Arkansas Administrative Code › Agency 016 - DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES › Division 15 - Children and Family Services › Rule 016.15.18-001 - Policy IX-C: Child Near Fatalities and Fatalities › Rule 016.15.18-001 - Policy IX-C: Child Near Fatalities and Fatalities

Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 6, June, 2024
Although an infrequent occurrence, near fatalities and
				  fatalities of children who
are
receiving services or who have
				  recently received services from the Division do occur. Fatalities may occur due
				  to an illness or other medical condition, as a result of child neglect or
				  abuse, or because of a non-child maltreatment related accident. Regardless of
				  the cause of a near fatality or fatality, these events are extremely traumatic
				  for the family of the child, the foster family (if applicable), Division staff,
				  and service providers. Division staff will be supportive and helpful to those
				  who have had a meaningful and/or legal relationship with the child including
				  relatives and foster parents. Division leadership and management will recognize
				  the importance of appropriately supporting staff who worked directly with the
				  child and encourage those staff members to seek appropriate, individualized
				  services as needed.
Pursuant to A.C.A. §
										12-18-103 a near fatality (also
				  referred to in DHS Policy 1090 as a serious injury) means an act that, as
				  certified by a physician, places a child in serious or critical condition. As
				  such, the Division will rely on the involved medical facility's designation of
				  the child's condition in determining if a particular incident meets the
				  criteria of near fatality as defined by law.
The Division of Children and Family Services County
				  Office will immediately (within one hour) notify the appropriate Area Director
				  or designee and the Assistant Director of Community Services or designee and
				  initiate action to ensure the safety of other children in the home when DCFS
				  becomes aware of a child near fatality or fatality that may be the result of
				  maltreatment and:
A.
The
				child or sibling of the child
i
s a subject of a
				pending child maltreatment investigation or a child maltreatment investigation
				within the preceding op
4
months.
B.
The child or sibling of the child
				is a client in any supportive or protective services or out of home '
				case.
C.
The child or
				sibling of the child was a client in a supportive, protective services, or out
				of home case during the previous
24
months.__________
The Assistant Director of Community
				  Services
or designee
will immediately (within one hour)
				  notify the Division Director who will notify the DHS Deputy
				  Director
, DHS Chief Counsel (per DHS Policy 1090)
and
				  the DHS Director of Communications. As such, the Division will not
				  automatically issue press releases on cases of child near fatality or fatality
				  related to maltreatment but will respond to requests for information as they
				  are received in consultation with the DHS Director of
				  Communications.
The Division will ensure that DHS Policy 1090 adhered
				  to regarding all near fatalities and fatalities.
When a fatality occurs in an open out of
				  home case,
he Division will respectfully assist and support the
				  parents in making funeral arrangements or take other actions deemed necessary
				  by the Area Director.
Because quality improvement and accountability guides
				  the work of DCFS, an internal team of DCFS staff will meet following a child
				  fatality,
that meets at least one of the criterion established in
				  items A&C above
to review the case and identify systemic
				  issues, public health concerns, and where practice could have been improved in
				  that particular case in an effort to prevent future child fatalities and near
				  fatalities.
Following a DCFS internal near fatality or fatality
				  review, the Division will also be responsible for holding a meeting
				  .
with the External Child Near Fatality and Fatality Review
				  Team
,
to review
any
				  .
certified
, near fatality or fatality.
for
				  which there is a current child death investigation (i.e., related o child
				  maltreatment)
. t
-T
.
T
he
External Child
				  Near Fatality and Fatality Review Team
will conduct a
				  comprehensive review of the circumstances leading to the near fatalities and
				  fatalities of children who have been reported through the Arkansas Child Abuse
				  Hotline. Based on the findings of the reviews, the
External Child
				  Near Fatality and Fatality Review Team
will develop
				  recommendations and actions, as appropriate, to be implemented to prevent
other
child near fatalities and
				  fatalities.
.
The External Child Near Fatality and
				  Fatality Review Team
will be comprised of the following
				  members:
A.
DCFS Director
				or designee;
B.
DCFS Assistant Director of Community Services or
				designee;
C.
DCFS Family Service Worker (FSW) Supervisor designated by the DCFS
				Director;
D.
dCFS FSW
				Investigative Supervisor designated by the DCFS Director;
E.
Crimes Against Children Division
				Commander or designee;
F.
7Arkansas Commission on Child Abuse, Rape, and Domestic Violence
				Executive Director or designee;
G.
Children's Advocacy Centers of
				Arkansas Director or designee;
H. _______
Arkansas CASA Association
				Director or designee;
I.
Arkansas Children's Hospital's Team for Children at Risk and Arkansas
				Children's House Director or "designee;
J.
Dependency-Neglect Attorney Ad
				Litem Director or designee;
K.
Office of
Chief
				Counsel
Director or designee;
L.
he Governor's Senior Advisor for
				Child Welfare;
--------------
M.
A member oTthe Arkansas
				Child Death Review
				Panel;
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N.
A member of the Arkansas
				Department of Health;
O.
A member appointed by the chair of
				the House Subcommitee on Children and Youth of the House Committee on Aging,
				Children and Youth, and Legislative and Military Affairs;
P.
A member appointed by the Chief
				Justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court
.
-------------------------
This
External Child Near Fatality and
				  Fatality Review Team
will meet at least quarterly each calendar
				  year. The committee meetings will be closed and information discussed at the
				  meeting will be confidential. Individuals who are not members of the
External Child Near Fatality and Fatality Review Team
will not be allowed to attend or otherwise participate in a committee meeting
				  unless a majority of the members vote to request the attendance or
				  participation of a non-committee member.
These external reviews will provide the Division and
				  other stakeholders involved with child serving systems with an additional
				  opportunity to collaboratively review the facts surrounding the fatality and
				  accurately assess child deaths, work to improve systemic issues, address public
				  health concerns, and determine recommendations to improve practice and work
				  together as a system to prevent future child fatalities and near
				  fatalities.