Child Welfare Services
Findings:
Generally concur with the findings. Please see response to Recommendations below.
Recommendation 4.7
The management of the Agency must work with the Juvenile Court to create a permanent forum to promote dialogue between the Agency, Juvenile Court, the Private Defender and County Counsel.
Response: Agree. HSA is committed to working across systems to improve communication and relations on a regular basis. HSA management initially recommends a monthly meeting and awaits the Juvenile Court convening the first meeting.
4.8 The County Manager must work with the Presiding Judge of the San Mateo County Superior Court to:
4.8.1 Ensure that a permanent forum is established and accomplishes its objectives.
4.8.2 Implement “Recommendations for Improving Professional Relationships” outlined in the Bay Area Social Services Consortium’s report.
Response: Agree. Ongoing communication between the Presiding Judge and the County Manager now occurs on a regular basis. HSA has reviewed the recommendations in the Bay Area Social Services Consortium’s (BASSC) report and will work with the County Manager and the Court to implement them. The recommendations in this report address eight areas of professional relationships: Training, Communications and Meetings, Scheduling, Staff/Roles, Resources, Public Education, Culture of Respect, and Interpersonal Relations. Each area targets recommendations for six separate constituencies—Social Workers, CASA, Judges, County Counsel, Minors’ Attorneys, and Parents’ Attorneys. Most of the recommendations require a cooperative focus to achieve improvements in the context of a permanent Court System forum such as has been recommended by the Grand Jury (Recommendation 4.7) and which HSA agrees should be instituted as soon as possible. In concurrence with the Grand Jury, HSA believes the specific recommendations of the BASSC report should be reviewed in the Court System forum and strategies for their implementation should be developed and adopted by the participants in that forum.
4.9 The management of the Agency must take steps to ensure that:
4.9.1 The Agency attempts to improve communication with all participants.
4.9.2 Social worker concerns about working in the courtroom are made known to the Court, and the Court’s offer to help in their training is accepted.
Response: Agree, recognizing that open, honest communication involves two parties. HSA will use the meetings convened by the Juvenile Court in response to recommendation 4.7 as a forum in which to improve communications with all participants in dependency proceedings and address social worker concerns. The Court has made valuable contributions to social worker training in the past, and its offer of assistance is gladly accepted.
4.9.3 Recommendations of the Juvenile Court in its April 3, 2003 findings are respectfully reviewed and implemented.
HSA’s response to Recommendation 4.9.3 is presented below. HSA has carefully reviewed the recommendations issued by the Juvenile Court in its April 3, 2003 findings. Each of the Court’s recommendations pertaining to HSA appears in italic font and is followed by HSA’s response to the Civil Grand Jury:
Social workers should have more interaction with foster parents and must inform them of their right to attend court proceedings. The foster parent caregiver form should be provided and explained in each case. The completed form should accompany the court reports with the exception of the detention report since the child will not have been in foster or shelter care, presumably, for a long enough period of time at that juncture.
Response: Agree. HSA has implemented the following steps which have increased the level of interaction between social workers and foster parents, particularly at or near the time of legal proceedings:
• Fully implemented use of a Foster Parent/Caregiver form accompanying court reports. The Form JV-290 was developed by the Judicial Council for this purpose. The use of this form was mandated in February 2002 and has been reinforced this year by ensuring that all court reports have the form attached to them prior to being sent to court.
• Implemented Team Decision-Making meetings, which involve foster parents in group discussions regarding children’s placement and care (2/03)
• In connection with the Breakthrough Series Collaborative, a national initiative funded by the Casey Foundation, developed and implemented innovative foster parent recruitment strategies and foster parent mentoring program (12/02, 2/03)
• Hired a Foster Parent Advocate (9/02)
HSA will issue a Request for Proposals for a foster parent to serve as Ombudsman in the near future.
Foster parents should be provided with counsel’s name and phone number, pager number, and business address so that issues can be directly communicated if necessary.
Response: Agree. The practice of providing this information is in place. HSA will formalize the practice with a policy memo by August 1, 2003. HSA met with the Private Defender and provided a report of cases listing each child’s placement and social worker’s name, pager number, and phone number. The Private Defender was also provided a complete social worker roster with all phone, pager and contact information. This information will be updated as necessary and a new report of cases will be generated and provided to counsel on a monthly basis.
HSA should monitor the various programs it contracts with, such as “Pre to Three” and ascertain whether or not the actual curriculum meets the needs of the clients.
Response: Agree. The Agency regularly monitors all its service contracts. However, HSA does not contract with Pre to Three. Social workers refer families to this program. HSA will review the Pre to Three curriculum with the Health Services Agency by August 2003 to ensure the program is appropriate for CWS client referral. In addition to regular meetings conducted by Agency supervisors and managers, HSA meets quarterly with the Family Services Agency, has recently reviewed its contract, and both agencies have agreed communications will be formalized in writing. HSA provides parent education on a regular basis. The parent education curriculum used by HSA was developed by the Agency and is taught and reviewed periodically by HSA staff.
