Services Available :: Evaluations

F.A.C.E.S., INC. (Family and Child Evaluation Services) grew out of a concern for the best interest of the family and child. The evaluation program primarily addresses cases where there are allegations of abuse and cases disputing custody and visitation. Counseling services and educational programs are also available and are separate from the Evaluation program.

As a psychotherapist dealing with cases that are involved in the court system I have found it increasingly more difficult to conduct a fair and complete evaluation. In the past, I was in the position of an expert witness for cases of abuse, conflict divorce and parenting time issues. This one sided position did not address the best interest of the child, family or the case as a whole. This was frustrating and often did more harm than good for the parties involved. The evaluation program at FACES, Inc is a non-bias based program and is open to hearing both sides of the case before completing the evaluation process.

The purpose of a case evaluation is to compile, review and evaluate all pertinent information available to the case. Evaluation services are available for cases dealing with allegations of sexual, physical and emotional abuse, custody and parenting time disputes. Other cases are accepted on an individual basis. A court order is needed for the evaluation process to begin. All parties and their attorneys need to agree to participate in the case evaluation. The evaluation process utilizes sessions with the plaintiff, the defendant and any and all family members and interested parties and as needed will utilize psychological testing or other adjunct testing or information.

Family Court Process:
The following is a guide to services and includes but is not limited to the following information.

1. Family presents to the court

1. Unresolved issues
   
   1. Initial referral is received to FACES, INC. for evaluation
      
      1. Initial interview with Plaintiff
      2. Initial interview with Defendant
   2. Initial Summary
      
      1. Outline of conflict/issues
      2. Outline of what is needed to provide recommendations
      3. Time frame to complete evaluation
      4. Outline of the fees for the evaluation
   3. Evaluation Process
      
      1. Interview with all interested parties
      2. Interview with all professionals involved in the case
      3. Review of all written/audio/visual materials pertinent to the case
      4. Psychological testing if necessary
   4. Final Report Submitted to the court
      
      1. Summary of the initial referral
      2. Summary evaluation
      3. Recommendations and referrals



2. Issues are resolved through the evaluation
   
   1. Referral for services to prevent future conflicts
      
      1. Mediation services
      2. Counseling services
      3. Educational services
      4. Community agency programs
      5. Support groups
   2. Follow up as needed

Please note: If you are seeking evaluation services you must have a Family court order asking for an evaluation for the best interest of your child(ren). Counseling services will not provide a recommendation to the court. Counseling will only provide counseling and due to HIPPA/confidentiality law no information will be shared outside of the counseling contract. Counseling services cannot render an opinion on the best interest of the child.

SUPERVISED VISITATION PROGRAM
Supervised visitation may be part of the recommendation that stems from the evaluation process. It may be appropriate for the program to provide or refer the parties for supervision. The program provides training, interviewing and guidelines for supervision. Guidelines can be provided on an individual or case by case bases.

The role of the supervisor:
The role of the supervisor is to be an advocate for the child(ren) not the parent. As an advocate for the child(ren) your role is to advocate for the child's welfare even if that means the loss of parenting rights for the parent. The supervised parenting time is to focus on the emotional and physical well-being and safety of the child at all times. The parenting time is to be as stress free as possible. The parenting time is to maintain a trusting atmosphere and as child friendly as possible. This is so that an appropriate parent-child relationship can occur. Therefore, the following rules are made and are to be enforced by the supervisor. If for any reason the following rules are violated the parent will be warned once and the second warning will result in termination of the parenting time.

Guidelines for choosing a supervisor:
The supervisor needs to:

1. Be familiar to the child
2. Be familiar to the case
3. Follow the guidelines of supervision
4. Be agreed upon by both parties. It is suggested that the supervisor not be a family member.
5. Be able to be an advocate for the child not the parent
6. Be able to stop a visit if the guidelines are not followed
7. Be able to recognize inappropriate verbal and behavioral responses
8. Be available to the non-supervised parent for information
9. Be available to the court for questioning regarding the visits
10. Have transportation on site so if the visit is terminated that they are able to take the child to a safe place.