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Oklahoma
Federation of Families for Youth and Children's
Mental Health (OFFYCMH)
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FAMILY VOICE AND CHOICE The term Family Voice and Choice refers to the underlying nonnegotiable principle of Systems of Care that the family unit receiving services is in charge of its own destiny and will have the final say in the approval of any wraparound treatment plan component that effects that family. More importantly, Family Voice and Choice negates the past role of family therapy in which the therapy team was in charge of treatment, tried to identify what was “wrong” with the family, and then laid out a prescriptive plan for the family to follow to correct itself. In practice, in Systems of Care communities, family members of children who have mental illness or severe emotional disturbance should be represented on the Community Team and the Referral Team. In summary, Family Voice and Choice means that no decision related to a child’s services—whether it is at the planning, development, implementation or evaluation level—will be made without family involvement and approval. |