From Case Study: University of Washington · Seattle WA 98195-3060
Preventing Child Abuse: The Challenge for the State Department of Social Services (A)
From Case Study: University of Washington · Seattle WA 98195-3060
Preventing Child Abuse: The Challenge for the State Department of Social Services (A)
From Case Study: University of Washington · Seattle WA 98195-3060
Preventing Child Abuse: The Challenge for the State Department of Social Services (A)
From Case Study: University of Washington · Seattle WA 98195-3060
Preventing Child Abuse: The Challenge for the State Department of Social Services (A)
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Oscar A.
Rivera Figueroa
10-24-2016
Public & Nonprofit Management
Case Analysis 2: Preventing child abuse Preventing child abuse is a case analysis base in the Department of Welfare and the new separate Department of Social Services to assume the social services component of the DOW. This case has a variety of issues, but I will select three of the issues; first the agency did not have enough professionally trained people as MSW; second the excessive and unreasonable case-load in the agency that were affecting the social workers; and third the union was more as an antagonist in terms of the best interest of the agency. A number theoretical concepts and frameworks can be applied to this case . In terms of enough personnel professionally trained people as MSW a conclusion that a private social service agency did in a major study. To this point the Department of Welfare was just an agency whose staff served both functions of providing money and social support services to welfare recipients. Connecting with the case study of Casa de Esperanza, here we have an organization that is dealing with an identity issue. The mission and the work that the agency was doing wasnt specific, as I mention before. The Competing Values Framework (Grabowski, Neher, Crim, Mathiassen 2014) is particularly relevant as they establish organizations effectiveness also depends on how its activities are organized and governed. Although it may be debated exactly how, several factors influence board effectiveness including clear roles and responsibilities, appropriate mix of skills and experience, sufficient availability of time, a common vision with management. In Structure Rules and Regulations (Hill, Lynn 2014) we have another theoretical concept relevant to this case. Regulation is concerned with conduct by individuals and organizations that affects lives or livelihoods of others. The actual and potential reach of regulation in vast because it could conceivably cover any conduct with social implications. In order to optimize this new agency, regulation is a key to ensure that national goals are met.
In addition to these theoretical concepts (Rainey 2014) in The impact of political
power and public policy talked about legislative bodies and said, legislative bodies have substantial formal powers, including authority to control agency budgets, to pass legislation that authorizes and directs agency actions, and to oversee agency activities through hearings, investigations, and other means. This concept is relevant with these in this case in terms of the Union and the lobbying campaign supported by the State Representative George Whalen to protect all their members. There is a variety of qualitative data that can be applied and analyzed in this case. The most relevant qualitative data are The department shall establish a comprehensive program of social services at the area level. Some of these services are strengthen and encourage family life for the protection and care of children, assist and encourage the use by any family of all available resources to this end, and provide substitute care of children only when preventive services have failed and the family itself or the resources needed and provided to the family are unable to insure the integrity of the family and the necessary care and protection to guarantee the rights of any child to sound health and normal physical, mental, spiritual and moral development. The department shall: Formulate the policies, procedures and rules necessary for the full and efficient implementation of programs authorized by the laws of the state and federal laws in the area of social services; Administer the services, funds, and personnel necessary for such social service programs throughout; Establish and enforce high standards of social service and strive to elevate such standards. The department shall be under the direction, supervision and control of a Commissioner of social services. Commissioner shall be qualified by training and experience to perform the duties of the office and shall at the time of appointment have received a doctorate or other degree beyond the level of the baccalaureate in the field of business, economics, education, government, law, medicine, psychology, public administration, public health, public policy, social work, urban planning. The Commissioner shall establish reasonable caseload rates and shall report the same to the general court in the budget estimates of the department. The Commissioner shall develop and implement a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation system for all social
services under the control of the department and shall collect the necessary program and fiscal data annually. There is a small amount of quantitative data that can be applied and analyzed in this case. The most relevant quantitative data are the Department of Welfare with a budget of 2.6 billion and 6,000 employees, have 275 millions and 2,000 employees in the area of social services. The Commissioner shall receive a salary of eighty-five thousand dollars and shall devote full time to the duties of the office. This State does not have any comprehensive system of employee evaluation. The laws are written so that inaction by appointing authorities results in automatic tenure or step increases for the employees. In terms of the Plan for Department of Social Services we found that this one propose Reward systems: career ladder(s); compensation: other possible rewards within framework of civil service. Time: attendance; vacations; sabbaticals; sick leave; part-time alternatives. With this evidence accumulated we can conclude that the needs of this organization are more structural and managerial than financially. The qualitative data showed that the basis of issues are the lack of regulation, clear mission and accountability. Furthermore, the union lobbying is not supporting regulation for high performance in social services. Alternative actions that the new Secretary can make are; first accept the legislation. This means that the agency will receive the transferred employees, also, this means that they will continue having pressure of the union and their politics of ineffectiveness in work. However, if he approved the legislation new regulations in terms of accountability, clear purpose and reduce of case-load will be part of the agency. Second; the Secretary can deny the legislation and prolong the changes of the agency, this will cause more insecurity in the organization furthermore, more stories of child abuse injuries and deaths. Recommendations that comes out of this analysis are; the agency need to be only for Social Services. The agency need to evaluate the personnel to see if they are prepared as social workers, those who are prepared would continue working and those who are not, need to be trained to continue working as social workers. Furthermore, the agency need to establish, that new employees need to have MSW degree or equivalent,
also the agency need to reduce the case-load that overwhelm social workers. The action plan that I preferred is basically the one that I mentioned before in short terms steps. In addition, as medium term I will suggest a second evaluation for those who received training to measure progress. I will suggest the agency to hire new social workers if the number of cases increase. As long term steps the agency need to have a high accountability process in the organization. This accountability process will provide with data to see the efficiency of the organization; furthermore, to incentive workers by effectiveness.
