AFCARS Assessment Review - Foster Care Case File Findings

AFCARS Assessment Review - Foster Care Case File Findings
State: District of Columbia
Report Period Under Review: April 1, 2004 - September 30, 2004 (2004B)

AFCARS Data Element	Paper file and AFCARS match	Paper file and AFCARS does not match	Questionable	Comments/Findings
#5 Most Recent Periodic Review Date	47	1	21	Not found = 1 In the error case, the data was missing in AFCARS, but the reviewer found a date. The child had been in care since 1998 and the current living arrangement was a group home. The cases marked as questionable are more than likely correct, but the State may want to verify the cases. In most instances, the reviewers noted a date that was earlier, generally a month earlier, than what was reported to AFCARS. All dates in the case sample were within the report period under review.
#6 Child Birth Date	69	1
#7 Child Sex 1 = Male 2 = Female	70	0
#8 Child Race a. American Indian or Alaska Native	65	0		Not found = 5
b. Asian	65	0		Not found = 5
c. Black or African American	63	2		Not found = 5
d. Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander	65	0		Not found = 5
e. White	65	0		Not found = 5
f. Unable to Determine	63	2		Not found = 5
#9 Child Hispanic Origin 1 = Yes 2 = No 3 = Unable to Determine	64	1		Not found = 5
#10 Has Child Been Diagnosed with Disability?	56	12	1	Not found = 1 In six of the error cases, the AFCARS data indicated "no" and the reviewers indicated the response should have been "yes." In four of these cases, there was a response of "applies" in one of the conditions listed in element #11 - 15." In one error case, the response was correctly reported as "yes," but none of the conditions were reported as "applies."
#11 Mental Retardation	61	7	1	Not found = 1
#12 Visually/Hearing Impaired	63	5	1	Not found = 1 In two error cases, this element was reported as "applies." In both instances the reviewers did not find information in the case file to indicate the child had a visual or hearing disability.
#13 Physically Disabled	66	2	1	Not found = 1
#14 Emotionally Disturbed	61	7	1	Not found = 1
#15 Other Condition	65	3	1	Not found = 1
#16 Has Child Ever Been Adopted? 1 = Yes 2 = No 3 = Unable to Determine	65	5		In three of the error cases, this element was blank and the reviewer verified the child had never been adopted and the answer should have been "no." In another error case, the information reported in AFCARS was "unable to determine" for this element and it should have been "no." One error cases indicated "yes" and #17 indicated "not applicable." The reviewer indicated the child had never been adopted.
#17 Age at Previous Adoption 0 = Not Applicable 1 = less than 2 years old 2 = 2-5 years old 3 = 6-12 years old 4 = 13 years or older 5 = Unable to Determine	67	3		In one error case, this element was blank and the reviewer verified the child had never been adopted and the answer should have been "not applicable."
#18 Date of First Removal from Home	48	16	4	Not Found = 2 In four error cases, the reviewers found dates earlier than those reported in AFCARS. Three of these were for longer than one year. There were three records in which the error was reporting of a court date and not the date of the actual removal. In one of the cases listed as questionable, according to the reviewer's notes, the child appears to have been "placed" with an aunt for six months per a 3rd party release. The child's date of first removal occurred eight months previous. The AFCARS data indicates the child had a second removal that occurred during the time the child was with the aunt. The reviewer did not find any court documents that support the second removal or a dismissal from the first court order, other than the documentation on the 3rd party release. Two other questionable cases indicate a lot of activity initially with a 3rd party release, then later the child is placed in foster care. It is not clear when the actual removal dates occurred.
#19 Total Number of Removals from Home	51	10	6	Not found = 3 There were two cases in which the number of removals decreased based on the case file review. There were six records that had an increase in the number of removals. In two of the questionable cases, the child returned home under a conditional release to the mom. A month later the child was placed back in foster care. The AFCARS report indicates a discharge and re-entry. The meaning and interpretation of "conditional release" affects the number of removals (occurred in 1998). If the agency actually retained care and placement responsibility, then the re-entry would have been a continuation of the original removal order and would not have been a new removal from home. There are notes provided by the reviewer indicating start/end dates of protective supervision. It is not clear if the agency also had care and placement responsibility. According to information in the AFCARS file, it seems that the agency did not have responsibility, but it is not clear in the reviewer's notes.
