Human Services must protect privacy of children in state custody

There has been some confusion over the facts that were reported in recent news stories and an editorial by the Star-Advertiser ("Improve reporting of isle child deaths," Star-Advertiser, Our View, Sept. 29).

We do our best to fulfill requests for information on reporters’ deadlines, and what ended up happening in this case was that the news media reported incomplete information to the public.

To be clear, there were 30 children who died while in the state’s custody over the last 10 years. Of those 30, one child was abused while in state custody, and the perpetrator and cause of death could not be determined. Two other children died while in state custody as a result of abuse that occurred before they entered our custody.

Every day in Hawaii, there are innocent children who live in neglect or abuse.

In the worst cases, when a child’s support system has broken down and alternative family placement is unavailable, the Child Welfare Services of the state Department of Human Services takes custody of a child and places him or her into foster care.

More than 1,000 children enter foster care annually. Of those children entering our care in 2011, more than half of them were experiencing neglect; one-third were being physically abused; nearly a quarter had a caretaker who was unable to cope with their situation; and one-fifth had parents who were abusing drugs.

DHS works hard every day to make sure that all children in our care are nurtured, treated with dignity and, most important, are kept safe. And part of protecting these children is vigilantly protecting their most private information.

The nature and circumstances of a child’s death are and should be the type of private information revealed only to that child’s legal guardians, and very few others have a right and need to know. The information we provided, and will continue to provide, to the public complies with the federal law on public disclosure when a child in state custody has suffered a near fatality or has died.

We remain compliant with disclosure laws by providing findings or information about the case when neglect or abuse results in the death or near-death of a child in state custody. However, as a general policy, we will not give out the names, ages or any other information that could lead to the discovery of the identity of children and their families. Nor are we required to. Disclosing information on these sensitive matters to the public does not trump the right to privacy for children and their families.

We also must point out that there are two separate review processes when a child in state custody dies. The first is an investigation by the DHS performed by a panel whose members include contracted professionals and DHS staff who were involved in the case. This panel acts swiftly and is initiated within seven days of an incident.

The second is the child death review overseen by the Department of Health. The review panel reviews the death of every child who dies in Hawaii — including those who die in foster care — with the goal of identifying causes of death that could be avoided. This panel has made important recommendations including increasing awareness on the use of car seats and the prevention of sudden infant death syndrome.

Let’s be absolutely clear. One child death is one too many. As DHS provides services to Hawaii’s most vulnerable people, we never take our eyes off the most important challenge: preventing neglect, abuse, and family trauma from happening in the first place.

We are committed to that common vision shared by so many others in our communities.

Patricia McManaman is the director of the state Department of Human Services.