I used to work in MCFD and there was a definite need to replace the aging & cumbersome SW-MIS database system. However, like so many things the BC government does, they failed miserably in the execution.
The three biggest issues are the following:
1. As noted, the company awarded the contact to create ICM tried to simply adapt a U.S. based business/corporate database program to fit the needs of our social service programs in B.C.
2. There was little, or no, consultation made with front line staff in re-designing this new system. Colleagues in MCFD have told me about the difficulties in being able to navigate the various pages. It is not an intuitive system, built with intelligent design that functions in the ways that users need it to. Accessing some pages (information) now takes significantly more "clicks" than the old system to get to the required pages.
3. As an employer, MCFD, failed to provide adequate training to it's employees. his continues within the context of a severely battered organization that has dramatically decreased the numbers of people doing the work over the last decade and within a Ministry that has one of the highest turnover of staff and highest sick leave across the entire BC government. When an organization makes the day-to-day work even that much harder, there are poor outcomes for many.
Here are a couple of recent social work media stories about MCFD:
What will Minister Cadieux Do for BC Kids in Care?
Katie Hyslop, TheTyee, Sept. 19, 2012.
"I can't stress enough that the problems with the (ICM) system have tipped workers and the system over the edge," Ross says.
"There are huge privacy issues and huge concerns about workload issues and stress levels for workers, and therefore they're unable to spend the time they want to spend and need to spend providing families with services."
MCFD in crisis: Young
For Tracey Young, it doesn't matter who holds the minister's position in MCFD. The social work advocate who quit MCFD in 2009 and now works as a psychiatric social worker says the Liberal government have been running the department like a business for over a decade, and the problems in the ministry will continue until they change their ways.
"The continuing problems of MCFD are very much related to the last decade of employee cuts, hiring freezes and ever-present re-organization and change processes which have detracted from the core activities of MCFD, most importantly, a focus on protecting at-risk children and youth," she told the Tyee via email.
Young says MCFD is in an almost constant state of crisis, and that the current ICM issues are predictable because the ministry failed to consult its own employees before introducing the new system. She doesn't foresee appointing a new minister as bringing any change, positive or negative, to the situation.
"Making real change and improvements in the child welfare system of care is going to require the will of the B.C. government and a much more strategic action and investment plan for recruitment, health and safety and retention of frontline workers."
*****************************************
Glitchy $182 million computer system adds to B.C. social workers’ headaches
By Michael Smyth, The Province,
One day in September, social workers across B.C. turned on their computers and were surprised to see an unusual message.
It was a welcome to the home page of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security — just the latest bug in a problem-plagued new computer system that cost taxpayers $182 million. And counting.
The message was a leftover glitch from a system originally designed by Siebel Systems for other jurisdictions — including the U.S. government — and modified for use in B.C.
“It was an erroneous label,” explains Social Development Minister Stephanie Cadieux. “The coding hadn’t been changed. The system is safe and secure for use here.”
But the Homeland Security surprise is among the least worries of social workers struggling with the new system that has made their tough jobs even tougher.
The Integrated Case Management system was introduced in April. It was supposed to streamline management of computer files across ministries that care for poor children, disabled people and troubled families racked by addiction, mental illness and violence. For many social workers I talked to, it hasn’t worked out that way.
“It freezes. It crashes. Data disappears or is extremely difficult to locate. It’s incredibly cumbersome and hard to use,” a child-protection worker tells me.
“The biggest fear we all have is a crucial piece of information will be lost or overlooked — and a child will die as a result.”
“The anxiety around this is incredible,” said Doug Kinna, a B.C. Government and Service Employees Union official who has spent months tracking the system’s problems.
Kinna has many frightening stories of “near misses” to tell — where social workers weren’t able to find crucial information in the ICM system, while a vulnerable child needed help.
His stories include a social worker who misses a computer alert about a sexual predator in a troubled home. Another social worker can’t locate a “supervision order” barring a new mother from taking her newborn baby home from hospital.
But Kinna says he can’t provide identifying details about the cases for privacy reasons. And the government says they can’t find any evidence the incidents even took place.
“I have never heard of these concerns,” Cadieux said. “It’s not something we’ve been able to confirm.”
But it’s not just a he-said-she-said between the union and the government.
Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond, B.C.’s respected watchdog for children, said her office has been “inundated” with calls and emails from desperate child-protection workers about ICM.
Turpel-Lafond has some stories of her own to tell, including a case where after-hours social workers could not locate an address requested by police on an emergency domestic call.
“The family was at risk while social workers were frantically trying to identify the family and obtain the address,” Turpel-Lafond’s office said in a news release.
“The ICM system did not meet the work requirements of the after-hours staff.”
But, again, the government said it can’t confirm the story and has not found any evidence that children were in danger.
“In these cases, no children were found to have been at risk because of the ICM system,” Cadieux’s office said in a statement.
At the same time, the government admits it does have a computer problem.
“There are always challenges when implementing complex new systems and procedures,” Cadieux’s office said.
