participated in ongoing efforts to develop and implement recommendations to improve Ohio's system for accepting and investigating reports of child abuse and neglect. One of the fundamental components of the recommendations submitted by its Subcommittee on Responding to Child Abuse, Neglect and Dependency was initiating an Alternative Response child protection model in Ohio.

During the 18 month pilot project, several counties identified the need for training and technical assistance on the intersection of child protection and intimate partner violence. Casey Family Programs and the HealthPath Foundation of Ohio offered resources to address this need as part of the Ohio Intimate Partner Violence Collaborative. This Collaborative allowed Ohio to enlist David Mandel & Associates to train four initial demonstration sites - Clark, Fairfield, Franklin and Ross - on the Safe and Together model, a strengths-based, behaviorally focused model developed and trained by DMA. The model utilizes multiple skills-based trainings to assist workers in strengthening their assessment, client engagement and interviewing skills for timely identification of intimate partner violence and to provide appropriate and adequate service recommendations. In addition, a strong emphasis is placed on cross systems collaboration during the training by inviting community partners to participate in the training alongside agency workers.

Following intense training, technical assistance, coaching and mentoring, the four sites implemented the model within the Differential Response structure with great results. Based on the positive feedback from the community partners and the CPS agencies, Ohio is now engaged in a statewide plan to offer this training to individual DR counties as requested, by utilizing Ohio-based trainers certified in Safe and Together training. This website contains information and resources about Ohio’s ongoing efforts to enhance worker skills through the implementation of the Safe and Together model within the Differential Response system.

EXPANSION