Improving Substance Use Screening and Service Matching for Families Involved in New York City’s Child Welfare System

Caregiver substance misuse is a significant risk factor for child maltreatment and child welfare involvement; recent studies suggest that between 60% and 80% of substantiated child welfare cases involve substance use disorders. Identifying and providing support early to caregivers with substance use concerns can improve key child welfare outcomes, reducing rates of child removal and child maltreatment. To ensure that caregivers involved with substance misuse who may place children at risk of harm are identified early in child welfare investigations and are voluntarily engaged in treatment, New York City’s Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) launched a pilot in Manhattan in 2016 of a universal screen for substance use within the first seven days of a child welfare investigation. However, the pilot experienced some key challenges, including low usage of the screening protocol and barriers translating screening into treatment for clients.

The Government Performance Lab (GPL) provided pro-bono technical assistance to help New York City’s Administration for Children’s Services better identify caregivers with substance use concerns in child welfare investigations and match them with appropriate support, in an effort to reduce the number of incidences of child abuse and neglect and improve caregiver health.

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