Massachusetts foster care oversight plagued by conflict of interest, advocates say

Child advocates are calling for the creation of an outside, independent agency to regularly review foster care placements in Massachusetts, saying the current system is rife with conflicts of interest and lacks transparency and accountability.

Under the current system, the Department of Children and Families is responsible for reviewing its own performance, something the advocates say is ineffective.

“We need a foster care review that’s independent from DCF itself, and that’s robust enough to identify and communicate clearly when DCF has not provided for the safety and well being of the children in its care,” said Susan Elsen, a child welfare policy advocate at the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute.

Recent Globe stories have highlighted a beleaguered, technology-starved state system in which children are often bounced from one temporary foster home to another and typically wait months for mental health services.

Read more: https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2019/04/22/child-advocates-state-foster-care-oversight-plagued-conflict-interest/9HuzIZUfBMPvn54uzHSMpK/story.html