Transcript Tax Credits and Other Incentives to Promote Employment and

Advanced ETO Data Entry
February 2015
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Learning Objectives
At the conclusion of this training, CWICs will:
• Understand the overall importance of timely,
accurate and complete data entry.
• Understand the definition of efforts and when they
should be entered.
• Understand how and when to properly record
follow-up assessments.
• Understand the upload documents feature.
• Understand how to connect with, and access
available ETO resources.
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Recording Efforts
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Meeting the Efforts Benchmark
• Benchmark: Number of WIPA enrollees with at least 4
efforts recorded within the first 182 days of enrollment.
• Calculation:
– Numerator = participants active in WIPA Services within
the date range who had more than 3 efforts recorded
before their 183rd day of enrollment.
– Denominator = participants in WIPA Services with 4 or
more efforts in the first 182 days AND participants
enrolled at least 182 days.
• Goal: 80% of WIPA enrollees will have at least 4 efforts
within the first 6 months of enrollment into WIPA.
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What Constitutes an Effort?
• In the WIPA program, efforts are defined as ANY
action with or on behalf of the beneficiary:
• Every contact, attempted contact, or action with a
beneficiary, or with another entity on behalf of the
beneficiary should be recorded as an effort.
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Examples of Efforts
• Leaving a message for a beneficiary
• Requesting, or assisting with benefits verification
• Mailing the beneficiary additional work incentives
information
• Answering questions about the Ticket program
• Completing or updating the Benefits Summary &
Analysis (BS&A) or Work Incentives Plan (WIP)
• Discussing the BS&A and/or WIP with the beneficiary
• Assistance with earnings reporting
• Communicating with VR, EN, or others on the
beneficiary’s support team
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Efforts Reminders
• Begin entering efforts as soon as the beneficiary is
enrolled in the WIPA program. It is not necessary for the
baseline assessment to be completed first.
• Complete the fields on the WIPA Effort that are relevant
to the action you are recording.
• Always complete the ‘time spent’ field, but do not include
time spent traveling to or from meetings/ activities.
• Each time an Effort is recorded, a case note related to the
activity may be entered in the notes field. Since Efforts
are now recorded for all activities with or on behalf of a
beneficiary, it is possible to maintain a complete case note
record within ETO.
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When to Record Efforts
• Remember the “DATE” acronym – Do At Time of
Event!
• Timely and accurate effort entry is critical in terms of
meeting your benchmarks.
• Entering all efforts as soon as they occur will eliminate
the need for intense “back-data entry” days.
• Immediate effort entry also ensures that critical
contacts with the beneficiary and others are not
forgotten, and results in a complete electronic case
record.
• If it’s not recorded in ETO; it didn’t happen!
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The Effort Screens
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Caution: watch for date of contact accuracy, default will be day
of entry.
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Value = Provided Problem Solving & Advocacy, Work Incentives Analysis,
or Long Term Support Services
Time Spent – record in minutes
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Jackie Case Study - Efforts
• Jackie is 36 year old SSI beneficiary enrolled in WIPA
services.
• She’s not currently working, but has recent past
work; wants individualized services, and wants to
pursue future work as her health allows.
• 5 efforts are recorded between enrollment in WIPA
Services and development of the BS&A.
• Several of the efforts document verification tasks
required to finalize the Baseline Assessment.
• Refer to Case Study document for discussion
details.
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Efforts: Recording BS&A Development
• Important: Enter only one effort when the BS&A is
completed, but include all time spent analyzing the
information and developing the report.
• Record the effort as soon as the first activity related
to development of the BS&A occurs.
• Edit the effort each time additional development
activities occur and add details in the case notes
box.
• ONLY check the ‘Completed BS&A’ box when the
effort (BS&A) is finished, and change the date of
the effort to that date. 13
Example of BS&A Effort
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Activities Included in BS&A Development
• Analysis of BPQY, all verification documents
received, beneficiary employment plans, and any
other pertinent information gathered.
• Actual writing of the BS&A.
• Supervisor/peer review of draft BS&A.
• Finalization of the BS&A.
• The goal is not to count the BS&A development
more than once, but CWICs should document all of
the time spent and steps completed in one effort.
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Jackie Case Study – BS&A Development Effort
• Refer to Effort #6 in attached Case Study
document
• Total time spent is 285 minutes (4.75 hours)
• Each individually dated contact or activity point
is detailed in the ‘notes’ box with the time
segment noted as well.
• The Date field reflects the final date that the
BS&A is completed.
