my day in retrospect
Jul. 21st, 2005 06:23 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
threeplusfireFollowing the example of my industrious coworker, here is what my typical day is like.
10:00am
A hang up call. One of my favorites, as it requires no effort.
10:03am
A great-grandmother called about her 8yo and 4yo great grandchildren. The mother had recently pulled the kids out of day care and leaves them at home with the twin 17 year old boys of her paramour. The girl child said the older boys lock them out of the house and hit her on the head. NO injuries were seen. The kids have both started having a lot of nightmares. Grandma thinks the 17 year old boys will rape the 8yo girl, but had no reason or incidents to back up this fear. Because the information was so vague, it was documented but no investigation was initiated.
10:50am
A 52 year old blind, bipolar woman calls to report her electricity has been cut off. There's very little food in the home and she can't afford the mortgage. She's in the process of obtaining disability benefits and has no money. She's very helpless and depressed. A report for self physical neglect was taken.
11:17am
A 38 year old man calls and reports that due to bureaucratic snafus he doesn't have any way to fill his prescriptions. He is an AIDS patient and out of 7 medications already, including anti-virals and anti-depressants. He's very emotional and frantic at this point, and went to the hospital last night with a 102 degree fever. He recently had surgery and has open wounds that need care. A top priority report was called out to the local office.
11:39am
A grandmother called because she just learned her granddaughter is in foster care and the mother is in jail. The grandmother wants to petition for custody. She was referred to the local office and the information was passed along to the open CPS case.
(computers go down, causing slow downs and minor chaos)
12:22pm
A detective from the domestic violence unit calls in about a family with significant history. The father was just arrested for assaulting the mother in the presence of the children. The father has made several violent threats to kill the mother and the children. He also attempted to run over the kids with his car. Our stellar father has a long criminal history for violent crimes and domestic assaults. A report was taken for risk of violence to the 3 very young children in the home.
12:42pm
The detective calls back to update the family's phone number and confirm the address information. Because I was still working on the original report, this information was added in and didn't need to be a seperate document.
(computer come back up, but remain slow for an hour)
1:14pm
A father calls in to add the phone number to a report he made about 30 minutes earlier.
1:26pm
A father called and asked about paperwork to give up his parental rights. He admitted that he didn't really want to do that but that he was involved in a difficult custody battle. He was referred to Texas Fathers for Equal Rights and Legal Aid for assistance.
1:35pm
A mother walks into a CPS office and states she wants to give up her children. the mother appears to be homeless and has some mental issues. The 4 year old child can only say one word, and that word is "shit." The 3yo child can only say "um" and sometimes "yes." The 3 year old also had scratches and scrapes to his face of unknown origin. Both children appear to be developmentally delayed but the mother has never taken them to a doctor. The mother previously had a child removed from her care by the state for physical neglect and her parental rights were terminated. The mother was hostile and difficult. A top priority case was taken.
2:16pm
A caller wanted to know if an Adult Protective Services case was still open. The caller was referred to the local office.
3:01pm
A doctor called because a mother brought in a 1 year old and suspected molestation. The child's vagina was irritated but her hymen appeared normal and undamaged. The doctor could not rule in/or rule out molestation. A 7 year old sibling stated that the grandfather once lifted her up by the crotch. A 13 year old sibling denied any improper behavior. The mother stated she would not allow the grandfather to have any unsupervised contact. Because the information was too vague, a report was not taken.
3:27pm
A probation officer called about 14 year old boy currently on probation for arson. Last night the child got into an altercation with his stepmother over a spilled pitcher of Kool-Aid. The stepmother knocked the child down and put him in a choke hold. The child bit the stepmother, who then slapped him and bit him on the wrist. The child had a bruise to his face and a bite mark on his arm. A report for physical abuse was taken. The child went voluntarily to a shelter for the night.
