Arizona Kids and Families Benefit as DCS Reaches a Milestone in Reducing Backlogged Cases

PHOENIX (May 4, 2016) - As the inactive case backlog continues its steady decline at the Department of Child Safety, employees have more time to serve Arizona children and families in need.  Last week, DCS reached a milestone with the number of inactive cases dropping below the 10,000 mark. After hitting a peak of over 16,200 in February of 2015, today the backlog is at 9,868. 

Backlog cases are cases assigned to caseworkers but considered inactive because no documentation has been entered for more than 60 days. In order to safely reduce the backlog, DCS instituted a careful case review process to triage cases still needing services, close cases where services are not deemed necessary, or enter final notes if that was all that the case lacked. 

Cases are comprised of reports, and in April, 2015, there were more than 33,000 reports open for investigation. As of today, that number is 21,380. This is an unprecedented accomplishment. 

Other key performance indicators are a mere 38 second hold time to make a report to the Child Abuse Hotline and a 14 percent faster investigative response time to reports of abuse and neglect.  This illustrates that the agency has turned an important corner in protecting children and improving service delivery to Arizona families in need. 

A dedicated DCS staff continues the daily work of transforming the Department of Child Safety into a well-run, efficient, and effective organization. They are motivated by the vision of Arizona’s children thriving in family environments free from abuse and neglect.  

According to Director Gregory McKay, "This backlog is a byproduct of too many years where an overwhelmed staff were not given a clear pathway to success.  Today, we outpace our daily work and focus on the mission at hand; protecting children and serving families. I am so grateful for this deeply committed workforce."