• BS&A Status field is marked as ‘Completed
BS&A’
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What is NOT Part of the BS&A Development
Effort
• Gathering information and verifications by
contacting various providers. (pre-BS&A)
• Reviewing the completed BS&A with the
beneficiary.
• Answering subsequent questions related to
information presented in the BS&A.
• Developing future BS&A updates.
• These are all individual, separate efforts!
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Jackie Case Study – Other Efforts
• Although it may appear that these efforts could be
part of the BS&A development effort, separate
effort entries should be recorded for the following
activities:
• Efforts #1, 2 & 3 in attached Case Study document
relate to gathering necessary verification for the
BS&A, as well as the baseline assessment.
• Effort #7 captures the review of the BS&A with
Jackie and answering her questions.
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Efforts: Recording WIP Development
• Important: Enter only one effort when the WIP is
completed, but include all time spent discussing
potential steps with beneficiary and others and
developing the WIP.
• Record the effort as soon as the first activity related
to development of the WIP occurs.
• Edit the effort each time additional development
activities occur and add details in the case notes
box.
• ONLY check the WIP Completed box when the
effort (WIP) is finished, and change the date of the
effort to that date.
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Example of WIP Effort
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Activities Included in WIP Development
• Discussing beneficiary choices that result in “to do”
steps from BS&A review.
• Confirming participation with other members of the
employment support team in relevant action steps
• Drafting and finalizing appropriate WIP action
steps.
• Mailing / delivering completed WIP to beneficiary.
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Jackie Case Study – WIP Development
Effort
• Refer to Effort #8 in attached Case Study document
• Total time spent is 120 minutes (2.0 hours)
• Each individually dated contact or activity point is
detailed in the ‘notes’ box with the time segment
noted as well.
• The Date field reflects the final date that the WIP is
completed.
• WIP Status field is marked as ‘Completed WIP’
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Editing Efforts
• Efforts can only be edited by the CWIC who originally
recorded the effort.
• Access previously recorded efforts via the beneficiary
dashboard.
• If the effort you want to edit is not shown in the “Recent
Efforts” box, you can review all efforts from the “Action
Links” box by searching a specific date range.
• Remember to update the ‘date’ and ‘time spent’ fields
appropriately.
• Refer to ETO Guidance, Tips and Reminders document
for specific how-to steps on editing.
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Strategies for Recording Efforts
• Only check the ‘Completed BS&A or WIP’ box ONE time!
• ‘Completed BS&A or WIP’ should only occur once, all
future revisions or updates to either document should
be reflected as ‘Updated BS&A or WIP’.
• Notes should be “just the facts”, no judgment
statements.
• Consider developing standard notes that are regularly
used, and copy & paste from a Word document into the
“notes” field of the effort to save time.
• Project may also want to develop some standard
shorthand phrases for short contacts.
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Completing Assessments
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Importance of Assessments
• Assessments record a baseline and ongoing changes
in beneficiary’s status as an indicator of service
impact.
• WIPA Services are all about measurable outcomes!
Without baseline and follow up assessments,
outcomes cannot be measured and documented.
• The data collection goal is to document the activities
and successes of the WIPA projects and share these
results with Social Security and Congress.
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Baseline Assessment
• ALL individuals enrolled into the WIPA program
must have a Baseline Assessment completed.
• A beneficiary only gets one Baseline Assessment.
• The Baseline Assessment establishes the “start
point” in the beneficiary’s employment journey. As
changes occur, future assessments will be
compared to the baseline to measure beneficiary
outcomes.
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Completing the Baseline Assessment
• May take more than one sitting to complete (may
only get partial info from the beneficiary in one
contact).
• Continue updating Baseline Assessment and save as
a draft until the point you have verified all benefits.
• Once all benefits are verified, the Baseline is
complete and saved as ‘final’. No further updates
are made to the Baseline Assessment at this point.
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Follow-up Assessments
• Record a Follow-Up Assessment anytime there is a
change in the beneficiary’s situation after the baseline
assessment is completed.
• No limit to the number of Follow-Up Assessments.
• Each time you learn of a change in a beneficiary’s
situation, take a new Follow-Up Assessment.
• Follow-Up Assessments can be pre-populated with
information from the prior assessment.
• A Follow-Up Assessment and an Effort can be
completed at the same time, if applicable.
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Types of Changes in Situation
• Changes in situation equal recording a Follow-Up
Assessment. Examples include:
– Start/stop working
– Increase/decrease hours or wages
– Employer health coverage starts/stops
– Work incentive starts/ends
– Ticket assignment/unassignment
– Changes in benefits received (type, amount,
entitlement, etc.)