3:59pm
A woman shopping in a dollar general store witnesses a mother screaming and swearing at her 1 year old child. The mother has been seen with two other children in the store, yelling and swearing on multiple occasions. The mother appeared to have completely inappropriate expectations of the child. When the child would not hold still in line, the mother yanked his right arm so hard the bone nearly dislocated from the shoulder socket and was clearly pulled at an odd angle. The child had scrapes and abrasions to his forehead with scabbing. The child had multiple bruises on his arms and legs, as well as a dark purple bruise in the shape of a hand print on his back. The hand print was the size of an adult male hand. A priority 1 was taken and called out to the local CPS office.
*Bless the reporter to the end of time. She was an utter stranger to the family. She got the mother's name from the cashier at the store, and followed the woman to get her home address so we had enough information to immediately start working. She also asked about becoming a foster parent. I wanted to hug this woman so badly.*
4:39pm
There was no one on the line. I waited 30-40 seconds and told the empty air to call back any time.
4:48pm
A supervisor asked that I call an APS worker in Utah who wanted to make a report. We call back people in other states so they don't rack up charges waiting on hold. The APS worker was involved in a case in Utah where an 89 year old woman was verbally and emotionally abused by her daughter. Elder abuse charges were filed against the daughter and she has a bench trial set for November. The daughter packed up the 89yo woman and moved her to Texas to escape investigation. Unfortunately, the APS worker did not have any locating information for us to follow through with. The information was documented so she could call back when she finds out where they have gone.
5:07pm
A father calls about his wife who uses meth. The mother has five kids in her care, 7 years, 5 years, 3 years, 2 years and an 11 month old. She leaves the drugs out around the house and scattered on the floor where the kids can get into them. She's living in a plywood shack with no running water and no fans. The 2 year old was hospitalized recently for a swollen and infected penis. The child is uncircumcised and the mother hadn't been bathing him enough or at all. The 7 year old needs follow up neurologist appointments that mother seems to keep forgetting to do. Yesterday the mother was passed out cold and the children were left to their own devices. The 2 and 3 year olds wandered off to a park down the street and the 11 month old was left playing in a plastic swimming pool alone. Fortunately no one was hurt. A high priority report was taken for physical neglect, medical neglect and neglectful supervision.
Seventeen calls, pretty good for an 8 hour day. It's nice to have those easy calls to make up for the gut wrenching ones.
And now, I'm going to dinner.
10:00am
A hang up call. One of my favorites, as it requires no effort.
10:03am
A great-grandmother called about her 8yo and 4yo great grandchildren. The mother had recently pulled the kids out of day care and leaves them at home with the twin 17 year old boys of her paramour. The girl child said the older boys lock them out of the house and hit her on the head. NO injuries were seen. The kids have both started having a lot of nightmares. Grandma thinks the 17 year old boys will rape the 8yo girl, but had no reason or incidents to back up this fear. Because the information was so vague, it was documented but no investigation was initiated.
10:50am
A 52 year old blind, bipolar woman calls to report her electricity has been cut off. There's very little food in the home and she can't afford the mortgage. She's in the process of obtaining disability benefits and has no money. She's very helpless and depressed. A report for self physical neglect was taken.
11:17am
A 38 year old man calls and reports that due to bureaucratic snafus he doesn't have any way to fill his prescriptions. He is an AIDS patient and out of 7 medications already, including anti-virals and anti-depressants. He's very emotional and frantic at this point, and went to the hospital last night with a 102 degree fever. He recently had surgery and has open wounds that need care. A top priority report was called out to the local office.
11:39am
A grandmother called because she just learned her granddaughter is in foster care and the mother is in jail. The grandmother wants to petition for custody. She was referred to the local office and the information was passed along to the open CPS case.
(computers go down, causing slow downs and minor chaos)
12:22pm
A detective from the domestic violence unit calls in about a family with significant history. The father was just arrested for assaulting the mother in the presence of the children. The father has made several violent threats to kill the mother and the children. He also attempted to run over the kids with his car. Our stellar father has a long criminal history for violent crimes and domestic assaults. A report was taken for risk of violence to the 3 very young children in the home.
12:42pm
The detective calls back to update the family's phone number and confirm the address information. Because I was still working on the original report, this information was added in and didn't need to be a seperate document.
(computer come back up, but remain slow for an hour)
1:14pm
A father calls in to add the phone number to a report he made about 30 minutes earlier.
