THE OFFICE OF THE FAMILY AND CHILDREN'S OMBUDSMAN (OFCO) was established by the 1996 Legislature to ensure that government agencies respond appropriately to the needs of children in need of state protection, children residing in state care, and children and families under state supervision due to allegations or findings of child abuse or neglect. The office also is intended to promote public awareness about the child protection and welfare system, and to recommend and facilitate broad-based systemic improvements.

As reflected in its authorizing legislation (RCW 43.06A.010), OFCO was given a unique role as an independent advocate for children and families. While OFCO was established organizationally within the Office of the Governor, its decisions to intervene in specific cases or undertake systemic investigations are made independently from the Governor's Office, the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS), and other state agencies. This report provides an account of OFCO's activities from December 16, 1996, when the director ombudsman's appointment became effective, through December 1, 1997. It also includes recommendations for statutory and administrative changes designed to improve the quality of state services for children and families.

Making OFCO Operational

Efforts during the first half of 1997 focused on setting up and organizing the new office in Tukwila. In addition to hiring a database administrator and purchasing equipment, the director ombudsman spent much of the first three months soliciting input from around the state on hopes and expectations for OFCO. During that time, she met extensively with legislators, family and children's advocates, foster parents and others, and she established the Western Washington Advisory Committee to provide ongoing community input and to assist the office in developing its mission and goals. A second advisory committee, the Central and Eastern Washington Advisory Committee, was established in October and held its first meetings that month in Spokane and Yakima.

By May, all of OFCO's staff had been hired and the office was fully furnished and equipped. Also completed in May were OFCO's internal operating policies and procedures, which were carefully designed to establish its independence from other state agencies and the Governor's Office. In June, OFCO's automated complaint tracking system became operational, its web page was established, and its Guide to Services was produced and disseminated. On June 17, 1997, Governor Gary Locke held a press conference in Olympia to announce OFCO's opening.

Interventions and Investigations

After opening in June 1997, the office focused its efforts on reviewing citizen complaints, while continuing to build its operational structure. From June to December, OFCO received 582 contacts from the public, the majority of which were phone requests for information about OFCO and other matters. Of the 112 complaints received during that period, 96 were requests for OFCO to intervene in an ongoing matter, while 16 were requests for OFCO to investigate a matter that had already occurred.

Complaints most often were filed by parents, relatives, or community professionals/service providers. A majority of complaints involved children who were especially vulnerable due to their young age and/or disability. Over half were age seven or younger and about one child in four was identified as having a mental, developmental, or other disability.

The most frequently identified complaint issue regarded child protection and safety; the next most frequent complaint issue was of unnecessary family separation and failure to reunify, followed by foster placement issues. Complainants most frequently alleged agency conduct that was lawful but which, if true, had resulted in a harmful outcome. However, many complainants alleged conduct which, if true, constituted a violation of law or policy.

Interventions

OFCO intervened in 63 cases for the purpose of preventing or mitigating possible harm resulting from an agency's act or omission. Slightly over half of OFCO's interventions were conducted on an emergent basis, where there was reason to believe that children or families might be in imminent peril without immediate action. Most interventions consisted of OFCO informally contacting an agency front-line worker or supervisor to inquire about the alleged act or omission, provide information, express concerns, explore other possible responses by the agency, and/or advise the agency that OFCO is monitoring the situation. OFCO found it necessary to issue a formal recommendation in two cases.

Although OFCO does not have authority to impose its recommendations directly on an agency, OFCO's interventions resulted in an agency changing its position to address OFCO's concerns in 26, or 53 percent, of the 49 cases that were closed as of December 1. Some changes - including new or more thorough investigations by Child Protective Services (CPS), police child welfare checks, increased family monitoring and support services, and appointment of attorneys or guardians ad litem - have resulted in greater protection for children.

Other changes, which have resulted in greater responsiveness to the needs of families, include allowances for appropriate parental visitation, provision of family reunification services, and change in a child's foster placement to provide closer proximity to the child's mother. In addition, OFCO helped to facilitate reversals of decisions to move children from long-standing foster placements, re-enrollment and development of an appropriate educational plan for a foster child who had been expelled from school, and finalized adoptions of legally-free children. These actions by OFCO have resulted in greater child well-being and permanence.

Systemic Investigations

In October 1997, OFCO accepted for systemic investigation three of 13 complaints included as part of the Wenatchee petition. The petition - submitted to OFCO by a coalition of defense attorneys, social service organizations and concerned citizens - requested an investigation of the actions taken by the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) during the 1994-95 Wenatchee child sex abuse investigations. The three complaints accepted allege that the DSHS Division of Children and Family Services (DCFS) inappropriately assisted law enforcement agencies in: (1) conducting and failing to document its own child interviews; (2) participating in and failing to document joint child interviews with law enforcement officials; and (3) making certain mental health treatment decisions, including decisions to place children in psychiatric hospitals. After announcing it would conduct a targeted review of the Wenatchee investigations, OFCO submitted a supplemental budget request for one-time investigation costs and requested the appointment of independent legal counsel. OFCO expects to issue a report on the Wenatchee investigation with findings and recommendations in late 1998.

Basis for Interventions and Systemic Investigations

OFCO's decisions to intervene in or investigate a case are grounded in its unique role as an independent voice for children and families. Consistent with this role, OFCO acts only on those complaints in which the well-being or interests of children or families appear to be in jeopardy. Moreover, irrespective of the particular outcome sought by the complainant, OFCO's interventions are aimed at preventing or mitigating harm to a child or family. Its systemic investigations are aimed at addressing recurring or system-wide problems that adversely affect children's safety, well-being or permanence, or that affect appropriate family preservation or reunification.

Recommendations and Additional Issues of Concern

In addition to investigating specific complaints, OFCO is charged in statute with developing recommendations for systemic improvements in state services for children and families. Based on its investigative work during the past six months, OFCO is making five recommendations for consideration by agency officials and policy makers. In addition, based on its preliminary experience with complaints received during this time, OFCO has identified five issues of concern that will receive further review and possible investigation in 1998.

Recommendations

The recommendations below are based on OFCO's investigative work during the past six months. Note that all but the last recommendation can be achieved through administrative policy and do not necessarily require a change in state statutes.

• RECOMMENDATION #1: The DSHS Children's Administration should adopt a policy that creates a presumption against recommending placement with a person who has a conflict of interest as a result of his or her dual role as a foster placement and a professional involved in the foster child's life.

• RECOMMENDATION #2: The Children's Administration should provide parents, foster children age 12 and older, and citizens who have concerns or complaints with concise information that outlines their rights under the department's complaint policy and their right to contact OFCO.

• RECOMMENDATION #3: The Children's Administration should ensure that its Office of Constituent Relation (OCR) continues to track client complaints and should begin using this information as a tool to improve and assure the department's quality of services. Consideration should be given to providing complaint data to the department's risk management unit.

• RECOMMENDATION #4: Children's Administration area managers should establish mechanisms for monitoring the volume and nature of complaints received by caseworkers and supervisors and should begin using this information to eliminate the cause of complaints. Moreover, regular client surveys should be conducted at the local office level. Local complaint and survey data should be integrated into the department's overall quality improvement and assurance activities.

• RECOMMENDATION #5: OFCO investigative records should be shielded by statute from court subpoena and civil discovery requests.