Social workers should be required to meet and confer with the prior social worker on a given case so that there is continuity with respect to the supervision of and recommendations in a given case.
Response: Agree. Conferring with a prior social worker is HSA’s current and expected practice. HSA will reinforce this expectation with staff.
Transportation workers and caseworkers must have a conduit to the court in the eventuality of a disagreement with the social worker and/or his or her supervisor.
Response: Disagree. In the event of a disagreement with a social worker and/or social work supervisor, a transportation officer should pursue the following course of resolution: social worker’s supervisor, regional manager, Child Welfare Services Policy Director, and finally, the Human Services Agency Director. HSA has been designated as the agency to perform the services of the Probation Officer in dependency proceedings, as provided for in Welfare and Institutions Code section 272(a). As such, the Director has authority and responsibility with respect to all of its employees performing functions in the Child Welfare System, and expects all decisions to be made within the framework of the Agency’s management structure. To create another avenue of input and communication which bypasses the chain of command and goes directly to the court would interfere with the operation of HSA, undermine the authority of the management of HSA, and, in HSA’s view, ultimately undermine the functioning of the Child Welfare System in San Mateo County.
Training of all social workers and caseworkers should include training regarding the role of the court. There should be training about a social worker’s access to the court and to the court officers when there is the need to communicate pertinent information regarding a dependent child of the court.
Response: Agree. The curriculum HSA has used to train new social workers for the past fifteen years contains information on the role of the court and communicating with the court. County Counsel also provides training to new social workers. This training is reinforced in regular supervision and periodic in-service training. In 1998, HSA received a court improvement grant to involve the court and County Counsel in training social workers to provide effective testimony. HSA would welcome the court’s continued participation in training HSA staff.
Social workers must be clearly trained that visitation is not a “reward” to the parents but a tool to gauge progress in the case. This tool must be utilized with great care and social workers must be ever mindful that the child’s safety is paramount to all other concerns, including the parent’s wishes.
Response: Agree. This information is included in the new worker training curriculum and is reinforced on an ongoing basis by social work supervisors.
Social workers should be trained as to the necessary emphasis on the investigative role they have. Investigative techniques should be taught and used.
Response: Agree. This information is included in the new worker training curriculum and is reinforced on an ongoing basis by social work supervisors.
HSA must develop a procedure for administrative review which utilizes independent outside fact finders to conduct objective and unhindered inquiry into situations of possible misfeasance by its employees.
Response: Disagree. The process for external review of child welfare staff conduct is in place and is clearly set forth in State of California Division 31 Regulations; this duty and responsibility rests with the California Department of Social Services. HSA has the responsibility as an Agency to conduct internal reviews of staff conduct for the purposes of improving and strengthening process, and its Special Investigations Unit, staffed by law enforcement trained investigators, performs this function as need arises. The County Manager has the authority to investigate through an independent fact-finding body, and recently appointed a Blue Ribbon Commission to assess the status of the entire system which is intended to protect children in San Mateo County, including HSA’s Children and Family Services Program. Finally, HSA refers any cases of suspected malfeasance to the District Attorney’s office for investigation.
Management personnel of Human Services Agency should inculcate in their staff respect for the court and for its process.
Response: Agree. Historically, HSA and the courts have enjoyed a mutually respectful relationship. Management personnel will continue to promote a relationship of mutual respect.
Counsel should be provided with the foster parent’s phone number and address so that counsel can meet with the child and have ongoing communication.
Response: Agree. HSA has provided the Private Defender with a report containing the names and addresses of foster parents, as well as the children placed in their care (see item 2 above). HSA will update this report monthly.
Counsel should be notified prior to any change in a client’s placement. If the change is made on an emergency basis, counsel must be notified within 24 hours after the change and given the contact information.
Response: Agree. Counsel will be invited to participate in all Team Decision-Making meetings. Counsel is automatically notified when a child is moved to a higher level of placement.
Counsel must be informed of the social worker’s phone number and pager number at all times and informed of any change in social worker, even if there is a vacation substitution.
Response: Agree. HSA provided the Private Defender’s office with a roster of all social worker names, phone numbers, and pager numbers. If the social worker is out of the office due to illness or vacation, the Supervisor serves as back-up. There is also an on-duty back-up contact available at all times; the Private Defender’s office has been provided this schedule as well. HSA will develop a form to notify counsel of a change in social worker; in addition, HSA will distribute a memo to staff by August 1, 2003 to explain this policy.
When working within the Agency:
4.9.4 Recent procedural changes and program modifications made by the Children and Family Services Leadership Team are fully implemented and modified for compliance on a regular basis.
Response: Agree. All recent changes have been developed in consultation with staff, Supervisors, and Managers, and the need to ensure compliance has been reinforced at all levels. In addition, HSA is implementing a comprehensive Quality Assurance program to ensure procedural changes and program modifications are implemented and in compliance.
