Date: October 20, 2021
Time: 1-2:30pm
Audience: County and Tribal APS
Title: Findings and Recommendations to Improve Statewide Consistency, Equity, and Outcomes for Vulnerable Adults
Guidehouse Inc., on behalf of MN DHS, will present to county and tribal APS on findings and recommendations to improve statewide consistency, equity, and outcomes for Vulnerable Adults from the Evaluation Report of Adult Protective Services Standardized Intake Decision Tool (PDF).
Click the link below to register - receive a link to the October 20, 2021 presentation
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER
DHS contracted with Guidehouse Inc., as a consultant, to evaluate the validity of the state’s standardized intake decision tool, which is required to be used by APS to support objective screening decisions for reports of suspected vulnerable adult maltreatment referred by the state's centralized reporting system, the Minnesota Adult Abuse Reporting Center (MAARC). DHS partnered with our consultant to analyze data entered by APS workers and collected in the Social Services Information System (SSIS) from 2017 - 2020 to evaluate whether the standardized intake tool produces valid and reliable screening decisions as to which reports are accepted, or “screened in”, by the agency for adult protective services for the vulnerable adult. In addition to data analysis, the consultant examined state training and policy, and engaged APS teams throughout the state to understand how the tool is operationalized in order to formulate recommendations to foster APS making valid and reliable screening decisions. Finally, the consultant was charged with studying client outcomes to identify whether APS intake decisions resulted in equitable APS service offerings for vulnerable adults across diverse demographics including age, gender, geography, disability type, race/ethnicity, etc.
The complete Evaluation Report of Adult Protective Services Standardized Intake Decision Tool (PDF) includes findings and recommendations as well as describing the methods deployed in the study. The State has approved this report and is responsible for all opinions, statements, recommendations and conclusions in this report.
This project was supported under Minnesota’s grant award to Enhance State Adult Protective Services from the Administration for Community Living (ACL).
If you have any questions, please contact us at dhs.adultprotection@state.mn.us.
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New SSIS functionality in the 21.4 statewide release scheduled for November 30th includes the ability for counties to enable and use an email or text notification option to support timely response by county and tribal APS for vulnerable adults when the EPS referral is received electronically in SSIS by an agency after-hours, weekends and holidays. Option for internal notification supports APS program administration after January 1, 2022 when MAARC no longer makes after-hours EPS phone calls for referrals received electronically in SSIS for agencies whose workers are not accessing SSIS daily.
A description of the upcoming enhancement is included in SSIS Update Issue 563, SSIS Update Newsletters (state.mn.us)
In 2013, the state Legislature authorized the DHS commissioner to implement a Human Services Performance Management (HSPM) system for essential human services, which includes performance measures and thresholds. Adult Protection is an essential human service!
The vision of HSPM is to create an equitable human services system, which ensures effective services and positive outcomes for Minnesota residents through accountability, continuous improvement, cultural responsiveness and partnership.
Want to know what is coming up for the HSPM system? Sign up for their e-newsletter! Click here to subscribe to Performance Management emails and keep up to date with HSPM.
Questions? Contact the Performance Management team at DHS.HSPM@state.mn.us.
Data help policy makers and the public understand the nature and scope of an issue. In the case of adult protection, data provide a basis to understand if vulnerable adults are treated fairly and justly in our state. Data can impact program evaluation, benchmarks for quality and performance outcomes, budget planning and resource allocation, and inform evidenced based prevention and remediation/service response for vulnerable adults who have been maltreated.
“Without data, you're just another person with an opinion."
― W. Edwards Deming
The Vulnerable Adult Protection Dashboard provides annual state and county data on the number of reports, allegations, and investigation determinations. The dashboard explains what happens after reports of suspected maltreatment of a vulnerable adult are made to the Minnesota Adult Abuse Reporting Center (MAARC).
The image below shows statewide EPS Referrals by quarter in 2021.
 Data Source: Minnesota Adult Abuse Reporting Center (MAARC)
The DHS Adult Protection Unit values our APS partners and depends on APS Regional Partnership Meetings for collaboration and information sharing. We adopted a new format for APS Regional Partnership Meetings in January, 2021, and we would love to hear your feedback about how these quarterly meetings are going and how they can improve.
The survey is 7 questions and will take just a few minutes to complete; open from 10/15-10/29.
CLICK HERE TO TAKE THE SURVEY
Thank you in advance for helping us better understand how the APS Regional Partnership Meeting can continue to develop as a community of practice and improve protective services for vulnerable adults reported as maltreated.
If you have any questions, please contact us at dhs.adultprotection@state.mn.us.
