Crisis and Assessment Program – Foster Homes

2026-11-03

The Alabama Department of Human Resources is seeking qualified vendors to assist with providing short term assessment and care coordination in a foster home setting for youth under 21 years of age that are new entries , that have disrupted current placement , at risk of placement in long term Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility ( PRTF ). The Department is also seeking to foster resilience and hope in youth and families . Providers are expected to create a highly structured environment that can provide for the stabilization and assessment of youth who ’ s well - being and treatment needs require individualized assessment and care . The program will assess and address the needs of youth new to foster care as well as those youth currently in foster care with challenging behaviors and dispositions that require stabilization of the behavioral health symptoms that place them at risk for disruption of services , increased placement moves , and placement into higher levels of care . The Department seeks providers with the ability to provide ancillary services to preserve or maintain successful placement stability including but not limited to individual aide services . The primary outcomes for these youth are safety , permanency , and well - being . All service providers must incorporate these outcomes into their treatment plans and program curriculum . Referrals will require approval from SDHR Resource Management and Family Services . The anticipated length of stay is 60 - 90 days . Dependent on the unique situation of each youth , the length of stay may be shorter or longer . In situations where a longer stay is determined necessary by the treatment team and ISP team , approval must be obtained by SDHR Resource Management and Family Services . Length of stay will be monitored by SDHR Utilization Review . Therapeutic programs should be modified and individualized to meet the youth ’ s unique set of needs . Discharge requests based on the youth ’ s maximization of benefits of the program should not occur . Other treatment options and modalities should be explored and utilized prior to such requests . The target population of youth may demonstrate severe emotional distress , placement disruption , unpredictable aggression , self - harm , severe impulsivity , severe delinquent behaviors , chronic runaways , display manipulative behaviors , have difficulty maintaining self - control , display poor self - esteem , and have difficulty in accepting authority . Based on a complete and thorough assessment of the youth , an aftercare plan with recommended discharge environment will be developed and implemented no later than 30 days of referral . The development of the aftercare plan should allow the opportunity for intensive work with family / caregivers and supports in transition planning to establish a successful discharge . The selected CAP vendor , however , will not reject a referral , deny admission , or prematurely discharge a youth because they do not have a secured discharge environment . The Department of Human Resources is committed to partnering with the CAP provider to identify the appropriate , safe , and secure discharge environment for each youth . Many of the youth suffer from emotional , psychological , behavioral , cognitive , and learning problems . Providers shall utilize a clinical treatment model that is evidenced based and an approach to service delivery that promotes flexible , individualized treatment and clinical needs that indicate the need for intensive level of services . The services are comprehensive , multidisciplinary , multimodal therapies designed to meet the individual needs of youth who have psychiatric disorders .

Alabama

2026-03-27