211 Nova Scotia

211 NOVA SCOTIA

Social workers share their experiences

BY SUZY TEUBNER

Social work is founded on noble principles, though its rewards can sometimes seem short or insufficient in the face of challenging circumstances. Still, guiding people through difficult situations toward their best possible outcome is a social worker’s ultimate goal.

Pam Viddal, BSW, a registered social worker since 2010, has firsthand experience with those challenges. Now a community resource navigator with 211 Nova Scotia, Viddal began her career working one-on-one with clients in the community.

“After graduating from the social work program at Dalhousie University, I worked for about seven years with a diverse clientele of adults and youth with physical disabilities, mental health disorders, autism spectrum disorders, brain injuries, dementia, developmental delays and intellectual disabilities, in community and residential settings,” she said. “In hindsight, had 211 existed when I started out, 211’s community resource navigators would have been indispensable to both me and my clients when it comes to finding resources.”

Pam Viddal, 211 community resource navigator at work

As a social worker, you often become a client’s go-to person. They frequently rely upon you to assist in decision making, from the life-changing to the day-to-day. This can be difficult and time-consuming. That’s where community resource navigators like Viddal come in. Viddal and her colleagues at 211 Nova Scotia routinely offer support to many of NSCSW’s 1900-plus members, finding unique resources for clients as social workers seek to improve the quality of life for people and help them overcome life’s most difficult challenges.

“As a social worker, I saw firsthand the benefits for my clients and for citizens of our province,” said Marsman, who received her MSW in 1993. “The services provided by 211 can be accessed by all ethnicities, classes, genders, languages, etc. throughout the province and therefore, strives to be an inclusive service. I would strongly encourage any eligible organization not currently in the 211 database to register and be a part of the collaboration, so Nova Scotians can get access to every service available to them.”

Viddal, who also works casually at the Responsible Gambling Resource Centre, believes 211 is an essential part of any social worker’s toolbox. “No matter what the situation, 211 is helpful in more ways than you might think,” she said. “One of my colleagues at the casino called 211 to inquire about supports in the community for a senior who was coming to the casino because she was lonely and wanted companionship. This lady didn’t need to be educated on responsible gambling or help with a voluntary self-exclusion. She needed resources to help with her feelings of isolation outside of the casino. Fortunately, 211 was able to make that connection for her.”

211 launched in Nova Scotia in February 2013 and is funded by the provincial government and the United Way. In 2018, over 37,000 calls were received at their small call centre in Dartmouth, and there were more than 325,000 visits to the ns.211.ca website (which houses an online search portal). The comprehensive human services database has information about thousands of programs and services including services for seniors, mental health and addictions, child care, recreational programs, counseling, financial assistance, or transportation.

On the days when you don’t know where to turn, 211 is here to help you help your client by quickly and promptly identifying helpful resources. The time saved in not having to chase down resource leads can now be spent on much more important work – the actual treatment plan.

211 Nova Scotia’s confidential province-wide information and referral service is free, available 24/7, and designed to help you navigate community, non-profit, and government services anywhere in Nova Scotia, whether you need help for a client, a family member or friend, or even yourself.

For the past five years, Veronica Marsman, MSW, RSW, past president of the Association of Black Social Workers (ABSW) has been a director of the non-profit association that delivers 211 service. Her role with the ABSW is to support the president and the organization by providing educational and community based programming ranging from clinical counselling to professional development. When first asked to join the 211 board of directors in 2014, Marsman said there was no doubt it would be a good fit with her 35-plus years of social service practice.

“It’s great to have an up-to-date service with resources that can be accessed any time,” said Michael Nahirnak, a Nova Scotia RSW who helps mental health and acute care patients in their transition from hospital to the community. “Website resources can be outdated. Resource guides change, numbers change. I typically call when I can’t find a resource to see if [211] knows about a new program I’m not aware of. For people who work overnight, such as in shelters, 211 is always there when they need them after-hours.” Prior to the launch of 211, Nahirnak would reach out to colleagues and co-workers via phone to discuss resources. “With 211,” he says, “I only have to wait a few seconds to talk to someone who is friendly [and] who can give me other ideas that may be able to help too.”

Nahirnak has been a social worker for over seven years. He described a situation when 211 was particularly helpful in his daily work which involved seeking community supports for an older client who was isolated at home. “I called 211 and the navigator was able to help with the resources and she then sent them to me in an email, all laid out so they were easy to print. I have had nothing but good experiences with the service. It’s fantastic,” he said.

In addition to improving the quality of life forindividuals and their families, the social workprofession seeks to effect system-wide changefor the betterment of the local community.

Knowing that the work you do is having an impact on people’s lives, and that your efforts have made a difference, is extremely rewarding. Helping social workers to identify gaps in the social safety net is a key part of 211’s mission. Sometimes 211 will receive calls for needs that can’t be met because a service just doesn’t exist or because the person doesn’t qualify for a program that does. Although completely confidential, 211 documents all need and location information, collecting hard data about which needs occur most frequently, which ones are capable of being met, and which aren’t. That data can be very useful in determining where limited funding dollars are best spent to make the greatest difference.

Social workers report a multitude of reasons for choosing the profession as a career. Whether your passionlies in helping individuals and families find solutions to life challenges, or arises from a desire to buildbetter social policy or improve social justice, 211 can help.

Melissa Hum, MSW, RSW, is the clinic coordinator at the Dalhousie School of Social Work Community Clinic. She said 211 allows for individual social workers to engage in their own searching and resource information which leads to an overall sense of personal agency.

“Social workers have been able to benefit from 211 in ensuring that there is an accurate, comprehensive database of available resources and services. This general information has previously been difficult for individuals and families to access,” said Hum. “As a result, social workers (staff and students) at our clinic have been able to focus our work on individual, unique and complex issues presented by clients in order to best meet their identified needs.”

In addition to being a resource for social workers at the clinic, 211 is often the starting point for people who are referred to the clinic. Since 2014, more than 700 people have been referred to the clinic’s programs by 211 navigators. Hum feels that the clinic benefits because the 211 resource navigators know which referrals are appropriate and which needs fall within the clinic’s scope of practice. “It is key that callers receive relevant and timely information,” said Hum. “Clients share their experiences of speaking with respectful, helpful and caring navigators at 211. Clients often report that 211 has been helpful in listening and providing options of services/resources to access.” She added, “Individuals are often feeling overwhelmed and uncertain when calling 211. When clear, accurate information is provided to them, as well as options for resources and services, they have reported feeling more hopeful.”

As this article went to press, the team at 211 was close to completing a new project as part of their ongoing goal of making the work of caring professionals, especially social workers, just that much easier. Early in 2019, the team hopes to launch a feature through which website visitors will be able to quickly and easily create customized directories of resources within local communities across Nova Scotia.

211 offers a solution to the challenge of helping navigate community and social services across the province, while providing vital data on the met and unmet needs of Nova Scotians.

SUZY TEUBNER is the director of communications and outreach at 211 Nova Scotia. She holds a degree in journalism from Ryerson University. To request a presentation or 211 promotional materials, you can reach her by phone at 902.466.5723 or email steubner@ns.211.ca.

TO USE THE SERVICE

DIAL 2-1-1 (phone interpretation service is available for over 100 languages) VISIT ns.211.ca, EMAIL help@ns.211.ca or TEXT 21167.