|
|
SUMMARY
The Office of the Auditor General has
conducted a performance audit of two areas related to foster care services
provided by Child Protective Services (CPS): the stability of foster care
children’s living situations and communication with foster parents. CPS is a
function of the Division of Children, Youth, and Families within the Department
of Economic Security. This audit specifically addresses a legislative request
approved by the Joint Legislative Audit Committee on August 9, 2001, and was
conducted under the authority vested in the Auditor General by A.R.S.
§41-1279.03.
As of March 31, 2003, over 6,800 children
were in foster care in Arizona. Children may be initially placed in shelters or
receiving foster homes while their needs and available care options are
identified. If children cannot subsequently be placed with a relative, CPS looks
to other alternatives, such as placement with trained foster parents or in a
group home. Foster care is intended to be a short-term or temporary solution.
Once a child is placed in foster care, CPS case managers develop a plan for
permanent placement and work to achieve this plan. Approximately 2,300 children
left foster care for a variety of reasons between October 1, 2002, and March 31,
2003, the most current 6-month reporting period for which data is available,
including being returned to their parent, adopted into a new family, or being
placed with relatives.
Foster care placement
stability can be improved
(see pages 9 through 15)
The Division should continue its efforts to
ensure foster care placements are stable. Research indicates that there are
significant negative impacts for foster children when they are moved frequently
while in out-of-home care. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has
established national standards for child welfare and child protection programs
and monitors states to determine whether they are meeting them. The 2001 federal
review found that Arizona, like most other states, is not meeting the standards
for foster care placement stability.
In response to the federal review, the
Division has developed an improvement plan with steps for improving placement
stability. For example, the federal review determined that foster families
needed greater preparation and support. The Division revised its policy to
specify in the child’s Out-of-Home Care Plan the services that the foster parent
needs to care for the foster child. In addition to the changes being implemented
through the improvement plan, the Division can also enhance some other processes
to help improve placement stability. These include:
-
Clarifying its policy regarding case
manager face-to-face visits with foster children. Current policy calls for the
case manager to visit foster children monthly, but the policy also allows
visits by others, such as other CPS staff or counselors, to substitute for the
case manager visits. In contrast, Alabama and Delaware, both states found to
be doing well in the area of placement stability, report they rarely, if ever,
allow substitute visitation.
-
Evaluating the potential costs and benefits
of adopting innovative approaches other states use. These include placing
children from only one family in a foster home rather than mixing foster
children from several different families, or determining if temporary shelter
care placements can be reduced by making the child’s first placement a foster
home rather than a shelter. Currently, children may be initially placed in
shelters or receiving foster homes while their needs and available care
options are identified. However, children may then have to be moved to another
placement, such as a family foster home.
To ensure that these potential changes and
other changes that the Division is already undertaking to improve placement
stability have the desired results, the Division should use its existing
internal quarterly review process to assess their impact.
Foster parents report good
communication, but improvements can
be made (see pages 17 through 25)
Although there are several good mechanisms
for foster parents to receive and provide information about the children in
their care, additional steps can be taken to improve communication. This audit
was approved by the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, in part, as a response to
some foster parents’ concerns raised to the Legislature about their ability to
provide input regarding their foster children. Research indicates that to
successfully care for children, foster parents need adequate information about
the children in their care, including knowledge of case plans and medical and
behavioral information.
Foster parents report that several
communication mechanisms provide them with helpful information and allow them to
actively participate in their foster children’s cases. For example, CPS case
manager visits help foster parents to ask questions, or request things that they
or the child need. Of the 26 foster parents auditors interviewed, 15 reported
that they see the CPS case manager regularly and are able to ask questions, or
request things that they or the child need during the visits. Additionally,
foster parents report that they participate in Foster Care Review Board
hearings. The Board is required to review all cases where a child is in an
out-of-home placement within 6 months of the child’s removal and every 6 months
thereafter. Twenty-three of the 26 foster parents interviewed reported that they
attend board hearings, they can speak openly about the child’s needs, and their
input is positively received. Similarly, 18 foster parents reported that the
Division’s newsletter for foster parents contains useful information.
Although several existing communication
mechanisms are helpful, others need improvement. Specifically, the majority of
foster parents auditors interviewed reported that while they received
information when children were initially placed in their home, the information
was insufficient. For example, a foster parent indicated that she was not told
about a child’s medical condition and another stated that she had not been told
about the behavioral problems of two children placed in her care. Of special
concern, 16 of the 26 foster parents auditors interviewed said that they
believed CPS had withheld known medical or behavioral information. In some
cases, CPS may not know the information and, therefore, cannot provide it to
foster parents. In other cases, however, such as when a child is initially
placed in a shelter before moving to a family foster home, CPS has an
opportunity to gather the information foster parents need. To address these
problems, the Division should form a work group, including foster parents, to
review what type of information is provided to foster parents about the children
in their care, and how best to ensure this information is provided in a timely
manner and updated regularly.
The Division also needs to address other
foster parent communication problems. For example, the Division could use foster
parent training to ensure that foster parents are informed of their right to
attend Juvenile Court hearings and are made aware of all the appeal and
grievance processes available to them. The Division should also take additional
steps to ensure that training provided to foster parents is consistent and
provides more practical information on handling medical and behavioral problems.
A review of best
practices and other states’ activities also suggests that the Division should
increase its support mechanisms for foster parents and improve its Internet
resources. First, the Division needs to establish a more comprehensive method of
surveying foster parents so that they can provide meaningful input about their
experiences. Second, the Division needs to enhance foster parent support groups.
According to the National Foster Parent Association, Arizona is one of the few
states that do not have a state-wide foster parent association. While there are
some local foster parent support groups, a state-wide association could ensure
all foster parents have access to needed support, while providing additional
resources to existing groups. Strong support groups or mentoring systems are
important because nine of the foster parents auditors interviewed noted that
they rely on information and support they receive from other foster parents.
Finally, the Division could better support foster parents by improving its Web
site to include a special section that is devoted solely to providing
information and support to foster parents, as is done in Arkansas, Colorado,
Illinois, Iowa, and Vermont.
Read full report in Acrobat PDF format
|
|