#20 Date of Discharge from Previous Episode	45	12	7	Not found = 6 Two error cases had the wrong date of discharge for the previous episode. One error case had a date and it should have been blank. The child actually only had one removal episode. The remaining errors were related to the wrong dates of discharge from the prior removal.
#21 Date of Latest Removal	44	18	7	Not found = 1 In four error cases, the date reported was a court date and not the actual removal date. In four error cases, the reviewers found dates that were earlier than the date reported in AFCARS. In one of the cases listed as questionable, the reviewer's notes indicate the child appears to have been "placed" with an aunt for three years per a 3rd party release. The child appears not to have been in the agency's care and placement responsibility until a later time than what was reported as the date of removal.
#23 Date of Placement in Current Setting	37	25	4	Not found = 4 In three of the error cases, the dates found by the reviewers were earlier than the dates reported in AFCARS. In two error cases, the dates found by the reviewers were later than the dates reported in AFCARS. In two of the error cases, the AFCARS field was blank, but the reviewer found the placement date. Additionally, in one of the records the AFCARS data in element #24 indicated a number (nine) for the number of placement settings. Also, one of the records was for a placement with a contracted agency. One error case was missing information for this element and element #41 in the AFCARS file and the child was 17 years old. In another error case, the information for elements #23 and 24 were blank and the child had been in care since October 2003. One of the error cases appears to reflect the date the aunt was licensed as a foster parent and not the date the child was placed with the aunt. The questionable cases are based on the questionable status in elements #19 - 21.
#24 Number of Previous Placement Settings in This Episode	38	20	4	Not found = 8 There were six error cases in which the number of placements decreased based on the case file review. There were eleven error cases in which the number of placements increased based on the case file review. The questionable cases are based on questionable findings elements #19 - 21.
#25 Manner of Removal From Home for This Episode 1 = Voluntary 2 = Court Ordered 3 = Not Yet Determined	64	0	1	Not found = 5
#26 Physical Abuse	62	8		The number of error cases in elements #26 - 40 that were reported as "does not apply" and should have been "applies" were 19. There were three records reported as "applies" and the response should have been "does not apply."
#27 Sexual Abuse	66	3		Not found = 1
#28 Neglect	55	13	1	Not found = 1
#29 Parent Alcohol Abuse	62	7		Not found = 1
#30 Parent Drug Abuse	54	15		Not found = 1
#31 Child Alcohol Abuse	62	7		Not found = 1
#32 Child Drug Abuse	62	7		Not found = 1
#33 Child Disability	68	1		Not found = 1
#34 Child's Behavior Problem	68	1		Not found = 1
#35 Death of Parent	69	0		Not found = 1
#36 Incarceration of Parent	69	0		Not found = 1
#37 Caretaker Inability to Cope	61	8		Not found = 1
#38 Abandonment	58	10	1	Not found = 1 Two error cases indicated "applies" in AFCARS and the reviewer indicated "does not apply."
#39 Relinquishment	68	1		Not found = 1
#40 Inadequate Housing	65	4		Not found = 1
#41 Current Placement Setting 1 = Pre-Adoptive Home 2 = Foster Family Home (Relative) 3 = Foster Family Home (Non-Relative) 4 = Group Home 5 = Institution 6 = Supervised Independent Living 7 = Runaway 8 = Trial Home Visit	61	5		Not found = 4 Two error cases were missing data in AFCARS. One should have been "independent living." These two cases did indicate that the placement was not out-of-state (element #42).
#42 Out of State Placement	64	2		Not found = 4 Two records indicated the placement was out-of-State. One was correct and one was not. Also, the information for element #41 was blank.
#43 Most Recent Case Plan Goal 1 = Reunify with Parent(s) or Principal Caretaker(s) 2 = Live with Other Relative(s) 3 = Adoption 4 = Long Term Foster Care 5 = Emancipation 6 = Guardianship 7 = Case Plan Goal Not Yet Established	51	10	1	Not found = 8 There were three error cases in which the data was missing in AFCARS but the reviewer found a goal. In these cases, the child had been in care between two months and several years. There were four records with a reported goal of "emancipation." In one case, it should have been "long term foster care" and, in the other three cases, it should have been "guardianship." One error case had a goal "live with other relatives" and it should have been "adoption." Also, this child's discharge reason was adoption. In two other error cases, the reviewers found a goal of "adoption." In one case a goal of "reunification" was reported to AFCARS and the other was "long term foster care."
#44 Caretaker Family Structure 1 = Married Couple 2 = Unmarried Couple 3 = Single Female 4 = Single Male 5 = Unable to Determine	24	33	3	Not found = 10 In two error cases, the AFCARS information indicated "unable to determine" but there was a date of birth in element #45. In these cases, the reviewer could not ascertain the family structure. In 20 of the error cases, "unable to determine" was reported in AFCARS and in 14 of them the reviewers were able to find the information. Also, all of the records had dates of birth reported for the first caretaker. In two of the error records, the AFCARS data indicates a family structure of "single female" and there were dates of birth reported for the second caretaker. In the "not found" cases, six were reported in AFCARS as "unable to determine" and all had dates of birth reported for element(s) #45 and/or #46.
