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[ Browse by Service Category : Topics Related to Specialized Information and Referral (35) ]

Housing Search and Information

Programs that help people to find and select available rental or purchasable housing, commercial lots and/or residential lots which meet their individual needs. Included is information that is available online, in print or in other formats.

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Senior Housing Information and Referral

Programs that maintain information about retirement residences, residential care facilities and nursing homes, and link older adults who are looking for alternative living options with appropriate independent or supervised living resources.

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Carpooling Programs

Programs that make arrangements for people to travel together in private automobiles and/or vans during busy commuting hours or which provide a central telephone number for people to use to identify others who are commuting to and from the same general area with whom they might share. Vehicle options include vanpools and carpools. Vanpools may be publicly or employer operated or organized by an individual who owns or leases a van; the drivers are generally participating as commuters themselves, so are not paid.

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Legal Assistance Referral Services

Programs that maintain lists of lawyers, paralegals, mediators and other legal professionals and services, and link people who need legal assistance with those who specialize in the required area of law.

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Health Care Referrals

Programs that link people who are in need of medical care, nursing care, dental care or other types of health care services with qualified practitioners.

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Job Information

Programs that maintain lists of available employment opportunities that people who are searching for a position can access.

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Skills Exchanges/Cooperatives

Programs that maintain lists of community residents who have specific abilities or talents such as cooking, gardening, sewing or home repair and who are willing to provide targeted services in exchange for services offered by other residents. No payment by either person is usually involved.

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Adoption Evaluation/Placement

Programs that assess the needs and capabilities of children who have been relinquished for adoption, compile the children's social and medical histories, make arrangements for care and supervision of the children prior to placement, evaluate prospective adoptive applicants including a review of adoptive home studies, if available, and select and approve prospective adoptive homes.

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Child Care Provider Referrals

Programs that provide provincial and community-based services that are designed to improve the availability and quality of child care. These programs maintain lists of child care resources and link families who are in need of child care services with child care centres, licensed family child care homes and other organization-based providers; provide information that helps families become good consumers of child care services; recruit new child care providers to expand the availability of the service locally; provide training and technical assistance for providers; and collect and disseminate data which document the demand for child care services and the current availability of child care resources. Some programs may also make referrals to preschools and many provide referrals to children's play groups.

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In Home Assistance Registries

Programs that maintain lists of hourly and live-in companions, home health aides, personal care aides/attendants, cooks, drivers, homemakers, housekeepers (light and heavy housework), handyworkers, gardeners/yard workers, people who provide in-home secretarial help or other similar sources of assistance, and link people who are in need of these services with appropriate resources. The program may also recruit in-home assistance personnel, screen people who apply, provide training for the workers, help in-home care recipients interview and select prospective workers and monitor the quality of care each individual receives.

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Interpreter/Translator Registries

Programs that maintain lists of qualified interpreters and/or translators and link individuals and agencies who are in need of this service with appropriate resources.

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Central Intake/Assessment for Substance Use Disorders

Programs that serve as gatekeeper agencies which evaluate individuals who are in need of services related to an alcohol or other drug use disorder and triage them for the limited number of subsidized beds that may be available in the community. Some programs may also offer medical detoxification services for people who need them.

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Reference/Information

Libraries that maintain reference desks in adult and/or children's sections or telephone reference services to help users to find the information or leisure reading material they need. Reference librarians provide assistance in locating information on a wide variety of topics such as business, current events, and statistics and research findings. Also included are readers advisory services.

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The above terms and definitions are part of the Taxonomy of Human Services, used here by permission of INFO LINE of Los Angeles.


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