SB 44 Needs Assessment

Project Overview

The 83rd Texas Legislature required the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) and the Department of State Health Services (DSHS) to produce a study to develop recommendations for preventing parents from relinquishing custody and care of a child with a serious emotional disturbance. The research team at the Texas Institute for Child & Family Wellbeing (formerly known as the Child and Family Research Institute) conducted a needs assessment of families in Texas.

Roughly 5% of children are classified as having a serious emotional disturbance. Children with a serious emotional disturbance may require extensive and costly medical, behavioral and educational supports. For many families, appropriate resources are difficult to locate and afford. Although exact numbers are not known, anecdotal evidence suggests that some families seek and/or are advised to relinquish the custody and care of their children to the foster care system in order to obtain mental health care for their child. In Texas, entry into the foster care system requires there to be maltreatment of the child by a caregiver. Thus, some parents face a very difficult dilemma in attempting to find help for their child.

In this project, interviews were conducted with parents (n=5) and stakeholders (n=10). Online surveys were made available to both parents (n=28) and stakeholders (n=31) across the state through email listservs and websites. A cost analysis was also conducted to examine the cost of caring for children with a serious emotional disturbance in foster care.

This project was completed in 2014. Please contact the Principal Investigator with any questions.