Strategic Points of Information
Regarding 2-1-1 Service in New Jersey
- People contact 2-1-1 in times of crisis and often when they are confronting a situation for the
first time. While some people may call in anticipation of need, the majority of people call while they
are in the midst of a problem and thus contending with multiple stresses demanding immediacy and emotional
support.
- Specialist also act as advocates by connecting callers with agencies and speaking on a caller’s behalf
and by seeking feedback from callers to ascertain the level of service provided by the agency.
- Specialists create information interventions – strategies for providing the right information at the
right time during a call and more broadly speaking, a problematic situation that will assist callers in
holistic ways and perhaps prevent further crisis.
- Vast database includes information of local resources and provides the most feasible options for persons living in a given community.
- By changing the front door of help from government to the local community, 2-1-1 puts local resources in
the hands of people who are looking for community-based solutions when help is most needed.
- Every person that fails to make a connection with an appropriate human service agency at a time of
crisis or need will potentially require a more costly intervention at some time later (emergency room,
homeless shelter, incarceration).
- Follow-up is essential to demonstrate concern and caring. It also yields information about whether
clients are acting on the referrals given, whether they are able to solve the problem, how many people
benefited from the referral, and the affective state of the client.
- 2-1-1 services are needed and used by people from all sides of the socio-demographic spectrum.
- 2-1-1 services connect more residents to the resources that exist in their own communities, reducing
dependency on government and promoting self-sufficiency by helping them acquire the skills and education
that they need to lead full and independent lives.
- In its unique role, 2-1-1 will become an important voice within the health and human services
communities by exercising leadership and disseminating important information regarding the real time needs
of the community.
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