Submission: LA County’s child protection system requires urgent reform

Los Angeles is an amazing town. There’s so much to love: the people, the diversity, the beaches, the mountains, the creativity, the weather and the raw potential to make dreams come true. For many, these dreams start in childhood, but sadly, many children only dream of a life without abuse. No child should have to endure abuse.

There are thousands of cases of child abuse and neglect reported each year in Los Angeles County. A recent report put together by the L.A. County Blue Ribbon Commission on Child Protection notes, “Each day we wait for reform, 40 more infants are reported as possible victims of abuse or neglect.” Protection of children must be a priority. Children are, quite literally, our future.

Children who were subjected to severe and multiple adverse stressful events during childhood, such as abuse and maltreatment, are more likely to face various health problems in adulthood, according to the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study and other reports compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. They have a higher rate of anxiety and depression in adulthood, as well as increased risks of diabetes, heart conditions, teen pregnancies, drug abuse, suicide and criminality.

Too frequently, the only response to the issue of child abuse is the rightful condemnation of it. But then what? What problem has ever been solved by merely naming it? There has to be a next step, in the form of action.

The L.A. County Blue Ribbon Commission on Child Protection has proposed one viable solution. On April 18, this group of experts from around L.A. County presented its recommendations for fixing the current problems within the child protection system to the Board of Supervisors, the governing body of L.A. County.

Problems include lack of sufficient training, resources and communication between agencies that handle cases of child abuse. The caseworkers who serve on the front line to monitor and supervise these cases need more support, resources and training to carry out their duties effectively. Caseloads are too high to provide the appropriate attention to each case.

There is a clear need for all agencies that serve to protect children in Los Angeles to develop a unified mission and specific measures to monitor progress on that mission.There are many reasons why at-risk children fall through the cracks under the current system, and the report attemptsto identify these reasons and provide suggestions to improve them.

The final report is the product of eight months of work. In the report, it is noted that “the Commission conducted 15 public hearings, interviewed more than 300 stakeholders across all program areas related to child-safety” and held consultations with child welfare experts across the country.

In short, the creation of this report and its recommendations was an extensive and comprehensive project.

The system that was established to safeguard children in unsafe homes is in dire need of improvement. Children are being abused, neglected and even killed by the people who are supposed to protect them.

The death of 8-year-old Gabriel Fernandez in May 2013 is an example of a case that slipped through the cracks. Gabriel’s case was investigated six times by the L.A. County Department of Children and Family Services, and the agency still failed in serving its mission of protecting children.

According to Los Angeles Times writer Garrett Therolf, in Antelope Valley, where Gabriel lived, “some of the department’s least experienced social workers work there with the highest caseloads.”

The Board of Supervisors convened the Blue Ribbon Commission soon after the case of Gabriel Fernandez was publicized in the news, but it shouldn’t have taken Gabriel’s death for Angelenos to realize the urgent problem we have on our hands.

Los Angeles needs a coherent plan to address this issue so that innocent lives like that of Gabriel Fernandez can be saved. The Blue Ribbon Commission has provided that plan, and it is up to us to provide the will to implement it.

The L.A. Board of Supervisors is scheduled to vote on the recommendations from the Blue Ribbon Commission on Child Protection on Tuesday. Let your own Board of Supervisors representative know where you stand on this issue.

For more information on the proceedings, findings and final report and recommendations of the commission, check out its website at BlueRibbonCommissionLA.com.

To find your L.A. County supervisor or to learn more about their vote on this issue, see the L.A. County Board of Supervisors website at http://bos.co.la.ca.us/.

Elsie Beach, Ph.D., is a UCLA alumna and licensed clinical psychologist who specializes in working with clients who have experienced abuse and trauma. She is the former clinical director of a child sex abuse treatment agency that served survivors, offenders and their families, both adults and children.

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