2023-10-02 SPLAT Curiosity Report: Volume 15, Issue 3
Featured Story
FindHelp Idaho – Connecting Customers with Social Services
Idaho has been through a rough couple of years. Cost-of-living is rising rapidly, employment prospects have changed drastically from year-to-year (while failing to keep up with increasing costs), and the long tail of the COVID-19 pandemic is still felt throughout the state. Many Idaho residents have been left in precarious positions. This year alone I have worked with a half-dozen people searching for work for the first time in over a decade. These are folks coming out of retirement, or who were laid-off from lifelong careers, or who had been stay-at-home parents supported by their spouse. For each of them the job market has changed radically online applications, information security, and even basic computer literacy are overwhelming hurdles to someone who just needs to match their skyrocketing rent. Several told me they were at risk of eviction or had already lost their homes.
What can we do to support our communities in times of hardship and change? Much has been said about the dangers of mission creep and burnout I certainly do not want to further push social work responsibilities onto the shoulders of library workers who are neither trained nor compensated for this difficult and draining work. Yet I believe we can rise to the challenge while sticking to our core competencies. At the very heart of librarianship is connection. We connect the folks in our community with materials, with services, with information that they need and want. We may not be able to help a customer find a job or afford their next meal. But we can connect them with social services, with organizations and individuals who can meet their individual needs. I’ve heard it said that in terms of our social services, Idaho is resource rich but connection poor. That is to say there are many resources out there, but we’re not doing a good job of making them known and available to the people who would benefit from them. How can we do better?
One option comes in the form of a website called Findhelp Idaho. This is a database of social services in Idaho that can help you find local resources for food, healthcare, housing, employment, and more. It has robust tools for finding and sharing information that is useful and relevant to your customer’s needs. Findhelp Idaho is built from the same system as Findhelp, formerly known as Aunt Bertha. It has been organized and funded by the Idaho Health Data Exchange, along with United Way and the Idaho Nonprofit Center.
So, what makes Findhelp Idaho a good tool? First, it is easy to use customers or librarians first input their Zip code or city and then select a topic like help pay for housing or help find work. Search results can be further limited by factors such as income requirements, hours of operation, or even a person’s criminal justice history. If there are multiple resources that are relevant to a customer’s needs, you can quickly select multiple resources and print or email the information as a well-formatted list that includes service summaries, contact information, and hours of service. I have created several lists on my Findhelp account of resources related to specific user groups, which I can pull up and share at a moment’s notice. And while I first suspected that a service like Findhelp Idaho would only be helpful for residents in densely populated areas, it seems to have comprehensive coverage of resources. Identical searches for help find work in Boise and Blanchard returned 53 and 48 results, respectively. The distance needed to travel to the average resource was further for Blanchard residents, but it was refreshing to see some parity in the results.
Another useful aspect of Findhelp is that staff with an organization can claim ownership of the program’s service listing on Findhelp Idaho. Once they go through a verification process, they can update the services listed, as well as contact information and other relevant details. This makes it much easier to ensure that information is up-to-date and accurate. If a user notices information that is incorrect, it’s easy to notify the organization, too. Findhelp Idaho also has tools to help close the referral loop. If a customer is interested in a service but doesn’t have the means or time to make the initial contact, you can send referrals to the service organization through Findhelp Idaho itself. The organization will receive a notice that a customer is interested in their services, along with contact information, so the organization can reach out to them directly. This last tool is one that should be used carefully, and with respect for the privacy and self-determination of customers. I have only ever referred customers with their explicit permission to do so.
If you are interested in trying out Findhelp Idaho, but don’t know how to get started, check out their Learning Hub. It is designed to help folks like library staff get up to speed with the database quickly, and there are different courses to help you further develop your skills.
Of course, Findhelp Idaho is still just a tool, essentially a database. LIS researchers like Julia Hersberger (2003) and Y. L. Wong (2009) have shown that people experiencing homelessness tend to prioritize personal connections when gathering information. If we are to effectively utilize tools like Findhelp Idaho in connecting our community members with resources, we must also build relationships with them. When we can build trust and mutual respect with the customers who most need these services, they will be more receptive to our help, and more likely to engage with the resources we refer them to.
References
Hersberger, J. A. (2003). A qualitative approach to examining information transfer via social networks among homeless populations. New Review Of Information Behaviour Research,4(1), 95-108. doi: 10.1080/14716310310001631462
Wong, Y. L. (2009). Homelessness in public libraries. Journal of Access Services, 6(3), 396-410. doi: 10.1080/15367960902908599
By Simon Clifford
Fail Forward
We’ve all been there. You pour your heart into a program, and no one shows up. You try something new, and you fall on your face. Sound familiar? Fail Forward is the place to share your failures, and give you the opportunity to share what you learned from them. Did you promote your program in a different way after no one showed up? Maybe you took a new approach to the new thing you were excited about? Awesome! Share your story via our online form so others can learn, and realize that failure is often part of the process.
It’s All About Social Media
So as a lot of us know social media is a cornerstone to getting better foot traffic especially when working with college students. Last spring, I let my social media game slip. I was totally prepared for the semester. I had all the images ready for events. I had students creating amazing projects. I didn’t take the time to schedule posts for each day. This led to hit-and-miss postings throughout the semester. The dip in attendance for our workshops and walk-ins was noticed. If not by outsiders, it was by myself. As a new semester ramps up, I am going to learn from the past and take that extra bit of time in a week and share the MILL with the world. Also, delegate a bit of the work.
By Jessica Fleener
Crush Corner
Is there a library you follow on social media who is always doing new and exciting things? How about a blog you follow that inspires you? What about a new idea, book, or resource that you want to share? Library Crush Corner is a place for those working in Idaho libraries to share what inspires them, and who or what they’re crushing on… in a professional sense. Share your story via our online form so we can publish it in a future issue!
Business Builder Day
Annually, our library participates in Business Builder Day, a local outreach event featuring a full day trade show for entrepreneurs of all levels. The event includes a keynote speaker, seminars, and networking opportunities. We set up an exhibitor booth to showcase our services and resources for supporting local businesses. This year, we crafted 80 unique 3D printed business card holders, including sofa and standard designs, as part of our swag. I am eager to attend and explore how the library can further assist our local entrepreneurs. Sofa and standard designs below- aren’t they cute?
By Mariah Farmer
SPLAT explores the ever-evolving library world and supports library folks as they adapt to meet the needs of their communities. Library folk throughout the state of Idaho volunteer to serve on the Special Projects Library Action Team (SPLAT). Learn more about SPLAT at https://libraries.idaho.gov/splat/
SPLAT is brought to you by the Idaho Commission for Libraries and was made possible, in part, by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (LS-246156-OLS-20). The views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily represent those of the Institute of Museum and Library Services.