2-1-1: Referral hotline assisted about 900 Santa Paulans in 2015

June 01, 2016
Santa Paula News

Of the 20,344 callers assisted in 2015 by the 2-1-1 phone referral service, about 4 percent were Santa Paulans according to a report presented to the City Council at a recent meeting.

Erik Sternad, executive director of Interface Children Family Services, updated the council on the report, released for the 11th year of 2-1-1 services that became the model for social services referrals.

Sternad noted “We also track unmet needs, its one thing to point people to services another thing to let you know what people are asking for but not getting,” data that was factored into the report.

 Overall, in 2015, 75 percent of the callers were women, 43 percent were Hispanic/Latino and 27 percent Caucasian/White. Eighty five percent of callers were English speaking and 51 percent were between the ages of 30 and 54. 

Information and referral calls varied by city and number of residents with about three Santa Paulans per hundred residents utilizing 2-1-1 services. 

The top 10 caller needs for Santa Paulans were housing, mental health/addictions, income support/assistance, individual family and community support, legal consumer and public safety services, health care, utility assistance, food/meals, information services, clothing/personal/household needs.

“About 900 Santa Paula residents called in the last year,” said Sternal. 

About 20 percent of the calls concerned housing, lower than Ventura County’s average call volume of about 22.5 percent. Mental health/addictions referrals were higher in Santa Paula at about 18 percent than the county average of about 15 percent.

All other categories — except for income support/assistance and utility assistance — saw Santa Paula even or slightly less than the county average.

Sternad said 2015 unmet needs in Santa Paula were related to housing/shelter such as homeless shelter, motel voucher and rent assistance; such requests are booked as unmet if it is not possible to meet the caller’s need directly through existing resources.

Six hundred (600) crisis calls were handled by 2-1-1 countywide in 2015, with 61 percent related to mental health crisis/suicidal callers, 28 percent for a domestic violence crisis, 9 percent for medical crisis and 2 percent reporting sexual assault/rape.  

 With 28 percent of crisis calls regarding domestic violence, “I know our county ranks the highest in the state of California,” among similar sized counties for such cries of help.

Said Sternad, “It’s a serious issue across Ventura County…”

The free and confidential 2-1-1 is a program of Interface, “with deep appreciation” for support from the County of Ventura, First Five Ventura County, United Way and the 10 county cities.





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