As another year comes to a close (thank goodness!), it's time to recap our top blogs of 2020.
Below is a countdown of this year's posts that our readers found most insightful. Remember, you can subscribe any time to make sure you never miss out on future content.
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Social workers are some of the most resourceful, creative, and passionate people in the world. It’s just one of the reasons I’m so appreciative of your unwavering commitment to serve on the frontlines.
No matter the circumstances, you’ve always risen to the occasion to prioritize your communities and, most importantly, keep kids, families, and communities safe—even more than usual in these past several months of uncertainty, isolation, and anxiety. Thank you for being a source of stability and strength for the families who rely on you.
"A system like this is absolutely needed to support caseworkers to do what I believe they are walking through the door to do. That's to keep kids safe, to find them permanency, and to assist families in being healthy and self-sufficient."
When asked why Mesa County Department of Human Services (DHS) chose to implement Northwoods’ child welfare solution Traverse®, Child Welfare Director Joe Kellerby said it’s because agency leadership believed the software could empower caseworkers to meet the goals above. How? By minimizing administrative burdens to enhance critical work, thus allowing caseworkers to fully focus on building trust, engaging families, and reducing trauma.
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Traverse®—Northwoods' content collection and case discovery software solution—digitizes entire case files and mobilizes content to enable social work from anywhere. It surfaces critical information to help child welfare teams manage the complexity of today’s cases. As a result, agencies can better meet performance measures and permanency goals.
Read More![Prioritizing Technology in Human Services and Preparing for What May Be Next [Lessons from COVID-19]](https://blog.teamnorthwoods.com/hubfs/07-01-2020-COVID-19-Technology.jpg)
The COVID-19 pandemic has been a wake-up call for human services in many ways.
Initially, it forced agency leaders to rethink how and where mission-critical work could be done, as well as which tools and technology were truly essential to support this new way of operating. Now, the focus has shifted toward determining the best way to allocate shrinking budgets and limited resources to sustain these changes and navigate the new landscape for the long term.
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We’d like to take a moment to thank all the social workers who work tirelessly for children in foster care. Your days are long and too often touched by heartbreak. But because of your dedication and concern, you help create joy and hope for the families you serve.
In honor of National Foster Care Month, here are some amazing foster care success stories. We hope you find them to be an inspirational and heartwarming reminder of why you work so hard for your children and families.
It’s no secret the COVID-19 pandemic will impact child welfare for years to come. We asked our child welfare evangelist, Rich Bowlen, to share his insight on how agencies are adapting, what this means for child welfare in the future, and how to weather the long-term aftereffects of the storm.
Technology can never replace human interaction in child welfare. And it shouldn’t. Connecting with children and families is fundamental to improving outcomes and well-being.
The current COVID-19 pandemic has caused many child welfare agencies to quickly pivot to support a remote workforce, and enable people to connect and share important information in new and different ways. Some child welfare experts predict connecting remotely will become part of the new normal for child welfare through things like video chats, collaboration apps, or instant messaging tools.
Traverse, Northwoods’ child welfare software, is empowering remote work across the country today, while supporting caseworkers’ efforts to provide critical service delivery, in a variety of ways. We put five best practices from agencies using Traverse into a 25-minute webinar. If you’re strapped for time, keep reading below.
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To our Traverse® customers,
As essential services personnel, having the right tools in your toolbox is important as you need to access information quickly, wherever you might be.
To support you in your continuing efforts to keep children, families, and yourselves safe during this time, here are seven tips for making the most of Traverse.
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Human services agencies are always adapting to meet the needs of the children, families, and a seemingly constant change in the landscape.
For many of us, from leadership to frontline workers, this has meant adjusting to the reality that as much work as possible must be done outside the agency’s walls to preserve the health and safety of our vulnerable communities.
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Visit the Research Library to learn from experts in the social services software field.
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