Press Room: Case Studies
50 Ways 2-1-1 Works Across America
Compiled by United Way of
Pennsylvania, July 2004
Reprinted and revised with permission
Displaying 11-20 of 50
- No Stigma, Confidential: 2-1-1 provides a confidential resource for help in any situation. People call 2-1-1 because it is neutral and anonymous, and does not require people to call themselves homeless, abused, elderly, mentally ill or other “labels.”
- Multiple Diagnosis: 2-1-1 helps people who have multi-faceted needs, such as those that arrive with a sudden serious illness. Others may face a problem such as domestic violence that affects not only their health but potential also their job and their housing situation.
- Community Needs Assessment: 2-1-1 provides a knowledge base for steering funding where it's needed the most. In Battle Creek, Michigan, data collected between 11/02 and 1/03 showed that 131 of 160 unmet needs were in the area of utility assistance. As a result, the United Way released an additional $10,000 to help local residents pay heating bills. Upon hearing this, Semco Energy matched the $10,000 donation.
- Rural Assistance: 2-1-1 will give rural Americans better access to health and human service information. In Pennsylvania, 14 of 67 counties do not have access to a comprehensive health information and referral service. 2-1-1 will help fill that gap.
- Parent Support and Education: 2-1-1 gives parents immediate access to parenting information and classes. In Hawaii, which has statewide 2-1-1 service, the Hawaii Children's Trust Fund has provided a grant that will help fathers in Hawaii access resources through Aloha United Way 2-1-1.
- 9-1-1 Relief: 2-1-1 provides an outlet for the non-emergency calls that can flood 9-1-1 centers during a disaster. The Switchboard of Miami has a standing agreement with their 9-1-1 center that when a hurricane is imminent, Switchboard staff relocate to the 9-1-1 center to handle all the non-emergency requests for information that come in.
- Employee Retention: 2-1-1 helps employers retain employees and reduce absenteeism. In a May 8, 2003 article in Business Direct Weekly, Ted J. Baird, an employment law specialist in Michigan, wrote that, “2-1-1 has the potential to save time, decrease stress, increase employment opportunities, increase labor pools, and reduce pressure on employers to increase benefits.”
- Inventory of Beds for the Homeless: 2-1-1 provides up-to-date, local inventories of shelter beds available to the homeless. At Connecticut's 2-1-1 Info Line, a statewide count is maintained daily so that homeless persons have real-time information on shelter availability.
- Reaching At-Risk Populations in an Emergency: According to Burt Wallrich, long time Coordinator for Information and Referral in Los Angeles, 2-1-1 systems can reach the majority of at-risk people through a broad network of small agencies serving the homeless and others who are disconnected by language, recent immigration, transience, distrust of government or mental illness. “The risks of not reaching these people [in a major disaster] include unnecessary loss of life and injury if services don't reach them, disease spreading from improvised camps to the rest of the community, civil disorder if people feel neglected and cut off from help, and political pressure and litigation brought to bear by advocates for these groups.”
- Suicide Prevention: Connecticut's 2-1-1 Info Line receives several calls every night from people who are contemplating suicide. The American Association for Suicidology evaluates Connecticut's crisis workers and certifies them for the clinical practice of this specialized type of crisis management.