Washington State still not meeting goals on foster parent visits

State still not meeting goals on foster parent visits

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/...tml?source=rss

By JOHN IWASAKI
P-I REPORTER

Washington received mostly high marks for improving foster care in a
comprehensive survey of foster parents released Thursday, results that
the state trumpeted as evidence of its positive partnership with
caregivers but that critics said exposed glaring deficiencies.

Nearly 90 percent of foster parents said the state provided them
adequate training, and three-quarters indicated they received adequate
support, information and health-related services in 2006.

But only 38 percent of foster children received monthly visits from
caseworkers, and 25 percent received one -- or none. Less than half the
children had twice-monthly sibling visits or contacts. And protective
measures for sexually or physically aggressive children were not in
place for most caregivers.

Overall, "this is good news for the department," said Cheryl Stephani,
assistant secretary of Children's Administration in the state Department
of Social and Health Services. "I'm really encouraged by the way
caregivers and relatives were treated with professionalism and with
respect."

Lawyers representing foster children said they would ask a court in
November to spur the state to move more quickly to make changes, saying
DSHS "simply cannot continue to break the promise they made to improve
the lives of children in foster care."

The survey was a snapshot of the state's performance in 2006 compared
with standards it promised to meet in settling a class-action lawsuit in
2004. Plaintiffs in the Braam case accused the state of repeatedly
violating the constitutional rights of thousands of foster children by
bouncing them between homes without adequate services.

The survey of 1,234 foster parents and relative caregivers is "an
incredibly useful tool" for state officials, who have said they did not
know how to set priorities for efforts to meet the settlement standards,
said Casey Trupin, one of the lawyers representing foster children.

"No one's done it before nationally. It's a groundbreaking survey," he said.

Stephani said the results provide baseline data that will be used by the
Braam Oversight Panel, the group of experts that released the survey and
is overseeing the lawsuit settlement.

The panel said that by June 30, 2006, 70 percent of foster children were
to receive monthly visits by caseworkers. The survey indicated that the
state met the standard for only 37.9 percent of foster children by the
end of last year.

More troubling, Trupin said, is that 17 percent of surveyed foster
parents said no caseworker visited in 2006, and another 8 percent
reported just a single visit, meaning one-quarter of respondents
received no more than a single visit last year.

"This is something we've been working on," Stephani said. "A lot of
resources were coming in over the last year, and more over this
(2007-09) biennium. We have a plan to get to all of the youth, but we
can't do that absent the resources to get it done."

The state will add nearly 400 caseworkers over a four-year period ending
June 2009.

Stephani said current caseworkers focus monthly visits first on children
who are technically in foster care but living at home, in some cases
after returning from a foster home, and on children 6 and younger who
are not in school.

The survey also found that:

# About 48 percent of siblings who were living in separate homes had two
or more monthly visits or contacts with each other. Stephani said
caseworkers and other members of a foster parent's support team will be
asked to encourage more sibling visits.

# Protective measures were in place for about 45 percent of children
with a history of sexually aggressive or physically "assaultive"
behavior. Stephani said the state has a plan in place to deal with the
issue and also is looking at other treatment programs for help.

# Parents said the state did an adequate job in providing training (89
percent), support for their responsibilities (76 percent) and
information about the needs of their foster child (73 percent).

# About 75 percent of medically fragile children were connected to
appropriate medical care and placed with caregivers prepared to handle
their condition.

# About 75 percent of children needing behavioral health services
received services from the same individual provider.

The Braam panel had established benchmarks for each area, with specific
results expected in various years, ending in 2011. The benchmarks were
created before baseline data was available and are expected to be
revised in some categories.

The telephone survey was conducted by Washington State University
researchers from April 2 through July 22 this year, drawing from a
random sample of 3,800 foster parents and relative caregivers. The
cooperation rate of 80 percent meant the results are "truly
representative" of the targeted population, the survey report said.

Surveyors could not reach 986 potential respondents because of
disconnected numbers and no forwarding numbers. Trupin said that lack of
contact information does not inspire confidence in the state's ability
to monitor foster parents.

Stephani said there were several possible reasons for the out-of-date
numbers.

The Braam panel wanted the survey to include respondents who had
previously been foster parents or relative caregivers, and those who
were inactive had "no reason to give us their number," she said.

Also, information typed into the database system by caseworkers does not
automatically update the licensing file of a foster parent or relative
caregiver, Stephani said, adding that the state is working with a
contractor on that problem.

The survey had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.7 percentage points.
P-I reporter John Iwasaki can be reached at 206-448-8096 or
.




CURRENTLY CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES VIOLATES MORE CIVIL RIGHTS ON A
DAILY BASIS THEN ALL OTHER AGENCIES COMBINED INCLUDING THE NSA / CIA
WIRETAPPING PROGRAM....

CPS Does not protect children...
It is sickening how many children are subject to abuse, neglect and even
killed at the hands of Child Protective Services.

every parent should read this .pdf from
connecticut dcf watch...

http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com/8x11.pdf

http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com

Number of Cases per 100,000 children in the US
These numbers come from The National Center on
Child Abuse and Neglect in Washington. (NCCAN)
Recent numbers have increased significantly for CPS

*Perpetrators of Maltreatment*

Physical Abuse CPS 160, Parents 59
Sexual Abuse CPS 112, Parents 13
Neglect CPS 410, Parents 241
Medical Neglect CPS 14 Parents 12
Fatalities CPS 6.4, Parents 1.5

Imagine that, 6.4 children die at the hands of the very agencies that
are supposed to protect them and only 1.5 at the hands of parents per
100,000 children. CPS perpetrates more abuse, neglect, and sexual abuse
and kills more children then parents in the United States. If the
citizens of this country hold CPS to the same standards that they hold
parents too. No judge should ever put another child in the hands of ANY
government agency because CPS nationwide is guilty of more harm and
death than any human being combined. CPS nationwide is guilty of more
human rights violations and deaths of children then the homes from which
they were removed. When are the judges going to wake up and see that
they are sending children to their death and a life of abuse when
children are removed from safe homes based on the mere opinion of a
bunch of social workers.


CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES, HAPPILY DESTROYING THOUSANDS OF INNOCENT
FAMILIES YEARLY NATIONWIDE AND COMING TO YOU'RE HOME SOON...


BE SURE TO FIND OUT WHERE YOUR CANDIDATES STANDS ON THE ISSUE OF
REFORMING OR ABOLISHING CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES ("MAKE YOUR CANDIDATES
TAKE A STAND ON THIS ISSUE.") THEN REMEMBER TO VOTE ACCORDINGLY IF THEY
ARE "FAMILY UNFRIENDLY" IN THE NEXT ELECTION...