Strain on social workers rises

Poor economy increases abuse, distress cases

Lowell Sun

Sunday, October 5, 2008

By Matt Murphymmurphy@lowellsun.com

BOSTON -- Some days Melissa Geoffroy can spend more time driving in her car than meeting with families or catching up on office work.

Her schedule can take her from Lowell to Baldwinville all in a day as she meets with children, parents, teachers, doctors, foster families and court officers to provide the services needed to the clients under her supervision.

Geoffroy is a social worker in the Lowell office of the Department of Children and Families, formerly the Department of Social Services. Since she started five years ago, her case load has increased from about 17 or 18 families to 26.

The same can be said for the other 93 case workers in the Lowell office, serving Lowell, Chelmsford, Dracut, Tyngsboro, Tewksbury, Billerica and Dunstable.

Tida Keat, another social worker in the Lowell office on East Merrimack Street, manages 27 cases, often requiring her to work late into the night or on weekends to keep up.

“We go crazy. No, seriously. It’s very tough, but you learn how to juggle,” said Keat, who is required to meet at least once a month with all her clients and their extended network of family, teachers and doctors.

As the worsening economy takes its toll on families throughout Massachusetts, the number of reports of possible child abuse or families in need of state services has exploded. That puts more pressure on a limited number of social workers to help those in distress.

“It neglects families on our part by not having the time to do what we need to do,” Geoffroy said. “You deal with crises first and try to manage the families that aren’t in crisis in between.”

The Department of Children and Families reports that the average annual increase in requests for services or investigations into potential child abuse, going back 10 years, is 2 percent. This year that number is expected to grow as much as 8 percent.

Though the DCF reports an average caseload across the state of 18 to 1, the volume in each office can vary. Cities like Lowell, Fitchburg and Springfield are hit the hardest.

The Child Welfare League of America recommends, on average, 12 to 15 cases per worker. Lowell’s official caseload in July was listed at 20 to 1, but as evidenced by the work being done by Keat and Geoffroy, numbers can deceive.

Gov. Deval Patrick, recognizing the need to put more case workers on the beat, allocated $5 million in his budget this year for hiring new social workers to reduce caseload. The Legislature moved that money into DCF Commissioner Angelo McLain’s general fund, giving him the discretion to spend it how he sees fit.

DCF spokeswoman Alison Goodwin said McLain’s goal is to use that money to reduce caseloads. Some union representatives said they have seen little movement to hire new case workers during the first few months of the fiscal year.

“We have been hiring and continue to add additional positions in an effort to approach caseloads of 18 or 17 to 1 across the state,” Goodwin said.

All new hiring appears to be in jeopardy. The Patrick administration is preparing to make potentially deep cuts across state government to balance the budget that has been hit hard by diminishing tax revenues, as the depressed economy takes its toll on businesses and residents across the country.

Patrick has slowed all non-essential hiring and asked the Legislature, cabinet secretaries and constitutional officers to cut as much as 7 percent from their budgets.

Those providing human services hope they will be spared.

“Our concern right now is not asking for pay raises. No one gets into this for the money. Our concern is the families we’re trying to take care of,” said Zevorah Ortéga-Bagni, the DCF investigations supervisor in Lowell and president of the local Service Employees International Union representing DCF workers.

Keat spends a good amount of her time working with Southeast Asian families in Lowell, translating for parents who speak little English and trying to keep them informed with what is happening in their children’s lives. She said she too often sees children under her care come home with gang-related tattoos or wearing gang colors, and their parents are oblivious to the significance.

“I’ve seen a sharp increase in gang activity and violence in the neighborhoods,” Keat said. “There’s a lot of stress on teenagers these days.”

Hard economic times also mean more stress on families, which leads to increased substance abuse, child abuse and neglect.

“It’s a domino effect,” said Ortéga-Bagni. “These folks are hit absolutely the hardest.”