FORT WORTH, Texas — A welfare check report can be the difference between life or death. During fiscal year 2022, Child Protective Services investigated over 270,000 cases.
Hayley Skiles is an investigator for the child protective services in Tarrant County. She is one of 2,603 investigators in the unit, Child Protective Investigations [CPI].
“The caseload definitely can be overwhelming at times with the amount of cases that we get,” said Skiles. “However, I'm in a specialized unit where we work on what's called resolution recovery cases.”
When an individual leaves the department, Skiles is assigned their case. She also works higher risk cases, and her unit is the first line of defense to assess the safety in the home where a concern was made.
“We interview children, we interview parents, grandparents, and we help make children safe,” Skiles said.
For Emily Dickerson, that’s what it’s all about: ensuring children are safe. She has worked for the Department of Family and Protective Services previously, and while she does not have any biological children herself, she has helped raise several children of friends and families.
When Dickerson got a text from a child saying they were scared, she became worried and started to work on ways to get the child to safety.
“I was very nervous. And then when I got over there and the lady [who was caring for the child] said that she was not going to let them go with me, me and her both cried, and I said, 'I'm not going to leave you here no matter what,'" she said.
Dickerson called DFPS and the police to do a welfare check. She was able to take the child to her home, but Skiles had to ensure her home would be a safe place for the child.
Skiles interviews everyone in the household where the child will stay.
Dickerson understands it is Skiles' job to follow certain policies and protocol, but it’s not easy.
“At the time that it's happening, you're like, why is this protocol this way,” Dickerson said. “But just because I have a relationship [with them] doesn't mean I would have been the safest place.”
Skiles explained that the goal of DFPS is to reunite children with their parents.
According to DFPS program data brief report, in fiscal year 2022 there were 9,623 children removed from the care of their parent[s]. On average, 34% of children who exited DFPS custody in 2022 were reunified with family.
“If you don't get involved, if something happens to that kid, it's just as much your fault,” Dickerson emphasized.
Data from DFPS indicates in 2022, it took almost a year for children to exit DFPS responsibility.
In 2022 the department received over 800,000 calls.
“It’s always best to have us go in and look into something to ensure the children are safe,” said Skiles.
After a thorough interview, a background check through DFPS’ system, a criminal check and speaking to the biological parent, Dickerson will continue to care for the child.
But Skiles emphasizes no cases are the same, nor are the decisions DFPS makes.
“They might not look super serious when they [DFPS] get out there, and it's extremely serious,” Skiles said. “I have had to do immediate things to make sure that a child was safe.”
April is Child Abuse Prevention Month.