The decision-making process begins with child welfare professionals and their supervisors. They possess first-hand knowledge about the families and case-related issues. The child welfare professionals and supervisors, with input from families and children, are in the best position to make informed, clinical, case-related decisions. In high-profile or high-risk cases, supervisors should consult with managers or other administrators, who may involve other internal or external consultants as needed. Child welfare professionals and supervisors are responsible for making case-related decisions that comply with applicable law, rule and procedure, and policy.

Critical Decisions

Decisions affecting children and families are important. Some decisions identified by DCFS policy and procedure require approval of the child welfare professional’s supervisor. These are the most critical decisions affecting children and families:

• Deciding whether services can prevent placement away from their parents or primary parent figures or whether to remove a child from the home of the parents or primary parent figures. 
• Deciding whether to recommend the return of a child to the home of the parents or primary parents figures from placements away from their parents or primary parent figures. 
• Deciding to decrease the frequency or duration of parent and/or sibling visits with the children and whether visits should be supervised.
• Deciding to change a child’s placement. 
• Deciding to seek termination of parental rights and seek alternate permanent homes. 
• Deciding if children are prepared for partial or total independence. 
• Deciding whether children should be placed apart from siblings who are also placed in substitute care. 
• Deciding whether to release the name, address, and telephone number of the foster /relative caregiver to the parent and/or siblings placed apart(Procedure 315.70)

Service Appeal Definitions

Children, families, relative or foster caregivers may appeal decisions related to services, planning, changes in placements, and payment decisions made by the DCFS or private agencies by requesting service appeals. The service appeal process for the Department consists of mediation, which is optional, and a fair hearing. Initiation of a service appeal does not preclude ongoing discussion between the parties to resolve the appealed issues. If mediation resolves the issues, an agreement is drawn up with some assistance of the mediator and signed by the parties. In some instances, the issue on appeal is too immediate to await the final administrative decision on the action. An emergency review may be held in lieu of mediation on the specific issues, and an interim decision will be issued by the reviewer pending the fair hearing and final administrative decision.

• Emergency review is a limited review of the actions or decisions of the Department or provider agency that may adversely affect an individual served by the Department. An emergency review provides for an interim decision pending a fair hearing
• Fair hearing, as used in Rule and Procedure 337, is a formal review of the action or decision of the Department or provider agency. The fair hearing determines whether such action or decision was in compliance with applicable laws and rules and in the best interest of the child.
• Mediation is a meeting open to all parties affected by the decision being appealed to attempt to reach an agreement on the issue in dispute with a mediator who assists the parties in resolving issues and drawing up an agreement. (Rule 337)