Frequently Asked Questions
Implementation Readiness Meetings
Q: Will CARES V1 include a training application similar to the CWS/CMS Scenario Manager?
A: There are no plans for CARES V1 to develop a training app like Scenario Manager. The scenarios for CWS-CARES training are in CWS-CARES along with the material and there will be walk through prompts to guide the learner. The material for Adoptions will be based on the functionality developed by the development team and released in to the CARES V1 Training Environment. This material once developed will be reviewed by the State Review team and the Training Advisory Workgroup.
Q: Will probation data be converted from CWS/CMS as-is, so that case counts are preserved (for example, 600 cases remain 600 rather than becoming 300)?
A: Probation data will be converted to CWS-CARES. The primary and secondary responsible agency for a case in CWS-CARES will not use the terms "600" or "300" (it will show "Probation"); however, the dual statuses from CWS/CMS will be brought into a narrative field in CWS-CARES so users can see the original CWS/CMS term (for example, "Dep 300 Receiving Prob Srvcs" or "Ward 601/602 Receiving CWS"). As an example of the mapping: if a CWS/CMS case has a primary responsible agency of "County Welfare Department" and a client dual status of Probation, then in CWS-CARES the case's primary responsible agency would be "Child Welfare" and the secondary responsible agency would be "Probation."
Q: For children in Emergency Response (ER) or Intake Services (IS), will Public Health Nurse information — such as active Medi-Cal status, Geographic Managed Care (GMC) plan, assigned provider, and Benefits Identification Card (BIC) number — be available in CWS-CARES?
A: Yes, CWS-CARES will provide a location to document health insurance and service provider information. However, the CWS-CARES V1 scope does not include direct connectivity to a system that would automatically add this information to CWS-CARES.
Q: Will CWS-CARES store videos (e.g., a cell phone video was provided as evidence for a Juvenile Court case and program staff wanted to upload them)?
A: CWS-CARES allows document uploads of up to 100 MB. Files must be a compatible type; allowable types include PDF, DOC/DOCX, XLS/XLSX, JPEG/JPG, TXT, and MOV/MKV/MP4 video files. Users can upload files into a case record individually or by selecting multiple files at once.
Q: Are counties required to use the Enterprise version of Windows 11?
A: No. The Enterprise version of Windows 11 is not required.
Q: Who will own and maintain the ERR00002 (Emergency Response Notice of Referral Disposition) form in CWS-CARES?
A: The ERR00002 (Emergency Response Notice of Referral Disposition - ERNRD) form is in development and will be ready for CWS-CARES V1. The Project will continue to maintain this form for the future.
Q: How will CWS-CARES populate user profiles — from CWS/CMS or from the probation directory?
A: For most counties, Probation workers in CWS/CMS have their own Office. Those workers will be converted from CWS/CMS to CWS-CARES into: 1) their office/unit/caseload, along with 2) the corresponding permissions.
Q: Will the Attorney-Client Log be mandatory for counties to use?
A: No. Counties are not required to maintain an Attorney-Client Log in CWS-CARES. However, it serves as a valuable tool for documenting confidential communications between County Counsel and agency personnel. Access is restricted to authorized individuals directly involved with the case (Primary, Supervisor, or Manager), and the log is protected from discovery and public records requests. This helps ensure that essential legal advice remains documented and accessible to relevant staff while maintaining confidentiality.
Q: Can California Department of Social Services (CDSS) branches obtain Tableau licenses and training for more staff than currently use Business Objects, and how will staff access those licenses?
A: CWS-CARES has the CWS-CARES Analytics Transition Workgroup (CAT) with its focus to help Legacy Business Object users to transition to the CWS-CARES Platform. Please email the CWS-CARES Analytics Transition Workgroup for Tableau Training enrollment and other support.
Q: Will Organizations have the flexibility to use their preferred virtual meeting platform, or will all meetings need to be conducted over WebEx?
A: In general, the State uses WebEx, but we have to be flexible to meet our organization's needs. The RUGs meetings belong to the counties and they use the format they prefer.