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Follow-Up, Effort, or Both?
• Follow-up Assessments capture information on a
change in the beneficiary’s status.
• Follow-up Assessments do not provide a record or
means for tracking the work being completed by
the CWIC.
• Any activity done with or on behalf of a beneficiary
is recorded as an effort.
• If, during the contact being recorded as an effort,
you learn that a change has occurred in the
beneficiary’s status, also record a Follow-Up
Assessment.
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Follow-Up, Effort, or Both?
Example:
The CWIC has a conversation with a beneficiary to
learn about their current situation, and in the course
of that conversation learns about a change in their
situation that constitutes a Follow-Up Assessment.
• Record a Follow-Up Assessment to record the
change in the beneficiary’s status.
• Also record an Effort to capture information (make
a case note) about the contact with the beneficiary.
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Jackie Case Study – Follow-Up Assessment
• Effort #4 documenting a call with Jackie notes that she
has just begun receiving Unemployment Insurance.
• This change in receipt of benefits results in the
completion of a Follow-Up Assessment in addition to
recording of an Effort.
• Efforts #9 and 10 - Although the CWIC had contact
with Jackie after the WIP was developed, neither
contact resulted in the need for a Follow-Up
Assessment, there was no change in situation.
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Jackie Case Study – Follow-Up Assessment
• Effort #11 documents a discussion with Jackie that
notates another change in situation – a new job.
• This change requires another Follow-Up Assessment to
be completed in addition to Effort #11.
• Effort #12 documents yet another conversation with
Jackie indicating another change in situation – the end
of receipt of UI; meaning another Follow-Up
Assessment.
• Note that this is the third time both an Effort and a
Follow-Up Assessment are completed to document
one point of contact.
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Uploading Documents
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Uploading Beneficiary Documents in ETO
• The upload feature is available in both the I&R and
WIPA programs.
• There is no limit on the number of documents, size
of documents, or frequency of uploads.
• Since ETO is a Social Security approved and secure
environment, WIPAs may upload files with PII.
There is no need to remove or limit PII before
uploading.
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Benefits of Uploading Documents
• Paper reduction
• Security – all information is in a secure environment
• Provides back-up; mitigates potential loss of data
• Access to important beneficiary documents across
project staff when back-up coverage is needed
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Uploading Beneficiary Documents in ETO
WIPAs are strongly encouraged to save and upload
the following types of documents:
• Correspondence created / sent to beneficiary or
other agencies
• BS&A reports and WIPs
• Release of Information forms
• Signed WIPA program policies, procedures, and
rights form(s)
• BPQY and other benefits verification forms
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More Types of Documents to Upload
• Social Security work incentives development
forms/documents
• Work incentives documents for other programs
• Copies of Individual Plan for Employment or other
employment related plan documents
• Pay records (documentation on pay received,
copies of receipts for wage reporting)
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Tips for Uploading Beneficiary Documents
• CWICs are encouraged to upload draft and final versions
of the BS&A report, WIP, and other communications.
• Be aware that simply uploading the BS&A and/or WIP
does NOT record it towards meeting the benchmark –
you must complete an effort to document completion of
a BS&A and/or WIP.
• Be consistent across staff in labeling types of
documents. Note ‘draft’ in the file name when
applicable.
• Refer to handout Uploading Documents for detailed
instructions.
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Where to Go for Assistance – Resource
Documents
• www.vcu-ntc.org has a designated ETO page that
contains many valuable resource documents.
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Where to Go for Assistance with
Technical Issues
• Requests for assistance with technical issues should be
directed to the WIPA Technical Helpdesk:
– 855-816-0890 or [email protected]
Monday – Friday, 8:00am – 8:00pm EST
– Examples of technical issues include: activating a
secure government furnished computer and ETO
user account, access to ETO, difficulty logging in,
finding a beneficiary in ETO, missing data, hardware
or software issues, technical difficulties with
accessing reports in ETO, how to upload documents.
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Where to Go for Assistance with Other
Issues/Questions
• All requests for assistance related to entering data
on beneficiaries to accurately capture services
provided should be referred to your VCU Technical
Assistance Liaison.
– Examples include: determining who to enter into I&R and
WIPA services; determining how to view TtW Helpdesk
referrals into ETO; when to dismiss someone from I&R;
deciding when a follow-up assessment is necessary; or
when to enter efforts into ETO
– For TtW Helpline referral issues, also include Laura Coffey:
[email protected]
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Final Thoughts
• Timely, accurate and complete data
entry is CRITICAL!!!!
• Contact your TA liaison for questions
about what to enter.
• Questions?
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