1:26pm
A father called and asked about paperwork to give up his parental rights. He admitted that he didn't really want to do that but that he was involved in a difficult custody battle. He was referred to Texas Fathers for Equal Rights and Legal Aid for assistance.
1:35pm
A mother walks into a CPS office and states she wants to give up her children. the mother appears to be homeless and has some mental issues. The 4 year old child can only say one word, and that word is "shit." The 3yo child can only say "um" and sometimes "yes." The 3 year old also had scratches and scrapes to his face of unknown origin. Both children appear to be developmentally delayed but the mother has never taken them to a doctor. The mother previously had a child removed from her care by the state for physical neglect and her parental rights were terminated. The mother was hostile and difficult. A top priority case was taken.
2:16pm
A caller wanted to know if an Adult Protective Services case was still open. The caller was referred to the local office.
3:01pm
A doctor called because a mother brought in a 1 year old and suspected molestation. The child's vagina was irritated but her hymen appeared normal and undamaged. The doctor could not rule in/or rule out molestation. A 7 year old sibling stated that the grandfather once lifted her up by the crotch. A 13 year old sibling denied any improper behavior. The mother stated she would not allow the grandfather to have any unsupervised contact. Because the information was too vague, a report was not taken.
3:27pm
A probation officer called about 14 year old boy currently on probation for arson. Last night the child got into an altercation with his stepmother over a spilled pitcher of Kool-Aid. The stepmother knocked the child down and put him in a choke hold. The child bit the stepmother, who then slapped him and bit him on the wrist. The child had a bruise to his face and a bite mark on his arm. A report for physical abuse was taken. The child went voluntarily to a shelter for the night.
3:59pm
A woman shopping in a dollar general store witnesses a mother screaming and swearing at her 1 year old child. The mother has been seen with two other children in the store, yelling and swearing on multiple occasions. The mother appeared to have completely inappropriate expectations of the child. When the child would not hold still in line, the mother yanked his right arm so hard the bone nearly dislocated from the shoulder socket and was clearly pulled at an odd angle. The child had scrapes and abrasions to his forehead with scabbing. The child had multiple bruises on his arms and legs, as well as a dark purple bruise in the shape of a hand print on his back. The hand print was the size of an adult male hand. A priority 1 was taken and called out to the local CPS office.
*Bless the reporter to the end of time. She was an utter stranger to the family. She got the mother's name from the cashier at the store, and followed the woman to get her home address so we had enough information to immediately start working. She also asked about becoming a foster parent. I wanted to hug this woman so badly.*
4:39pm
There was no one on the line. I waited 30-40 seconds and told the empty air to call back any time.
4:48pm
A supervisor asked that I call an APS worker in Utah who wanted to make a report. We call back people in other states so they don't rack up charges waiting on hold. The APS worker was involved in a case in Utah where an 89 year old woman was verbally and emotionally abused by her daughter. Elder abuse charges were filed against the daughter and she has a bench trial set for November. The daughter packed up the 89yo woman and moved her to Texas to escape investigation. Unfortunately, the APS worker did not have any locating information for us to follow through with. The information was documented so she could call back when she finds out where they have gone.
5:07pm
A father calls about his wife who uses meth. The mother has five kids in her care, 7 years, 5 years, 3 years, 2 years and an 11 month old. She leaves the drugs out around the house and scattered on the floor where the kids can get into them. She's living in a plywood shack with no running water and no fans. The 2 year old was hospitalized recently for a swollen and infected penis. The child is uncircumcised and the mother hadn't been bathing him enough or at all. The 7 year old needs follow up neurologist appointments that mother seems to keep forgetting to do. Yesterday the mother was passed out cold and the children were left to their own devices. The 2 and 3 year olds wandered off to a park down the street and the 11 month old was left playing in a plastic swimming pool alone. Fortunately no one was hurt. A high priority report was taken for physical neglect, medical neglect and neglectful supervision.
Seventeen calls, pretty good for an 8 hour day. It's nice to have those easy calls to make up for the gut wrenching ones.
And now, I'm going to dinner.
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Date: 2005-07-22 12:36 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-07-22 02:49 pm (UTC)