Statutory References

Social Security Act
Texas Family Code
Human Resources Code

Major Provisions

  • Centralized point of intake for child abuse and neglect, abuse, neglect or exploitation of people age 65 or older or adults with disabilities, clients served by DSHS or DADS employees in State Hospitals or State Supported Living Centers, and children in licensed child-care facilities or treatment centers for the entire State of Texas.
  • Open 365 days a year, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.
  • Able to receive information via phone, internet reporting system, fax, or mailed correspondence.
  • Responsibility to assess information received to the definitions of possible abuse, neglect or exploitation for each program served and to prioritize and route the information to the correct destination workload.
  • Information and Referral Service as warranted or when information received does not meet statutory definitions.
  • Generate Law Enforcement Notifications and route to the correct law enforcement jurisdiction for CPS and CCL programs.
  • Ensure confidentiality of IMPACT history and reporter identity.
  • Provide background check function for CPS caseworkers after office hours if caseworkers do not have system access to complete their own check for emergency removals.
  • Quality Assurance unit to review complaints, random call monitors and assist in development of policy, procedure and best practice.
  • Point program for identifying problems with IMPACT rollouts.
  • Provide daily reports on call volume per application; hold times per application, etc.
  • Integrate hardware and software upgrades to phone and computer systems to reduce hold times and improve efficiency.
  • Use of an IEX Workforce Management System to schedule shifts, breaks and meal times for intake workers in order to maximize efficiency.
  • TelStrat Engage call recording system utilized to record phone calls for Quality Assurance and legal requirements.
  • Employee Development Unit leads all training for new and tenured staff.

Challenges

  • Respond to ever increasing number of phone calls, Internet reports, fax and mailed correspondence while keeping hold times to 7.2 minutes or less (FY 2016-2017) while maintaining a high quality of intakes.
  • Increase number of bilingual staff.
  • Reduce turnover.