The state has a new way of figuring out which children need protection that it hopes will reverse an alarmingly high rate of repeat abuse and neglect.
In a public meeting Thursday, the head of the state Office of Children's Services reached out to the community to explain its new way of doing business.
The old way focused on allegations of abuse or neglect.
"Did it happen or didn't it happen?" said Tammy Sandoval, who oversees the OCS.
But over the past year, the agency has broadened its approach. OCS workers now do "safety assessments" of families in which they gather much more information instead of concentrating on whether something bad happened, she said.
The three-hour session Thursday at Loussac Library drew a crowd of about 150 professionals from a variety of fields and agencies, including schools, police, military and tribal organizations, as well as parents who want the system reformed.
If problems aren't severe or persistent enough, OCS may simply refer the family to other agencies for services, Sandoval said. The child may be "at risk" but that's no longer enough for the state to step in. The danger must be more concrete.
"We can't do it all," she said.
Sandoval has been working toward the new approach since coming to OCS three years ago to manage system reform. In 2004, she became head of the entire agency. A year ago, OCS began teaching supervisors the new way and by June, all front line staff, supervisors and managers had been trained.
In a sense, the new way isn't new at all. It's classic social work and now agencies like OCS are turning back to it in the hope it will help them better serve families.
So far, just as many Alaska children are going into foster care as before the new approach -- about 1,500 are in foster homes, and more than 2,000 are in state care once those in residential treatment and other placements are counted.
It's too early to know how the new approach will affect those numbers. Sandoval said OCS is nervous about the possibility of more foster children. Where will they all go? But she hopes the opposite will happen as workers become increasingly sophisticated in responding to families and providing help tailored to keeping children at home.
If a mom drinks every afternoon, maybe a neighbor or grandma can pop in to check on the children. If the dad blows his paycheck at the bar every two weeks and then fights with the mom about it, maybe OCS can come up with a plan to keep the children safe on payday.
The old way was to take custody and then figure out how the children could be returned safely home.
"The state does not make a good parent," Sandoval said. "The state should not be raising children. Parents should be raising children."
The change pushes already overloaded investigators to do more work up front, but in the long run, they may see reports drop, she said.
In Anchorage, child abuse investigators are getting 20 to 25 new cases every month, double what's recommended, said Phil Kaufman, an OCS staff manager who oversees intake workers, investigators and foster care licensing.
He still supports the new approach because he believes better decisions will result. Investigators are working much more closely with supervisors, consulting with them before they leave to check out a report and calling in again from the field to make sure they didn't miss anything, Kaufman said.
The new approach is built around a safety assessment in which workers gather information to answer six questions and spinoffs:
• How extensive is the abuse or neglect? Did it even happen? How big are the bruises?
• What were the circumstances surrounding it? Was it a one-time incident in which a parent lost control and smacked the child or is it chronic, as in the case of an alcoholic parent?
• How does the parent discipline? Spanking, timeout, grounding?
• What about general parenting practices? Does the parent make sure the child eats a good breakfast, lunch and dinner? Help with homework? Or is the kid on his own?
• Who is this kid? Average, does well in school? Or isolated, bullied, prone to get into fights?
• Who is the parent? Does the person make it to work on time? In good health?
Workers must then determine whether any of 15 safety threats exist. Is a parent or other caregiver acting dangerously? Check the box on the form. Is the child perceived negatively? Check. Do the parents refuse to explain the child's injuries? Check.
But even if threats exist, the child still may be safe. Maybe the child is older and not as vulnerable. Maybe one parent presents a threat but the other one is well equipped to keep the child safe.
The crowd at Thursday's session seemed to like the new approach. OCS said it will need other public and private agencies as partners.
Carol Comeau, Anchorage School District superintendent, said OCS is doing much better at reaching out to the schools.
But concerns and frustrations remain. Some said that when they report suspected abuse or neglect to OCS, the agency doesn't let them know the result of the investigation. Tribal workers are reluctant to team up with OCS.
Others brought up concerns about shortages of treatment and other services. Several people from Covenant House spoke up about teenagers being dumped there by fed-up parents and said OCS is slow to respond. The children can remain in legal limbo for weeks or longer.
Sandoval remained enthused.
"You have to get the whole story and all the pieces of the puzzle and only then can you make a good decision," she said.
Daily News reporter Lisa Demer can be reached at ldemer@adn.com and 257-4390.
