Report 2011-101.1 Recommendation 7 Responses

Report 2011-101.1: Child Welfare Services: California Can and Must Provide Better Protection and Support for Abused and Neglected Children (Release Date: October 2011)

Recommendation #7 To: Social Services, Department of

To encourage continued progress and innovation in keeping children safe, Social Services should add to its current CWS performance metrics a measure of the percentage of investigatory visits (both immediate and 10-day) completed on time that excludes attempted investigatory visits from its calculation of successful outcomes.

Annual Follow-Up Agency Response From October 2015

CDSS published All County Information Notice (ACIN) I-52-14 on September 9, 2014 (see link below), which provides best practice information for completing timely investigations. CDSS also developed a new outcome measure that provides completed in-person investigatory contacts with a child, and excludes attempted visits. Effective June 2015, the new measure, called "Referrals by Timeliness to Investigations - Completed," is now published on the California Child Welfare Indicators Project website, and provides retrospective performance, both statewide and county-specific, on the measure dating back to July 1, 2003. CDSS has also added a data report to SafeMeasures©, the subscription-based business intelligence tool used by most counties, which assists counties with the identification and tracking of case management tasks and outcomes in granular detail.

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CB0QFjAAahUKEwi17Pacl7PIAhUHlogKHRRiAgU&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dss.cahwnet.gov%2Flettersnotices%2FEntRes%2Fgetinfo%2Facin%2F2014%2FI-52_14.pdf&usg=AFQjCNHbLyLC48D-9DLwOnLBCRMCLrlF7Q&bvm=bv.104615367,d.cGU

California State Auditor's Assessment of Annual Follow-Up Status: Fully Implemented

Annual Follow-Up Agency Response From October 2014

Partially Corrected. CDSS agrees with the recommendation. This item continues to be in process. Through a state/county workgroup, CDSS has developed a new outcome measure that calculates completed in-person investigatory contacts with a child, and that excludes attempted visits. It is anticipated that the new measure will be published on the California Child Welfare Indicators Project in spring of 2015. CDSS is providing a new data report to counties that assists in managing and identifying referrals that are timely due to attempted contacts. Additionally, CDSS will be sending out an All County Information Notice (ACIN) in October 2014 that provides information about best practice for completing timely investigations.

California State Auditor's Assessment of Annual Follow-Up Status: Not Fully Implemented

Annual Follow-Up Agency Response From October 2013

Partially Implemented/Estimated Completion Date: Unknown. The CDSS has developed a workgroup comprised of state and county representation regarding timely response of investigatory visits. The workgroup has met several times to review timely response data and county practice and to discuss the best way to utilize data to improve practice. The workgroup is in the process of reviewing options for providing data and practice information that will be the most useful to assist counties in meeting investigatory guidelines.

California State Auditor's Assessment of Annual Follow-Up Status: Not Fully Implemented

Annual Follow-Up Agency Response From November 2012

Social Services stated that it agrees with the recommendation and a department committee is working with county representatives to determine the best way to provide this information alongside existing measures.

California State Auditor's Assessment of Annual Follow-Up Status: Not Fully Implemented

All Recommendations in 2011-101.1

Agency responses received after June 2013 are posted verbatim.