Texas DFPS Adult Protective Services Caseload Reduction Plan

The Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) and the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) were instructed to develop and implement, within the availability of funds, an Adult Protective Services (APS) average daily caseload (ADC) reduction plan so that by 2011, caseworkers will have no more than five cases above the ADC target.

HHSCs caseload standard is based on the number of caseworkers needed to complete key investigational benchmarks to ensure client safety and well-being. The actual number of caseworkers needed varies with the number of incoming cases and their initial risk assessment. HHSC projected the number of expected intakes in FY 2007 at 87,546, which resulted in a need for 155 more caseworkers. Intakes are expected to reach 96,520 by FY 2009. Case priority is determined by the results of a 57-item field risk assessment related to safety and well-being.

HHSC sought to develop a way to forecast caseworker ADC because no national methodology exists. A standard of 25 ongoing cases and investigations recommended in 1997 by the National Adult Protective Services Association (NAPSA) was never adopted nationwide. The NAPSA recommendation was based on a nationwide survey of APS workloads, but the investigation and eligibility data submitted varied widely between programs. The survey methodology was unable to account for differences between state-run programs and county-run programs and the differences between abuse and self-neglect.