By KHI NEWS SERVICE
TOPEKA — State welfare officials announced Friday that they will resume foster placements with TFI Family Services.
The Kansas Department for Children and Families suspended foster placements with Topeka-based TFI after the July 24 death of a 10-month-old left in a hot car in Wichita. TFI sponsored the home where the child died.
DCF Secretary Phyllis Gilmore said all TFI-sponsored homes were inspected before the decision to resume foster placements.
“Our investigation into the death is ongoing, but placements are once again permitted,” Gilmore said. “While we know this affected our valued foster families, it was never intended to be an insult to foster parents who have opened their homes to care for children in need. It was simply a safety precaution.”
TFI formerly contracted with DCF to provide foster services, but its contract was not renewed in July 2013. It continues to have foster homes as a subcontractor to the state’s current lead foster care contractors, KVC Behavioral Healthcare of Olathe and St. Francis Community Services of Salina.
On July 25, officials directed KVC and St. Francis to assess the safety of all children in TFI-sponsored homes. In homes where children were under 7, the homes were to be inspected within 72 hours. In homes where the children were older than 7, the inspections were to occur within the week.
“During the inspections, St. Francis and KVC social workers addressed with the foster parents any safety concerns and reiterated the importance of removing children from vehicles and refraining from being impaired while serving as a foster parent,” Gilmore said. “We were pleased to learn that no major issues were discovered. It appears the recent tragedy is a rare exception to an otherwise strong record of foster care child safety in Kansas.”
As part of the investigation into the death, DCF and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment have formed a workgroup to assess foster care licensing, placement and inspection policies.
The number of children in foster care in Kansas recently hit a record high.