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MinnesotaHelp.info
offers one-stop assistance
Beginning a search for services for older adults
has just gotten a little easier.
With the Jan. 21 debut of www.MinnesotaHelp.info
information Web site, the hunt, which often included
voicemail messages, referral after referral to other
agencies and the like, has been trimmed down.
Through the use of a computer and a link to the
Inter-net, Minnesotans looking for services can now
click their mouse through a series of menus that
will bring them to the services they want that are
near to their home.
MinnesotaHelp.info has been developed in tandem
with the 2-1-1 social service information and
referral phone system going online across the state
this year. Both computer and phone systems have the
same customer-oriented approach: being easy to use.
The Internet site was an offshoot of the state’s
Long-Term Care Task Force. The state legislature,
looking for innovative ways to meet the growing
needs of an aging population, provided funding to
implement the system that will provide older adults
with a way to easily search out programs or services
that could help them maintain as much independence
as possible.
The way MinnesotaHelp.info works is much like an
automated teller machine. Visitors just have to
answer one question at a time, each step narrowing
the focus of the search to the final list of
potential possibilities.
As an example, an older adult is looking for
housing options in a particular community. The first
task is to log in to the site and enter the city or
zip code for the area the search will focus on.
Second, the database will ask what general type
of service the searcher is hunting for. Since much
of the site was developed to help with aging needs,
Resources for Seniors is the only special topic
listed on the site, and the searcher would click
that link. Services for non-seniors can also be
searched through the site.
Subtopics in the Resources for Seniors section
include financial assistance; housing; hospitals and
medical services; legal and advocacy; nursing and
chore help; Medicare and other benefits; nursing
homes; and transportation.
The database will generate a list of applicable
housing sites that meet the searcher’s criteria,
including a short summary of each site with contact
information for each of the sites.
There are some added pluses to doing a
MinnesotaHelp.info search. Tip sheets are built into
each category of service, giving the searcher key
questions to ask or items to consider when looking
at a particular service. And searches can easily be
printed, saved to a home page for future reference
or can be e-mailed to family or friends.
Eventually, more specialty areas will be created
similar to the Resources for Seniors link. Next on
tap is developing a specific link for services for
people with disabilities.
MinnesotaHelp.info is a collaborative project
between United Way 2-1-1, First Call Minnesota
2-1-1, the Minnesota Department of Human Services
and the Minnesota Board on Aging. The database is
being maintained by United Way 2-1-1 and First Call
Minnesota 2-1-1, which send out semiannual surveys
to make sure all information is up to date. The
database currently is stocked with information on
36,000 different nonprofit and government service
providers from across the state.
MinnesotaHelp.info will allow people from other
states to access the Minnesota database to search
for services for their family or friends living
here. It also will allow people from Minnesota to do
a search for services in other states, but those
searches may not be as complete if the state being
searched does not have a comprehensive a database.
Also, MinnesotaHelp.info will work hand-in-hand
with the 2-1-1 phone system. People doing an
Internet search but wanting to talk to a real person
can call 2-1-1 to speak to a specialist. Likewise,
those making a 2-1-1 call can be referred to the
MinnesotaHelp.info database if they’re comfortable
working on a computer.
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