Editor’s note: This commentary is by Joseph F. Hagan Jr., MD, who is a clinical professor in pediatrics at the Robert Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont, and Sally Borden, who is executive director of KidSafe Collaborative. They are members of the Vermont Citizen’s Advisory Board.
[F]ollowing the violent deaths in 2014 of two small children who had been in state custody with the Vermont Department for Children and Families, Gov. Peter Shumlin convened a special Vermont Citizen’s Advisory Board charged to investigate these tragedies. As co-chairs of this board, we led a multidisciplinary group of invited experts to review the circumstances of how each child came into custody, what services they were provided, what considerations led to their discharge from state custody, and what follow-up support was provided for their care. This special VCAB was asked to make a broad and deep assessment of each case to learn what we Vermonters might have done differently to prevent these violent deaths, at the community level, through the work of DCF, and in the operations of the Vermont family court. Our work reviewed the Vermont State Police investigation of each case which was conducted to determine if there had been any action or inaction of concern on the part of any public official.
We found no instance of malpractice of worker or system. However, we identified a number of systems weaknesses that in retrospect did not sufficiently protect these toddlers. An exhaustive list of recommendations was provided in a report to the governor.
More importantly, we found that DCF Family Services was understaffed to meet current needs, both in direct family service workers and in the support staff that would allow them to do their work thoroughly and effectively. We found that the long backup for Vermont family court cases complicated the provision of services to families.
The Vermont Legislature had shared our staffing concerns for some time. They knew of the increasing demands on DCF to provide services. Even in the early days of our opiate crisis, reports of suspected child abuse and neglect were rapidly increasing, as was the complexity of cases. But at that time, the average number of families served by one family services worker was approximately 17. The 2009 Legislature’s concerns for the workload of DCF social workers led them in to set a goal of 12 cases per family services worker to bring Vermont to the published national standard recommended by the Child Welfare League of America and others. Our committee found that in 2014 “DCF caseload ratios (client/worker) are well above the national best practice standard of 12 cases per social worker, which was approved by the Vermont Legislature in 2009.” We were troubled to hear social workers’ distress at the limited time they had to address so many families’ complex needs. Our committee recommended: “Significant funding must be provided to DCF Family Services to enable DCF staff/client ratios to meet best practices levels of an average of 12 cases per social worker.” Today we estimate this “significant funding” increase is in the range of $5 million.
How had we failed these children? We relied on truly dedicated workers, but they were mired in a system of insufficient and inadequate resources. Sadly, we continue to experience increased investigations of child abuse and neglect, resulting in more families with genuine need being served by DCF. More children come to family court and are taken into custody or placed under conditional custody court orders. And like with the two children who tragically died, the need for services and close follow-up is even greater if they are to be safely reunified with their families.
Have we learned from these two child deaths? We hope so, but perhaps not. This year the Family Services Division of DCF has requested approximately $2 million in new funds. In legislative budget discussions it appears that this might not be assured. Full funding of DCF’s request is desperately needed to provide new family services workers and necessary supervisors. Case aides, now funded only as temporary workers, are needed full time and in increased numbers in each DCF district. The current number of cases per worker remains above our Legislature’s 2009 goal.
Each year our legislators face the Sisyphean task of considering what Vermont needs and how to pay for it. They must sort and rank what is most important right now, what can wait, and what to cast aside. Our over 1,300 of Vermont children in state custody today and the additional 800 with conditional custody orders certainly aren’t being cast aside, but they cannot wait! Two child deaths — and the self-examination of our commitment to all of Vermont’s children and youth — teach us that DCF’s services must be fully funded this legislative session.
