Completed Projects


Implementation Research

Comprehensive Family Assessment in Child Welfare Services – evaluation of a demonstration project 

Funding: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (USDHHS) through Ramsey County (RCCHSD) and the University of Minnesota (UMN)
Principal Investigator: Dr. Susan Wells

This project examined child protection family assessment processes to incorporate, test, and adapt the Comprehensive Family Assessment (CFA) Guidelines.


Development of New Models of Service

Excellence in Child Welfare Practice

Funding: Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council; British Columbia Ministry of Children and Family Development
Principal Investigator: Dr. Susan Wells

This project identified mechanisms by which public child welfare agencies could foster a local commitment to practice excellence.

Innovation of Public Social Services (2015)

Funding: Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council; British Columbia Ministry of Children and Family Development
Principal Investigator: Dr. Susan Wells

Researchers conducted a multi-year comparative analysis of service innovation implementation in five sites of local child welfare agencies.

Complex Care and Intervention Youth Outcome Evaluation

Funding: British Columbia Ministry of Children and Family Development
Principal Investigator: Dr. Chuck Geddes

This project consists of a series of small evaluations of a program under development in MCFD.


Knowledge Translation

Interventions to Improve Cultural Competence, Appropriateness, and Safety in Service Delivery – Systematic Literature Reviews (2012-2017)

Researchers in these projects reviewed and synthesized research that evaluates the effectiveness of adaptations to improve cultural competence and outcomes for diverse populations.

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (2014-2017)

This systematic review identified extant themes in the research regarding cultural adaptations across a broad range of health and mental health services and synthesized the most rigorous experimental research available to isolate and evaluate potential efficacy gains of cultural adaptations to service delivery. Link.

Irving K. Barber Endowment (2016)

This systematic review located and evaluated research on cultural adaptations made to juvenile justice services and aggregated the findings in an overview of intervention efficacy. Themes and variations among interventions were analyzed and assessed. Link.


Literature Reviews for Ministry of Children and Family Development

Ministry of Labour, Citizen’s Services and Open Government

This project supported the work of the Ministry for Children and Family Development (MCFD).

Development of an Aggregate Case Record Review Instrument for Critical Cases

BC Interior Region Ministry of Child and Family Development

Through the co-location of an MSW field placement with the Centre, MCFD supported the development of a case record review instrument and case review methodology that may be used to conduct research in collaboration with the Ministry on selected critical cases in the system.

Identifying past issues and future policy directions for MCFD

By 2012, the British Columbia Representative for Children and Youth released about 20 reports about MCFD policy and practice since the signal 2006 review by the Honourable Ted Hughes. The Centre conducted a review of these documents to identify any major trends in issues or recommendations that would help inform future policy and practice.


(Last update: January 23, 2023)