Caseworkers hampered by ’90s-era foster care software that the state hasn’t replaced

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Caseworkers and foster care providers often get incomplete and inaccurate information about foster kids in their care because of the state child welfare agency's archaic technology system.

A Texas Department of Family and Protective Services employee’s desk at the agency’s Austin office in 2019. The limited functionality of the system DFPS uses to track and manage services for foster care children means caseworkers can’t easily uploadTexas has poured more than $100 million into the state’s aging foster care software known as IMPACT.

In the 30 years that have followed, web browsers have been launched and then discontinued. Apple has released more than 30 iterations of the iPhone. The state’s child welfare system, meanwhile, runs on the same technology system. IMPACT’s limited functionality means caseworkers can’t upload or store documents like birth certificates, school records and medical evaluations, the kind of information needed to assess a child’s academic and health care needs. With a software this old, state workers must be tied to a laptop or tablet to update a child’s record because IMPACT is not compatible with mobile phones.

. For foster children who experience multiple placements or work with multiple case workers, IMPACT can impede the transition. Eight years ago, the federal government also began encouraging states to modernize their foster care data systems by offering to reimburse up to 50% of a state’s costs if new programs include a more mobile-friendly design capable of real-time updates.

 

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