E-Mail How could this have happened? What went wrong? What do we do to make sure it never happens again? When a family becomes erroneously or unnecessarily enmeshed in the child welfare system, that burden is largely invisible - a burden borne mostly by the family itself. In both situations, the fault for the systemic failure is often placed on the caseworker - overburdened, under-resourced, and forced to make quick and critical judgments about the risk of harm or neglect to children. But, according to new study coauthored by a researcher in the UConn School of Social Work, a major tool used in child welfare decision-making - and the way agencies try to implement it - may be part of the problem.