“The extent of the issues has been more significant than expected, primarily in the child-protection components of the system. As a result of these concerns, the ministry has initiated an action plan.”
The plan includes hiring 150 additional staff (exempted from the government’s recent hiring freeze) to give social workers additional training on how to use the computer system. The ministry also “revamped” the ICM training manual.
And they removed another leftover “erroneous label” from the Homeland Security software — an e-form that included a field entitled “Co-Conspirator.”
“The Homeland Security element makes you wonder if the system is secure,” says NDP critic Claire Trevena.
“There is no privacy or security threat and no connection between ICM and Homeland Security databases,” the government counters.
And then there’s the money. The effort to fix the system has cost taxpayers an additional $12 million, boosting the bill to $194 million.
It comes after other new government computer systems have crashed and burned. Just last year, the education ministry said it will scrap an $89-million student information system — known as BCeSIS — after complaints it didn’t work properly.
Cadieux insists the government is sticking with ICM — “things will improve,” she promised — though Kinna said the government should cut its losses before there’s a tragedy.
“It doesn’t work, it’s causing havoc and it’s putting children at risk,” he said. “They should scrap it and start over.”
But with so much money already poured into the ICM system, the government says starting over simply isn’t an option.
© Copyright (c) The Province.
It was a welcome to the home page of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security — just the latest bug in a problem-plagued new computer system that cost taxpayers $182 million. And counting.
The message was a leftover glitch from a system originally designed by Siebel Systems for other jurisdictions — including the U.S. government — and modified for use in B.C.
“It was an erroneous label,” explains Social Development Minister Stephanie Cadieux. “The coding hadn’t been changed. The system is safe and secure for use here.”
But the Homeland Security surprise is among the least worries of social workers struggling with the new system that has made their tough jobs even tougher.
The Integrated Case Management system was introduced in April. It was supposed to streamline management of computer files across ministries that care for poor children, disabled people and troubled families racked by addiction, mental illness and violence. For many social workers I talked to, it hasn’t worked out that way.
“It freezes. It crashes. Data disappears or is extremely difficult to locate. It’s incredibly cumbersome and hard to use,” a child-protection worker tells me.
“The biggest fear we all have is a crucial piece of information will be lost or overlooked — and a child will die as a result.”
“The anxiety around this is incredible,” said Doug Kinna, a B.C. Government and Service Employees Union official who has spent months tracking the system’s problems.
Kinna has many frightening stories of “near misses” to tell — where social workers weren’t able to find crucial information in the ICM system, while a vulnerable child needed help.
His stories include a social worker who misses a computer alert about a sexual predator in a troubled home. Another social worker can’t locate a “supervision order” barring a new mother from taking her newborn baby home from hospital.
But Kinna says he can’t provide identifying details about the cases for privacy reasons. And the government says they can’t find any evidence the incidents even took place.
“I have never heard of these concerns,” Cadieux said. “It’s not something we’ve been able to confirm.”
But it’s not just a he-said-she-said between the union and the government.
Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond, B.C.’s respected watchdog for children, said her office has been “inundated” with calls and emails from desperate child-protection workers about ICM.
Turpel-Lafond has some stories of her own to tell, including a case where after-hours social workers could not locate an address requested by police on an emergency domestic call.
“The family was at risk while social workers were frantically trying to identify the family and obtain the address,” Turpel-Lafond’s office said in a news release.
“The ICM system did not meet the work requirements of the after-hours staff.”
But, again, the government said it can’t confirm the story and has not found any evidence that children were in danger.
“In these cases, no children were found to have been at risk because of the ICM system,” Cadieux’s office said in a statement.
At the same time, the government admits it does have a computer problem.
“There are always challenges when implementing complex new systems and procedures,” Cadieux’s office said.
“The extent of the issues has been more significant than expected, primarily in the child-protection components of the system. As a result of these concerns, the ministry has initiated an action plan.”
The plan includes hiring 150 additional staff (exempted from the government’s recent hiring freeze) to give social workers additional training on how to use the computer system. The ministry also “revamped” the ICM training manual.
And they removed another leftover “erroneous label” from the Homeland Security software — an e-form that included a field entitled “Co-Conspirator.”
“The Homeland Security element makes you wonder if the system is secure,” says NDP critic Claire Trevena.
“There is no privacy or security threat and no connection between ICM and Homeland Security databases,” the government counters.
And then there’s the money. The effort to fix the system has cost taxpayers an additional $12 million, boosting the bill to $194 million.
It comes after other new government computer systems have crashed and burned. Just last year, the education ministry said it will scrap an $89-million student information system — known as BCeSIS — after complaints it didn’t work properly.
Cadieux insists the government is sticking with ICM — “things will improve,” she promised — though Kinna said the government should cut its losses before there’s a tragedy.
“It doesn’t work, it’s causing havoc and it’s putting children at risk,” he said. “They should scrap it and start over.”
But with so much money already poured into the ICM system, the government says starting over simply isn’t an option.
© Copyright (c) The Province.
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