We have scheduled our next FREE Virtual CANS/ANSA Training of Trainers!  This 2-day training will take place on Tuesday, May 23rd and Wednesday, May 24th from 9am-4pm. Continuing Education hours will be available for eligible attendees. 

This training workshop is designed for individuals who wish to provide training as well as coaching on the CANS/ANSA to staff within their own organizations or communities.  Key concepts and skills will be practiced through small group discussions, exercises, and activities. Standard curriculum and other materials used during the workshop will be provided to support their work in helping trainees become certified in the use of the CANS/ANSA. Certified Trainers are required to re-certify annually to maintain their trainer status. Certified Trainer re-certification requires initial and annual CANS/ANSA certification with a score of .80 or above. Join our growing team of Alameda County CANS and ANSA Trainers advancing county-wide transformation. 

This training will be posted on our training calendar soon but in the meantime, feel free to reach out to our Alameda County Behavioral Health CANS Lead, Jessica Vigil, if you are interested in becoming a Certified CANS/ANSA Trainer.

Question 1 (CANS/ANSA Support):
Dear Collaborative,
I’m a supervisor supporting staff who utilizes the CANS and ANSA tools. Is there someone we can contact when we have CANS/ANSA questions?

Answer 1: Yes! All Alameda County providers are welcome to bring questions to CANS/ANSA Office Hours. The Alameda TCOM Collaborative, consisting of Community Based Organization (CBO) and Alameda County Behavioral Health staff, hosts office hour sessions where providers, supervisors, and managers can drop in for questions. All CANS/ANSA questions are welcome! See the latest flyer for more information on schedule and registration.

The Alameda TCOM Collaborative also provides consulting/coaching services. Feel free to reach out to find out if your organization already has an assigned coach or inquire about free consulting services. Coaches can answer specific CANS/ANSA questions, help to assess needs, and share training offerings on specific CANS/ANSA topics (e.g. certification, engagement, data & reporting).

For more technical CANS/ANSA account or certification related questions, feel free to contact TCOM Support: support@tcomtraining.com.

Question 2 (Tips for Transferring Certifications):
Dear Collaborative,
Is there an easier way to help individual providers who are having difficulty transferring their certification in Praed? It would be great to have a tip sheet to help navigate the workflow.

Answer 2: Great idea! In response to your question, we created a tool!

Question 3 (Strengths & Needs Action Levels):
Dear Collaborative,
It can be challenging to explain to staff I supervise or clients/caregivers I work with the difference between strengths and needs action levels. Do you have any tools or visuals?

Answer 3: Yes! In response to your question, we updated the tool: CANS Needs & Strengths Iceberg. It provides a visual that we’ve found helpful when explaining the different action levels for strengths and needs. It uses the iceberg visual to show that 2s and 3s often need attention of some type, as both indicate a significant need or a lack of strength in a particular area.

Question 4 (Objective Arts Support):
Dear Collaborative,
I have so many Objective Arts (OA) questions! Can you please share any resources you have?

Answer 4: Yes! Per Jessica Vigil, Alameda County Behavioral Health, Objective Arts (OA) users can find more information/resources on the Alameda County Behavioral Health Care Services (BHCS) Provider Website: BHCS Providers Website (acbhcs.org).

Click on the CANS/ANSA tab and select Objective Arts (OA) Resources. You can find the OA Training Manual, how to edit profiles, OA video links, and CSV Upload formats (for agencies that want to become an uploading agency).

Additionally, see some common questions and answers below:

1. How do I login into Objective Arts?: Your username is your staff ID/Insyst number. If you do not know your password, click on “forgot password” to create a new password.
2. How can I approve my own CANS/ANSA?: Have a conversation with your supervisor to discuss changing your settings on Objective Arts. The role needs to change from Clinician to Senior Clinician.
3. My OA account doesn’t allow me to access the CANS. What should I do?: Please check when your certification expired. During the expiration period, you can only access the PSC 35. [For questions re: CANS/ANSA recertification/account reactivation, you can contact TCOM Support: support@tcomtraining.com.

It is exciting when you hire new staff who have prior experience with the CANS! But then you have the task of figuring out whether their certification can transfer to your organization or not. This task doesn't have to be daunting any more because you can use our new tip sheet to help your administrators find and troubleshoot issues with finding and transferring certifications for your new staff. Click on the button below to check it out!