#45 1st Primary Caretaker's Birth Year	47	8		Not found = 15 There were three records with "unable to determine" reported in element #44 and reviewers found a date of birth for the primary caretaker.
#46 2nd Primary Caretaker's Birth Year	54	7	7	Not found = 2 In one error case, the marital status in #44 was "married couple," but this element was blank. Two of the questionable cases were due to the reviewer not finding the data in #44.
#47 Mother's Date of TPR	63	3	2	Not found = 2
#48 Father's Date of TPR	59	7	2	Not found = 2
#49 Foster Family Structure 0 = Not Applicable 1 = Married Couple 2 = Unmarried Couple 3 = Single Female 4 = Single Male	23	33	2	Not found = 12 Twenty-six error cases were missing data but element #41 indicated the child was in a foster home. In 13 cases, the reviewers identified information and three of the cases were contract agency placements. In three error cases the family structure was "married couple," but there was only demographic information reported for one foster parent. The questionable cases were because element #41 was reported as blank.
#50 1st Foster Caretaker's Birth Year	23	28	3	Not found = 16 In nine error cases, the data was missing, the child was in a foster home setting, and the reviewers found the information in the case file. Of those missing data in #49, one record did have information reported for this element and it was correct. Two questionable cases were because element #41 was reported as blank. The records marked as "not found" were cases where the child was in a foster home setting and in five records the fields were missing information in AFCARS. Three of the records in which the information was not found, "married" or "unmarried couple" was reported as the foster parent family structure, but the date of birth was reported only for the first foster parent
#51 2nd Foster Caretaker's Birth Year	26	12	20	Not found = 12 Two error cases indicated a married status, which the reviewer confirmed, but the information for #51 was blank. Of those missing data in #49, two records had information reported for this element. One was correct and the other was not. Two questionable cases were because element #41 was reported as blank. Eight of the questionable cases were due to #49 being blank and the child was in a foster home setting. The records marked as "not found" were cases where the child was in a foster home setting and in five records the fields were missing information in AFCARS.
#52 1st Foster Caretaker's Race	32	24	3	Not found = 11 Of those missing data in #49, two records had information reported for this element and it was correct. In another case the data was missing, but the reviewer found the information in the case file. Two questionable cases were because element #41 was reported as blank. The records marked as "not found" were cases where the child was in a foster home setting. In five records the fields were missing information in AFCARS.
#53 1st Foster Caretaker's Hispanic Origin	26	30	4	Not found = 10 Two error cases were reported as blanks and the child was in a foster home. Two questionable cases were because element #41 was reported as blank. The records marked as "not found" were cases where the child was in a foster home setting. In five records the fields were missing information in AFCARS.
#54 2nd Foster Caretaker's Race	29	12	23	Not found = 6 Two questionable cases were because element #41 was reported as blank. The records marked as "not found" were cases where the child was in a foster home setting. In five records the fields were missing information in AFCARS. Of those missing data in #49, two records had information reported for this element. One was correct and the other was not. Two error cases were blank in AFCARS and #49 was reported as married couple.
#55 2nd Foster Caretaker's Hispanic Origin	27	14	23	Not found = 6 Three of the error cases were blank in AFCARS, but element #49 was reported as "married couple." Of those missing data in #49, two records had information reported for this element. One was correct and the other was not. Two questionable cases were because element #41 was reported as blank. The records marked as "not found" were cases where the child was in a foster home setting. In five records the fields were missing information in AFCARS.
#56 Date of Discharge	61	5		Not found = 4
#58 Reason for Discharge 0 = Not Applicable 1 = Reunification with Parent(s) or Primary Caretaker(s) 2 = Living with Other Relative(s) 3 = Adoption 4 = Emancipation 5 = Guardianship 6 = Transfer to Another Agency 7 = Runaway 8 = Death of Child	66	0		Not found = 4
#59 Title IVE Foster Care #60 Title IVE Adoption #61 Title IVA AFDC #62 Title IVD Child Support #63 Title XIX Medicaid #64 SSI #65 None of the Above #66 Monthly Amount				Not analyzed

