Dear Collaborative: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Question 1:
I get confused when youth are in foster care. Which caregivers do I rate when they are not living with their biological parent(s)?
The manual instructs us to rate Foster Parents if they are the ones fulfilling the permanency plan, and often we rate those who the youth identifies as their caregivers/family. Luckily, you can individually indicate ratings in the caregiver domain for up to 4 caregivers when multiple people are supporting the youth. 
 
Question 2:
I was certified as a CANS trainer through Praed [completed the training for trainers (T4T) + homework and received a trainer certificate],  but recently I completed my annual CANS recertification and did NOT achieve a score of .80 or higher. Can I still train?
In order to maintain trainer status, you must earn a reliability score of 0.80 or higher on your local TCOM tool annually and this cannot lapse for more than 3 months. The good news is that you can retest if you don't achieve that score the first time! Once you achieve the required reliability score of .80 or above, you can connect with TCOM Support & Assistance ([email protected]) to ensure your trainer information is up to date. 
 
Question 3:
Do I have to have 2s or 3s on my CANS?
2s and 3s on the CANS indicate that there is a need for action in order for the rating to change (and for Needs items, this usually means there is an associated functional impairment related to that item). If there are no areas that need action (no functional impairments), then we should ask ourselves if the client needs our level of services and/or if they may need to be referred to a lower level of care.  Any client with a mental health diagnosis must have some sort of functional impairment to meet criteria for that diagnosis so there should at least be one 2 for an item that aligns with their mental health diagnosis.