SECONDARY DATA REVIEW AND FOLLOW-UP INTERVIEW OF A

In county social service agencies, working with children at risk of out of home placements and their families is becoming an increasingly complex and difficult job. These parents often have limited parenting knowledge and/or social support and feel powerless to change their situation. The present system refers families to individual family therapy and/or to Family Based Services. The county referred to in this study decided to try a new intervention called MFT. The term multiple family group therapy has come to mean the simultaneous treatment of three or more families in group by one or more facilitators. It is important to monitor a new intervention as to who was served and how they changed as a result of services. With this information an intervention can be enhanced and hopefully provide more families the services they need to keep their children in their home. The information collected can also be used to communicate, to those in positions to fund and implement comparable services, the value of this intervention. In order to enhance this new intervention the following questions should be asked: How can MFT be improved? How helpful for parents was their experience in the MFT? Do Parents perceive that their family dynamics will improve within a short period of time