Judge Extends CASA's Services To Help DCFS Kids Because 'A Lot Of Children Suffer' After Being Held Longer Than Necessary
CHICAGO (CBS) -- There was news of progress Monday on an issue that CBS 2 has been exposing for years - kids locked in psychiatric hospitals for longer than medically necessary while in the state's care.
On Monday, a Cook County judge extended another helping hand for those children. CBS 2 Investigator Megan Hickey has the update.
"We're just like being forgotten. We're just like being locked up in these hospitals as if they were shelters or prisons, and they're just forgetting about us," one teen told CBS 2 Political Investigator Dana Kozlov back in October 2020.
It took a legal fight for CBS 2 Political Investigator Dana Kozlov to speak to a 17-year-old about his psychiatric lockup that lasted 67 days longer than it should have.
"It's actually given me more anxiety," said the teen.
CBS 2 discovered it's a problem that impacts hundreds of kids across the state. The number of kids in DCFS care who have stayed in psychiatric hospitals longer than medically necessary has more than quadrupled since 2014. The latest data shows that in a single year, more than 350 kids were in that boat.
"I think just being isolated more than usually is a huge, huge problem."
Kim King with the Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Cook County knows the problem well.
"A lot of children suffer from developmental disabilities and suffer severe trauma in their life and this only exacerbates it," King said.
Another recent example: DCFS still hasn't found a residential placement for an 11-year-old girl who has been in a psychiatric hospital beyond medical necessity for nine months and counting.
But on Monday, a Cook County judge extended the child advocacy services of CASA of Cook County, automatically assigning these advocates to foster children who are in psychiatric hospitals past the time of their medical clearance.
"We can reach out to family members. We can build relationship and we can certainly have relationships with the children who are in these relations shifts for a long time," King said.
King added it's a very positive update. But at the center of the problem is the need for more residential beds or foster homes in the state.
"I think the funding is a major issue. Because if we don't put the resources on the back end of the system where we are right now, it's just going to be another revolving door," King said.
CASA of Cook County needs volunteers to help these children. They especially need men, people of color and Spanish speakers to assist. Click here for more information. No experience is needed.