Personnel evaluations are carried out according to county policy.
Response: Agree. HSA will reinforce with Managers and Supervisors the necessity for timely, written personnel evaluations. In addition to formal evaluations, supervisors meet with staff on a regular basis to provide performance feedback and case consultation.
4.9.6 Practices that encourage and provide for open, ongoing communication within the Agency are immediately developed and implemented.
Response: Agree. HSA currently has practices in place that encourage and provide for open, ongoing communication within the Agency. Children and Family Services Supervisors conduct individual staff supervision conferences and hold unit meetings bi-weekly. The Children and Family Services Policy Team also meets bi-weekly and Section Meetings are held monthly. All-staff Regional Meetings provide another forum for open communication; these are held quarterly. HSA management has an “open door” policy and encourages staff to contact any member of Agency management with questions or concerns. The Agency Director and Director of Children and Family Services are available by e-mail to all Agency staff, as are all Managers and Supervisors. In addition, the Agency Director and Director of Children and Family Services meet with staff periodically to address issues of concern or changes that may require special attention. The Children and Family Services Policy Director meets personally with each new Training Unit and encourages all new staff to contact him or the Agency Director directly with concerns that cannot be addressed at other levels of the organization.
4.9.7 Needs of social workers are addressed and additional resources to support their work are provided whenever appropriate.
Response: Agree. HSA attempts to address social workers’ needs and support their work within the resources made available to the Agency from the federal, state, and local governments. The Agency appreciates the Board of Supervisor’s ongoing commitment to supporting services for children, and actively pursues additional funding from private sources to augment government funding.
Regarding Agency professional development:
4.11.1 Implementation of the Family to Family Program is expedited in a manner that does not lessen the amount of supervision provided to social workers or decrease the amount of time they have for face to face contact with the children and families they serve.
Response: Agree. HSA is expediting implementation in a manner consistent with this recommendation. HSA has taken a phased approach to implementing Family to Family in order to allow all levels of Children and Family Services staff to learn and adopt more effective strategies for interacting with families and communities while balancing competing demands on their time. In addition, HSA added three new positions to facilitate Team Decision-Making meetings rather than assigning this responsibility to already overburdened staff.
4.11.2 By September 1, 2003, the Agency begins the Accreditation process in coordination with the Human Services Agency.
Response: HSA is reviewing the process required to achieve accreditation granted by the Council on Accreditation and is preparing a report and recommendations on whether to proceed. The Agency’s Executive Team will consider the report in July 2003.
4.10 The Board of Supervisors must:
4.11.1 Give high priority to providing the funds needed to support recommendations made by the Agency, the Court and the Grand Jury to improve child welfare services.
Response: The County has many high priority programs. The Board of Supervisors must take into consideration many factors including available funding, state mandates, court orders, etc., in making budgetary decisions. Historically the Board of Supervisors has made services for children and youth a priority. The Board of Supervisors currently provides County funds that exceed the required county match to federal/state program grants; these funds enable HSA to draw down additional state and federal funding for child welfare services. The ability of the County to continue this practice is in grave danger as a result of impending cuts due to the State’s fiscal crisis.
4.11.2 Assume direct responsibility for ensuring that the Citizen’s Review Panel is structured in a manner that provides independent oversight of the Child Welfare Services System, and that the Panel’s finding and assessments are made known to the public on an ongoing basis. If this is not possible, an alternative means for providing and reporting independent oversight must be developed and implemented.
Response: Disagree. The Citizen’s Review Panel is an independent advisory body and has no authority to provide oversight. The Citizens’ Review Panel is structured to conduct assessments and make its recommendations public. The Child Welfare System Improvement and Accountability Act of 2001 (State Assembly Bill 636) mandated comprehensive, outcome-oriented oversight of the Child Welfare Services system in California. The California Department of Social Services will begin conducting accountability reviews of every county Child Welfare Services system in January 2004. In addition, the Agency is held accountable for federal outcome measures for Child Welfare Services. Both the State and Federal reviews provide more effective independent oversight than that able to be achieved by the Citizens’ Review Panel.
4.12 The County Manager must direct the County/Court committee to:
4.12.1 Examine the working relationship between the Court, Agency management, and social workers and make recommendations for improvement.
4.12.2 Request the Juvenile Court to develop an action plan to “exercise a leadership role in the development and maintenance of permanent programs of interagency cooperation and coordination among the court and the various public agencies that serve at-risk children and their parents, “as encouraged by Section 4, subsection (e) of the Standards of Judicial Administration.
4.12.3 Make recommendations to the Juvenile Court and Agency that will assist in the development of procedures to handle crisis situations where serious harm or death to a child in the care of the System occurs.
4.12.4 Make their finding and recommendations known to the public when the study is complete.
Response: The County Manager has made the Grand Jury report available to the “Blue Ribbon Committee.” The committee has the latitude to address the Grand Jury’s findings and recommendations as appropriate. The findings of the committee will be made available to the public with the concurrence of the Court.
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