(#children x 1 hour visit) + 4 hours role play + (#children x .5 file/data/hv prep) + (#children x .25 commute) = # hours required per week
20 children = 39 hours. So 20 children per 40 hour home visitor, or 1.0 FTE.
HHSC is required to report families to HRSA. So a conversion of 1.18 - determined by the UT evaluation team - was used to arrive at 17 families per 1.0 FTE.
The following are not considered in the formula but impact either the #hours per week or the length of the program year.
· host agency responsibilities - meetings, accountability systems, etc.
· additional surveys, reports, assessments throughout the year
· required trainings
· monthly parent meetings
· Commute/travel distances
· Curriculum served in caseloads, ie. mix of ages, all 3's, all 5's, etc.
The home visits and role play estimate is accurate across all sites. What differs from one site to another or even one home visitor to another is the preparation work and the commute times. This is where each site must put some thought into how many more or fewer children could be served by a home visitor.
Applying the new caseload to determine total service #'s for HHSC contracts
For each home visitor position in your budget, start with 20 children = 1.0 FTE. Use the %FTE for each home visitor and multiply the %FTE times 20 children. Then add up all the caseloads to get your total # of children expected to serve. You can apply the conversion to account for families with siblings by dividing the total # of children by 1.18.
IMPORTANT NOTES
- Programs should account for a % of families having 2 or more children and not just submit a overall number based on a 1:1 ratio of children to families. This is where the conversion comes in.
- All HHSC funded programs are expected to maintain 85% enrollment the entire year.
- The caseload number is an average for each home visitor which allows you to come up with your total service numbers for the contract. Actual caseloads may vary based on a number of considerations - some of which are noted above.
