Monitoring Unmet Needs

Advancing Collaborative Research with 2-1-1 to Reduce Health Disparities

“…However, in this supplement, no two papers measured or reported caller data in the same way. For instance, the analysis by Bame and colleagues, 5 which merged 25 different 2-1-1 caller data sets within the Texas 2-1-1 network, found that demographic data were collected and coded consistently for only 15% of the callers over the 5-month study period.…”

“…Similarly, disaster management systems could use caller needs to allocate resources in times of crisis. 5 Policymakers could use a 2-1-1 dashboard to obtain real-time and longitudinal health and social services data at district levels to help guide policy and the allocation of resources. Similarly, community service providers could use this tool to examine how and where to focus the distribution of resources.…”

“…For example, one strategy proposed by the Bame et al 5 2-1-1 disaster data study sites was a centralized team for data analysis and reporting. Using this type of approach, the team could operate like a cooperative, with member 2-1-1 systems supporting and having access to these services and, in turn, being able to share their data and/or findings and reports to outside agencies.…”

“…Access to this site could be made public to encourage wide dissemination. A variation of this idea was carried out by the Bame et al 5 disaster study group and included a “data co-op” of 2-1-1 members that could allow access to specific and/or more confidential reports to their supporters (e.g., disaster management committees, Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, Council of Governments, funding agencies). In addition to keeping a record of 2-1-1 research collaborations, the reports and publications housed on this website also could serve as a means of marketing 2-1-1 services and data to communities, agencies, and corporations along with encouraging consultants and researchers to develop funding to explore the remarkable potential of the 2-1-1 data system.…”

Building and Maintaining a Citizen Science Network With Fishermen and Fishing Communities Post Deepwater Horizon Oil Disaster Using a CBPR Approach

“…Legacy pollutants from poorly regulated waste streams, active disposal and storage sites, and orphaned or improvised dumps are also a constant in some of these communities, particularly in south Louisiana. 26,27 Because the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act essentially exempts energy industry exploration and production waste from regulations applied to other hazardous materials, some fishing-based communities are potentially exposed, and exposure-related health effects are usually neither monitored individually, nor tracked epidemiologically. 28–30 Finally, access to healthcare in this region could best be characterized as spotty, especially among low-income or seasonal workers, and the percentage of uninsured and underinsured is relatively high.…”