Families and Communities Together (FACT)/
Integrated Family Intervention (IFI)

FACT
FACT is a program designed to bring parents of at risk children together with service providers with the goal of preventing out of the home placement. FACT is a process that looks at the strengths of both the child and the family. Based on those strengths and an assessment of the family and child's needs, goals are developed that will allow the child to remain at home.

FACT coordinates services with various educational, legal, and social services agencies that seek services for their child. Our FACT coordinator offers Integrated Family Intervention classes on a short term basis.

FACT coordinates service providers with families to prevent duplication of services and link families to appropriate services available in the community that a family may not be aware of. FACT's goal is to partner with families.

IFI
Integrated Family Intervention is an intensive, multi-phased process for children aged 10-16 who have been identified with disruptive behavior problems and their parents. An emphasis is placed on addressing behavior problems within the context of a family system and modifying the problem behavior, the conditions that typically precede the behavior, and the consequences that occur following the behavior. Each family develops a behavior change plan that includes plans for anticipating problem behaviors when they occur, staying calm and managing anger and direct social skills instructions for children. Each family will have access to case coordination, mental health evaluations, and medication evaluation by a child psychiatrist when appropriate.

IFI Program Components

Common Sense Parenting
Common Sense Parenting is a brief intervention for parents aimed at teaching parents to use effective discipline, clear communication, effective praise, proactive teaching and corrective teaching. It teaches parents to teach self-control to their children and to develop staying calm plans for themselves. An emphasis is placed on teaching children appropriate social skills. Common sense parenting has been shown to result in a decrease in child behavior problems, an increase in family satisfaction and a decrease in risk for child physical abuse. Parent groups meet weekly, tow hours per session and for six weeks.

Teaching Social Skills to Youth
Activities that many people find quite easy (carrying on a conversation, introducing oneself to a guest, etc.) can present major hurdles for a young person who has not developed a repertoire of effective behavior whose deficiencies are compounded by emotional or behavioral issues. In addition, a youth who is capable of demonstrating appropriate social skills skills still may have difficulty in recognizing when, where, and with whom to use a particular skill. Skills such as following instructions, accepting "no" answers are taught and practiced in small groups using steps and vocabulary consistent with that which is taught to the parents in the parents' group. Children are also given assignments to aid in the transfer of training topics to their life situations. The assignments themselves can range from written homework reviews of group topics to journal recordings of success (or lack thereof) encountered in implementing the target skills. Social Skills groups meet weekly, two hours per session, for six weeks.

Multi-Family Groups:
Following the six week educational phase of the program, parents and children participate in a combined, multi-family group. These groups meet every other week and follow a structured, problem solving format. The social skills and parenting education provide a common base and vocabulary to be used by children and parents to define problems, generate possible solutions, weighing pros and cons of each potential situation, selecting a preferred solution, and developing a plan for implementation.

Referral
Families may be referred to the IFI program by contacting Jane Schenk at The Counseling Center.

The criteria for the program include a child aged 10 - 16 who has been identified with a disruptive behavior problem. Each child selected for the program must have at least one parent who has committed to attending each of the group meetings and implementing the recommendations. Attendance is required at each meeting during the educational phase of the program. Consistent attendance is critical during each phase of the program.

For further information regarding FACT or IFI please contact Jane Schenk, FACT Coordinator at 585-593-6300 ext. 216.

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