Each state agency must prepare and keep on file a complete
written report of each investigation the agency conducts under Chapter
261 of the Family Code. Each state agency must compile, maintain,
and make available statistics on the incidence of child abuse, neglect,
and exploitation in each facility it investigates. The statistics
also must be forwarded to the Texas Department of Protective and Regulatory
Services to be compiled. The rules and policies adopted and implemented
by a state agency must, to the greatest extent practicable, provide
a uniform method of collecting and analyzing data on suspected child
abuse, neglect, or exploitation in a facility. A state agency must
use the following procedures when analyzing data on abuse, neglect,
and exploitation investigations:
(1) Sort by program classification the number of investigations
completed. Examples of program classification include state hospitals,
private psychiatric facilities, and maternity homes.
(2) Sort by program classification the number of confirmed
investigations that are completed.
(3) Sort all completed investigations according to
disposition for example confirmed, unconfirmed, inconclusive, or unfounded.
(4) Sort all completed confirmed investigations by
whether the identity of the perpetrator is known or unknown.
(5) Develop a confirmation rate by dividing the sum
of all confirmed investigations by the sum of all completed investigations
with dispositions of confirmed, unconfirmed, and inconclusive or
other dispositions classification used by the state agencies. Unfounded
cases are not included in this calculation.
(6) Calculate the average number of days to complete
investigations and sort by program.
(7) Calculate the number of investigations referred
to law enforcement.
(8) Calculate the number of investigations pending
at the end of the report period.
(9) Calculate the number of disciplinary actions resulting
from confirmed findings.
(10) Calculate the number of deaths that occur as a
result of child abuse or neglect in the affected facilities.
(11) Calculate the number of appeals and the number
of cases appealed that are overturned.
(12) Investigations with multiple allegations are to
be counted once, based on the highest level of injury. For example,
if a single incident involves one allegation of physical abuse that
resulted in serious physical injury and a second allegation of verbal
abuse, the investigation should be counted only once, as an instance
of physical abuse resulting in serious physical injury. In other words,
the sum of completed investigations involving serious injuries, non-serious
injuries, verbal/emotional abuse and neglect, and exploitation should
not exceed the total number of cases completed.
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