Do you have a question that keeps coming up about the CANS or ANSA and need help? The collaborative has virtual office hours just for you! We've got a TCOM super-team ready to answer any and all questions about the TCOM tools. Past participants recommend it! Megan from UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland stated "So very thankful for office hours - the synergy and safe space for honest sharing about use of CANS is refreshing and educational too!"  Check out our next set of office hours!

How does CANS work with the new CalAIM reforms? If you've been wondering how they fit together, check out this helpful tip sheet that will help you understand more about the intersection of the CANS and CalAIM including information about: Domains, Treatment/Care Planning, Care Coordination, and Problem Lists. Knowing how these all work together will help you work more efficiently.

Want to learn how to use data to better understand transformation? “Connecting the Dots: The Making of Meaningful Metrics” is a live video podcast series that can help.

"Mr. Mark Lardner, LCSW-C, the Senior Policy Analyst at the Center for Innovation in Population Health (IPH) at the University of Kentucky, is interested in hearing stories from people currently working to connect the dots in our helping systems; using their data to seamlessly move from the delivery of person-centered care based on individual aspirations to transformational system level outcomes.
 
This live video podcast will be an in-depth, and broadly accessible, exploration of innovative approaches for translating assessment data into meaningful metrics across the helping professions. 
 
Each month a different guest will share their insights on how to use data to better understand the transformational process through the use of aggregated data.  These interactive episodes will air the second Tuesday of each month and be archived with helpful resources on our IPH Center live website.  We hope you will join us on this journey to uncover how applied person-centered data is moving us closer to transformational systems that work for all people."

To view the first two episodes, click on the buttons below!

The Center for Innovation in Population Health (IPH Center) at the University of Kentucky and the Praed Foundation have created "The TCOM Channel" on YouTube to facilitate improved communications about the good work happening in the international TCOM collaborative with categories & topics like:

• Ask a TCOM Trainer > How do we manage needs that don't change?
• Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion > Anti-Racist CANS Assessment
• For Parents and Caregivers > A Parent's Perspective on TCOM
• Research Briefs > Authentic Assessments: A Method to Detect Anomalies in Assessment Response Patterns
• TCOM Heuristics > It's About the Person, Not the Person in Care
• Theory and Conceptual Framework > The Myths of Outcomes Management

Many of the videos can be useful training tools for Alameda County agencies so watch, enjoy, and subscribe!

Announcement: We would like to introduce Jessica Vigil as our new Alameda County Behavioral Health (ACBH) CANS Lead! Jessica has experience working for the Alameda County Department of Social Services Agency where she worked with foster youth and their families.  Jessica deeply understands the importance of care coordination and collaboration and she currently also holds the role of the Special Services Coordinator for ACBH.

The Alameda TCOM website has been redesigned with a focus on user experience to increase efficiency, improve site navigation, incorporate search functionality, collect better metrics, and remove outdated information. Site sections have been simplified and information is presented in a more streamline manner to reduce duplication and unnecessary text. We invite you to explore the updated site and utilize the search feature on the home page!

​Our Alameda County CANS/ANSA Provider Collaborative has provided countless live "Roadshow" trainings to a number of Alameda County agencies on topics ranging from:

• CANS/ANSA Live Certification Overview Course
• Treatment Planning with CANS/ANSA
• Engagement with CANS/ANSA
• Using CANS/ANSA in Supervision​
• Using the CANS/ANSA for Teaming

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After receiving 2 of our Roadshow trainings in 2021, Kao Saechao, Asian Health Services Specialty Mental Health Director, reported that, "The resources and materials shared were very helpful for our team in learning how to apply the CANS."  Some highlights of the training that Kao provided were: Tools and resources on how to use the CANS such as documents and examples; Going through some case vignettes; and answering specific questions related to our clientele including engagement issues, cultural/language needs, and more.  Kao also stated "Cinthya and Bree [Provider Collaborative Coaches/Trainers] provided a culturally sensitive perspective that connected the assessment to our daily clinical work. Our team has benefited tremendously and have learned to better incorporate the CANS in client care.”
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Are you interested in bringing a CANS/ANSA training or coaching sessions to your agency? If so, reach out to one of our provider collaborative members to submit a request or ask any associated questions!