Nebraska watchdog investigates deaths and injuries within foster care system

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — The inspector general of Nebraska child welfare released a report this month on deaths and serious injuries within the foster care system.  

Part of Inspector General Jennifer Carter’s report was focused on the death by suicide of three youths.

The investigation found that there is a gap in training provided to prevent suicide. 

“In that report, we found that the way DHHS has handled this didn’t contribute in any way to those deaths by suicide,” Carter said. “But what we did notice was more could be done and enhanced in terms of actual suicide prevention.” 

Carter said the suicides line up with a national increase in suicide rates, especially among those in the foster care system. 

She said the Department of Health and Human Services accepted recommendations to provide more training for their staff and private contractors. 

Another investigation involved the near death of a 4-month-old infant because of malnourishment in a foster home. 

“This child had a failure to thrive, so it’s a very specific regimen of feeding that the child needed,” Carter said.

The report concluded that even though DHHS was following its policies, those polices aren’t adequate.  

“It left a gap where there wasn’t one easy central place where everyone in the case could look to say, ‘This is what this baby needs at this time,’” she said. 

A third investigation was about the serious injury of a 2-year-old who consumed THC at a foster home.

The inspector general found that there were too many kids in the home.

In these last two cases, the office recommended ways to prevent home overfilling and procedures to report timely concerns.

DHHS accepted those recommendations, Carter said.