Child Maltreatment Research, Policy, and Practice for the Next Decade Workshop Summary (2012) / Chapter Skim
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8 Systems-Level Issues
8 Systems-Level Issues
Pages 81-94
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From page 81... ...
A CROSS-NATIONAL VIEW OF CHILD PROTECTIVE SYSTEMS International comparisons can reveal not just the differing characteristics of child protective systems, but potential ways in which those characteristics affect outcomes. They can highlight differences in the incidence, prevalence, exposure, risk, and burden of child maltreatment.
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From page 82... ...
The World Health Organization has identified selfreport data as the standard for understanding the epidemiology of child maltreatment. Examples of instruments that collect such data are the Parent-Child Conflict Tactic Scales, the Child Abuse Screening Tool developed by the International Society for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect, the Juvenile Violence Questionnaire, and the Multiple Indicator Cluster Study developed by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)
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From page 83... ...
For example, the rate of violent deaths, drawn from health care data, was more than fivefold higher in the United States than in Sweden. In general, low levels of maltreatment indexes in Sweden and high levels in the United States are consistent with extremes of child poverty and support for parenting, Fluke said.
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From page 84... ...
Referrals with severe child maltreatment or imminent risk of further abuse are assigned to an investigative pathway, which is sometimes called the formal pathway. Referrals initially classified as low or moderate risk enter a noninvestigative pathway, sometimes called the assessment pathway, which emphasizes family engagement and services outside of the court's purview.
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From page 85... ...
Also, it can produce better engagement of community agencies in serving clients connected with child welfare services because alternative response systems usually have close ties with community agencies. Differential response can support child maltreatment prevention with high-risk cases.
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From page 86... ...
Future Research on Differential Response Barth provided a list of questions that would be useful targets of research on differential response; many are taken directly from or based on questions from a literature review funded by the Children's Bureau on differential response in child protective services (QIC-DR, 2011)
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From page 87... ...
Descriptions should be more accurate so that, for example, "sexual abuse" has categories that give information about the abuse, including its severity. "This is a real opportunity, as we rethink the reporting that is required for alternative response systems, to also include measures of severity." Barth also pointed out that differential response systems may be a place to experiment with concepts of child-centered social services homes or medical homes.
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From page 88... ...
However, structural litigation offers one great advantage if it can open up spaces for experimentation, including ongoing experiments in several states that have created a new model of welfare provision. Moreover, federal efforts increasingly reflect and reinforce such reforms.
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From page 89... ...
Experimentalist Reform in Child Welfare This system, known as experimentalist or pragmatist reform, has been partially implemented in several states. In Utah, for example, the key instrument is called a quality service review (QSR)
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From page 90... ...
The second experiment Sabel mentioned is the federal Child and Family Service Reviews (CFSRs)
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From page 91... ...
[But] this is a moment when that high-level accountability has to be turned to good purpose." LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT IN CHILD WELFARE AGENCIES At the beginning of the final discussion session, David Sanders, the executive vice president of systems improvement at Casey Family Programs, offered reflections based on his experience as someone who has spent many years directing large public agencies as well as several reflections on earlier presentations.
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From page 92... ...
He added that, at the time, "I had no experience with child protection. I had never set foot in a family's home, but I will tell you that this is not an uncommon experience for many people in child welfare." In Los Angeles County, he was the fifth director in 5 years, and the ninth in the 20 years that the department had existed.
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From page 93... ...
" He noted that the challenge is not whether or not there is a good set of evidence-based practices, but rather how to implement them across a large organization with many workers. In Los Angeles, he said, they focused on a small set of outcomes and a small set of strategies.
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