BMCW Health and Safety Review
Ensuring children are nurtured, safe and engaged drives all the work of the Department of Children and Families and of the Bureau of Milwaukee Child Welfare
Following the tragic death of Christopher Thomas in November of 2008, DCF undertook a medical evaluation and comprehensive case review of children in the custody of the Bureau of Milwaukee Child Welfare. This was unprecedented in Wisconsin child welfare.
This was done to determine the health and safety of the most vulnerable children in out-of-home care, 560 children aged five and under and in their current placement 10 months or less.
The goals were to:
- Assure that children in kinship or foster care placements are safe
- Identify specific case practice and systemic improvements needed to ensure that children in our care are safe and that caregivers receive supports necessary to care for these children.
The findings and lessons learned were presented to the Milwaukee community on September 14, 2009.