Quality engagement during visits with children and youth in out-of-home care is a key element of effective casework practice, as it supports an accurate assessment of safety, permanency, and well-being. Resources on this page highlight the importance of and strategies for establishing a trusting relationship with children in out-of-home care and their families to support quality interactions during caseworker visits. Resources also include strategies for hosting virtual caseworker visits when in-person visits are not possible. 

Caseworker Visits With Children in Foster Care: Training Videos
Minnesota Department of Human Services
Offers a series of videos that provide best practice strategies for caseworker visits with children and youth in foster care. Also, review the Caseworker and Child Visits Best Practice Guide. (PDF - 1,096 KB)

Quality Caseworker Visit Toolkit
California Social Work Education Center
Presents a tool to support caseworkers in completing and documenting quality caseworker visits with children and families. The website also includes a brief history of laws and regulations relating to caseworker visitation.

Quality Matters: Improving Caseworker Contacts With Children, Youth, and Families
Capacity Building Center for States
Helps improve engagement with families by identifying elements of quality contacts before, during, and after visits and ways the supervisory relationship can improve practice. The website includes links to several related resources including, Defining Quality Contacts and Supporting Quality Contacts Through Supervisor-Worker Coaching.

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Virtual caseworker visits

Remote Casework for Child Welfare Stakeholders in the Time of COVID-19
Hitchcock & Sage (2020)
Provides best practices and tips for child welfare workers, foster parents, family members, youth, and policymakers on the use of technology for remote and virtual casework during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Serving Youth Remotely
Annie E. Casey Foundation (2021)
Highlights ways organizations are delivering remote services to young people and lists six core strategies to engage youth. The brief also reviews challenges and promising practices for each approach.

Successful Video Visits With Young Children
Burnson (2020)
National Council on Crime & Delinquency
Provides tips and strategies for overcoming potential challenges when hosting video visits with young children, including when there are technological limitations or language barriers or when participants may be in distress during a call. 

Top Tips to Engage With Young Children When Video Calling (PDF - 187 KB)
Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children & Prevent Child Abuse Arizona
Provides five tips for successfully engaging young children on video calls.

Using Media Effectively With Young Children and Virtual Visitation [Webinar]
Florida's Center for Child Welfare (2020)
Presents a two-part webinar series hosted by Dr. Rachal Barr on information, tips, and strategies for using remote and virtual communication to strengthen and maintain relationships between children and their families.

• Part One: Virtual Communication With Young Children
• Part Two: Using Media Play With Young Children

Virtual Case Management Considerations and Resources for Human Services Programs
Waters, Winston, & Ghertner (2020)
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation 
Explains three key considerations for performing case management online and over the telephone in place of in-person visits and services. This webpage also provides related resources. 

Virtual Visitation Resources
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Children’s Bureau (2020)
Lists resources on the use of virtual visitations in child welfare practice and other fields.

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