Progress Reported Across Child Welfare System

Clark County officials announced the creation of a child welfare ombudsman program today. The program will serve as a central point of contact for the public to raise concerns and lodge complaints about the county’s child welfare system.

“We are very pleased that the county has decided to implement this program,” said Carole Shauffer, executive director of the Youth Law Center, a national child advocacy law firm based in San Francisco that has been working closely with the county. “It will provide a better opportunity for individuals to have their problems solved and will allow the county the ability to identify systemic problems that may arise in the child welfare system.”

The ombudsman program, recommended by the Youth Law Center as part of an agreement adopted by the County Commission in March, will report directly to the county manager and act as an objective fact-finder to help investigate and resolve complaints made on behalf of youth placed in the system. The program will also be responsible for seeking input from child advocacy groups and community members on system progress and improvements. The program is expected to be fully operational by September 1.

“This move creates another layer of accountability that will help us identify weaknesses that need addressing,” Commission Chairman Rory Reid said.

The announcement of the ombudsman program was made before the County Commission by Thomas Morton, director of Family Services, as part of a progress report on child welfare reform. The report, available to the public at www.accessclarkcounty.com, included information about the restructuring of 119 positions to accommodate changes to the state budget and progress made toward fulfilling the requirements of the Safe Futures Plan, which identified solutions to weaknesses in the child welfare system.

“We’ve made a lot of progress but we know we still have a lot of work to do in moving our child welfare system in the right direction,” County Manager Virginia Valentine said. “The ombudsman program, coupled with the Safe Futures Program and other efforts, will help us meet our obligations to the community and the children we're charged with protecting.”

One key indicator of changes is the reduction in the number of abused and neglected children currently at Child Haven. A year ago, the county’s emergency shelter for abused, neglected and abandoned children housed more than 180 youth. Today, that number has been cut nearly in half to 94 children at Child Haven.

• The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, has approved Nevada’s Program Improvement Plan (PIP) aimed at increasing child welfare safety.
  
  
• Clark County will receive $5.6 million in deferred federal Title IV-E funds, which are badly needed and used to provide in-home care to children in need.
  
  
• In addition to seven bills affecting child welfare, the 2007 Nevada Legislature made appropriations for an increase in foster and adoption reimbursement rates and included in the state budget 85 new positions in Clark County, including 36 caseworkers to reduce high caseloads.  Some requested positions affected by legislation will lead to 11 county-funded positions being reprogrammed to cover budget shortfalls, including positions with the foster care placement team and in the district attorney’s office.
  
  
• Under the strategies outlined in Morton’s “Safe Futures” plan initiated in October 2006, Family Services (DFS) has made progress in the areas of:
  
  
  

• Business management and practices  - Family Services is developing data-tracking management reports, hiring consultants to rewrite policies and procedures for case management, and receiving technical assistance from national child welfare experts Casey Family Programs in the re-development of business practices and management.
  
  

• 24/7 Functions – Family Services is implementing a 24/7 response capability to reduce unnecessary removals, which includes two emergency response investigative units and a 24/7 placement team designed to support the placement of children directly into foster homes without entering congregate care shelters such as Child Haven.
  
  

• Child Well-Being/Medical Programs – Child Haven now has a full-time physician attending children during the day, and the creation of a “Medical Passport” ensures that critical medical information follows children in out-of-home care.   Additionally, DFS was awarded a IVB grant to implement a pilot “medical wraparound” program to facilitate the placement of medically needy children into relative and foster homes, rather than having them remain in Child Haven due to issues of acuity.
  
  

• Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) – The CAC is undergoing a redesign that will call for a full-time manager and two additional forensic investigators.  The redesigned CAC will be guided by a new policy governing board consisting of representatives from DFS, the district attorney’s office, law enforcement, medical services, mental health services, victim’s advocacy and child advocates. 

• Family Services has also made progress towards the goals outlined in the county’s commitment with the Youth Law Center and the American Civil Liberties Union, including:

• A new brochure created to inform parents of their rights.
  
  

• Conducting Child and Family Team meetings prior to all non-emergency removals and within 48 hours for all emergency removals.
  
  

• The county has completed two of three phases of a community-wide service array needs assessment where about 100 stakeholders to date have participated.
  
  

• Family Services is implementing a redesigned foster parent recruitment strategy and practice that is much more community-based and works directly with faith-based organizations, corporations and professional associations.
  
  

• Staff have facilitated the development of a new foster parent association in Clark County. DFS also formed a joint foster parent and agency workgroup that meets monthly to address issues and concerns of foster parents.

In conclusion, Morton shared that there has been an 18-percent increase in regular foster homes since November 2006, which translates into a 5.5-percent increase in beds available for foster placements. Family Services has been working diligently to address the critical need for new foster homes in the valley.  While this small increase is encouraging, county officials said there is still a desperate need for more foster homes.

Hundreds of Clark County children each year are temporarily removed from their homes while their families work on issues affecting their children’s safety.  Studies have shown that the best environment for these children, particularly those under the age of 6, is a family setting that provides an individual caregiver one-on-one attention, Morton said.  Finding safe and nurturing homes for such a large number of children is a daunting task, but one officials believe the community can meet. 

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