Arizona Citizen Review Panel 2009 Annual Report

The 1996 reauthorization and amendment to the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) established a grant program directed at the improvement of states’ Child Protective Services (CPS) systems.  The purpose of the establishment of the Arizona Citizen Review Panel Program is to provide new opportunities for citizens to play integral roles in ensuring that the State is meeting it goals of protecting children from abuse and neglect.
 
In the winter of 2008, the Center for Applied Behavioral Health Policy (CABHP) at Arizona State University began coordinating the Arizona Citizen Review Panels through an interagency agreement with the Arizona Department of Economic Security/Division of Children, Youth and Families (ADES/DCYF).  CABHP developed a fresh approach to the planning, organization, membership, education, community outreach and mission of the three state-wide Panels covering the regions of northern, central and southern Arizona.
 
Section 106(d) of the CAPTA requires that Citizen Review Panels develop annual reports and make them available to the public. These reports should be completed no later than 90 days after the end of the Federal fiscal year (December 31st).  The Federal Regional Office also receives the annual report by June 30th of each year so that it can assess the progress that states are making in implementing the recommendations of the Panels. ADES/DCYF will also provide a written response addressing each of the recommendations.
 
CABHP submitted the 11th Annual Report of the Arizona Citizen Review Panel to ADES/DCYF summarizing the accomplishments, activities, findings, and recommendations of the three Panels for 2009. The highlights of the past year include statewide recruitment of Panel members resulting in a 47% increase in new members; the publication of a brochure for distribution; creation of a public website and Intranet for the Panels; development of a volunteer application, job description, and referral form, as well as formal terms of membership including consensus guidelines.  One of the most challenging aspects of reorganization was the implementation of a structured process for reviewing CPS case records to assist Panels’ in determining recommendations.
 
Below are examples of the findings and recommendations contained in the 2009 report:
 
1.       DCYF should work collaboratively with the Arizona Attorney General’s Office to expand the Office of Drug Endangered Children’s programs across counties.
 
2.       DCYF staff should work in partnership with the Federal Regional Office to advocate for a national registry and central depository that would aid CPS efforts to access information in a timely manner on adults who have a history of maltreatment reports in other states, especially those with multiple allegations of chronic abuse and neglect.
 
3.       Guidelines should be developed to assist staff in assessing the appropriateness of safety monitors including the types of charges on the Department of Public Safety background checks that would preclude someone from being a safety monitor.  Currently DCYF staff  are expected to conduct background checks, but there is no clear direction on how to determine if certain criminal histories are allowable, or which would prevent a person from becoming a safety monitor.
 
4.       The Panels are concerned with the safety of children remaining in homes when a criminal investigation has ended or the case was closed.  They recommend that CPS enhance the current policy and training curriculum on conducting safety and risk assessments independent of criminal investigations based on the overall assessment of each individual case.  High risk factors that were at times not considered in safety decisions included: a lack of background checks on all involved adults; extent of law enforcement involvement, and multiple CPS reports from different sources.
 
Click here to view the Annual Report.
 
If you would like more information on volunteering on the Citizen Review Panel Program, please contact Lisa Moen at lisa.moen@asu.edu or (602) 496-1480.