DHS Adult Protection Resource Specialists (APRS) support adult protective services (APS) workers and supervisors with policy clarification and case consultation regarding intake, assessment, service intervention, and investigative outcomes for the safety and dignity of vulnerable adults reported as having experienced maltreatment. Connect with your APRS today at dhs.adultprotection@state.mn.us or (651) 431-2609.
APRS Quick Tip - Troubleshooting Tips for Using the APS Manual
The Minnesota Adult Protection Policy and Procedure Manual includes a wealth of information and supports the
responsibilities of county and tribal agencies who have accepted the duty to protect vulnerable adults who have been maltreated. Here are a couple tips to help navigate this online document:
- Change the view to show links for each section of the manual. This will allow you to find what you are looking for more quickly. If you are using Chrome, select the "document outline" button on the top left of the page. If you are using Explorer, select the "bookmarks" navigation pane button on the top left of the page. See the screenshots below.
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- Use the search function. In both Chrome and Explorer, press Ctrl+F to find what you are looking for in the document. For example, if you enter "APS" into the Ctrl+F search function, you can click through all 208 instances "APS" appears in the document.
And as always, you can call your APRS to consult if you have any questions!
APS Foundations
APS Foundations provides a basic introduction to the adult protection system in Minnesota. APS Foundations focuses on fundamental elements of Minnesota's adult protection system such as statutes and definitions, Minnesota Adult Abuse Reporting Center (MAARC), Lead Investigative Agencies (LIAs) and jurisdiction, the Adult Protection service cycle and time frames from intake to case closure, and much more.
APS Foundations is intended for new adult protection workers and supervisors, or adult protection workers and supervisors seeking a refresher. APS Foundations supports equity and consistency in service response and outcomes that safeguard and promote dignity for vulnerable adults, regardless of their location in Minnesota, and addresses core competency training recommendations in the ACL Voluntary Consensus Guidelines for State APS Systems.
APS Foundations is offered online and consists of four 2 hour sessions over four consecutive weeks (8 hours total). Attendees will need to complete all four sessions to receive a certificate of completion. APS Foundations dates are set up to precede SSIS Worker Training dates as much as possible. Therefore, APS workers have the option to attend policy (Foundations) and systems (SSIS) trainings sequentially.
Upcoming APS Foundations Cohorts (registration is for all four dates of a cohort):
- Nov 9, 16, 23, and 30, 2021 (Tues) 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. | Click Here to Register
- Jan 18 and 25, Feb 1 and 8, 2022 (Tues) 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. | Click Here to Register
- Mar 10, 17, 24, and 31, 2022 (Thurs) 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. | Click Here to Register
- May 12, 19, 26, and Jun 2, 2022 (Thurs) 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. | Click Here to Register
Please contact us at dhs.adultprotection@state.mn.us if you have any questions.
SSIS Adult Protection Worker Training
The SSIS Adult Protection Worker course is a technical training designed to provide an overview of data entry as related to Adult Protective Services (APS) into SSIS. The training is offered in two half-day virtual classes and is designed for new adult protection workers, SSIS Mentors, and those seeking a refresher. More information can be found on the SSIS Adult Protection Worker Training website.
Upcoming SSIS Adult Protection Worker Training:
- Oct 11 and 14, 2021 (Mon and Thurs) 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
- Jan 10 and 13, 2022 (Mon and Thurs) 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
- Feb 14 and 17, 2022 (Mon and Thurs) 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
- Apr 11 and 14, 2022 (Mon and Thurs) 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
- Jun 6 and 9, 2022 (Mon and Thurs) 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Please visit the SSIS Adult Protection Worker Training website for registration instructions, additional resources, and more detailed information about the course.
SSIS Essentials eLearning
SSIS Essentials is a collection of six eLearning courses designed to provide caseworkers with an introduction to basic navigation and functionality of core SSIS functions. SSIS Essentials eLearning is offered through TrainLink. New workers are encouraged (not required) to take the online SSIS Essentials eLearning courses prior to taking SSIS Adult Protection Worker training.
Please visit the SSIS Essentials eLearning website for registration and TrainLink instructions, technical requirements, and more detailed information about each of the six SSIS Essentials courses.
Additional Practice Resources
Find information on adult protection policy, procedure, resources, and training information for mandated reporters and APS on the DHS Adult Protection: Policies and Procedures web page. Specific training resources for APS workers are included under the "Adult protection worker resources and training" drop down. These resources support APS workers meeting education requirements under 626.557 Subd. 9e.
Our goal for the DHS Adult Protection Newsletter is to share knowledge specific to adult protection work in Minnesota, answer common questions regarding adult protection work in Minnesota, and provide awareness of DHS Adult Protection training opportunities. Please contact us with any questions or concerns at dhs.adultprotection@state.mn.us or (651) 431-2609
For more information about DHS Adult Protection, please visit us online DHS AP: Program Overview
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