Number of cases reviewed: 70
Number of cases Analyzed: 70

AFCARS Element	Data In AFCARS Matches Case File	Data In AFCARS Does Not Match Paper File	Questionable	Comments/Findings
#4 State Agency Involvement 1 = Yes 2 = No	29	0	0
#5 Child Date of Birth	29	0	0
#6 Child Sex 1 = Male 2 = Female	29	0	0
#7 Child Race a. American Indian or Alaska Native b. Asian c. Black or African American d. Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander e. White f. Unable to Determine	29	0	0
#8 Child Hispanic Origin 1 = Yes 2 = No 3 = Unable to Determine	29	0	0
#9 Has Agency Determined Special Needs	29	0	0
#10 Primary Basis for Determining Special Needs 0 = Not Applicable 1 = Racial/Original Background 2 = Age 3 = Membership in a Sibling Group 4 = Medical Conditions or Mental, Physical or Emotional Disabilities 5 = Other	27	0	0	Not found = 2 Note: There were two records reported to AFCARS with the primary basis as "age" and the reviewer also found medical disabilities.
#11 Mental Retardation	27	0	0	Not found = 2
#12 Visually/Hearing Impaired	27	0	0	Not found = 2
#13 Physically Disabled	27	0	0	Not found = 2
#14 Emotionally Disturbed	27	0	0	Not found = 2
#15 Other Diagnosed Condition	27	0	0	Not found = 2
#16 Mother's Birth Year	21	0	0	Not found = 8
#17 Father's Birth Year	17	4	0	Not found = 8 Note: There were two records that were blank in AFCARS and the reviewer noted the father was deceased. It would seem that the date of birth would have been known.
#18 Mother Married at Time of Birth 1 = Yes 2 = No 3 = Unable to Determine	0	3	26	In every record the response for AFCARS was "unable to determine." It seems unlikely that all the children adopted in this report period had been abandoned children. In three records the reviewer was clearly able to determine the mother's marital status.
#19 Date of Mother's TPR	25	3	0	Not found = 1
#20 Date of Father's TPR	25	1	1	Not found = 2
#21 Date Adoption Legalized	27	1	0	Not found = 1
#22 Adoptive Family Structure 1 = Married Couple 2 = Unmarried Couple 3 = Single Female 4 = Single Male	25	3	0	Not found = 1 The error cases indicated a marital status of "married" in AFCARS. In two of the error cases, the reviewers found the adoptive parent was a widow, (one in which the spouse died between the date of the filing to adopt and the finalization of the adoption). In the other error case, the adoptive parent was in the midst of a divorce at the time of the filing to adopt and was divorced at the time of the adoption finalization.
#23 Adoptive Mother's Year of Birth	26	2	0	Not found = 1
#24 Adoptive Father's Year of Birth	26	2	0	Not found = 1
#25 Adoptive Mother's Race	29	0	0
#26 Adoptive Mother's Hispanic Origin	27	1	0	Not found = 1
#27 Adoptive Father's Race	26	3	0	In two of the error cases, information was reported incorrectly because the reviewer found that there was no adoptive father. (See notes for element #22.) In the third error case, the marital status in element #22 was "married," but this element was missing data in AFCARS.
#28 Adoptive Father's Hispanic Origin	26	3	0	See notes for element #28.
#29 Relationship of Adoptive Parent to Child - Stepparent	28	2	0	One error case was due to no selection reported in AFCARS. Each of the elements (#29 - 32) were marked "does not apply."
#30 Relationship of Adoptive Parent to Child - Other Relative	25	4	0	One error case was due to no selection reported in AFCARS. Each of the elements (#29 - 32) were marked "does not apply." In three error cases, the reviewer found more than one relationship between the child and the adoptive parents. The AFCARS data reflected only one relationship between the two.
#31 Relationship of Adoptive Parent to Child - Foster Parent	25	4	0	One error case was due to no selection reported in AFCARS. Each of the elements (#29 - 32) were marked "does not apply." In three error cases, the reviewer found more than one relationship between the child and the adoptive parents. The AFCARS data reflected only one relationship between the two.
#32 Relationship of Adoptive Parent to Child - Other Non-Relative	28	2	0	One error case was due to no selection reported in AFCARS. Each of the elements (#29 - 32) was marked "does not apply."
#33 Child Was Placed from 1 = Within State 2 = Another State 3 = Another Country	25	4	0	In the error cases, three were reported to AFCARS as "Another State." One was reported as "Another Country." There was no indication that the child was placed by any other agency than Child and Family Services.
#34 Child Was Placed by 1 = Public Agency 2 = Private Agency 3 = Tribal Agency 4 = Independent Person 5 = Birth Parent	26	3	0	All of the error cases indicated "private agency" in AFCARS, but the reviewers found that CFSA placed the children.
#35 Receiving Monthly Subsidy	27	1	0	Not found = 1
#36 Monthly Amount	28	1	0
#37 Adoption Assistance - title IV-E 1= Yes 2 = No	6	11	0	Not found = 12 Reviewers were able to assess that the error cases should have been reported as "yes" for the adoption subsidy payment being title IV-E.

Number of cases reviewed: 29
Number of cases Analyzed: 29

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AFCARS Assessment Review - Foster Care Case File Findings State: District of Columbia Report Period Under Review: April 1, 2004 - September 30, 2004 (2004B)

AFCARS Assessment Review - Foster Care Case File Findings
State: District of Columbia
Report Period Under Review: April 1, 2004 - September 30, 2004 (2004B)