Staff of Nevada 211, a health and human services hot line, fielded 400 calls on its first day, Feb. 13. At that rate, the resource will have taken about 140,000 calls in one year, when planners predicted only about 40,000 calls in the first year.
Perhaps they should not be surprised, since Las Vegas is a 24-hour city, said Terrie Stanfill, executive director of HELP of Southern Nevada, the organization which staffs and supervises the 211 call center in Las Vegas. Callers have been thrilled with the service, Stanfill said.
"They're saying, 'This is fabulous' and asking why we haven't had this before," Stanfill said.
The new service is meant to simplify the process of putting people in need together with organizations that offer specific services.
"One wonders how many people out there need our help that aren't getting it because they simply don't know how to ask and they don't know where to call," Clark County Commissioner Myrna Williams said. "Now they know how to ask and now they know where to call -- just dial 211."
Stanfill said operators took calls from people who were worried about their elderly neighbors, people who needed child care in order to go to work, people looking for assistance with their taxes, and people with substance abuse problems. Nevada 211 gives them a place to call for free.
Las Vegas 211 staffers will handle statewide calls from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, and a call center in Reno will handle statewide calls from 4 p.m. to midnight. Extended days and times are part of plans for the future.
Stanfill said two or three people are currently staffing the phone lines at any given time. They are all employees, but she also would like to incorporate volunteers. There is some training involved, as operators have to learn how to use a database of human services.
The database has information about private and governmental agencies that handle physical and mental health, employment support services, services for seniors, volunteer opportunities and donations, and crisis or disaster recovery.
Still, the new service does not cover everything.
"The 211 is not a substitute for 911 or 411, the telephone directory assistance or any other specialized hot line or automatic recording," said Stanfill.
But she does expect 211 to take some of the pressure off of those numbers. Residents with non-emergency situations and problems could be helped by dialing 211 instead of calling 911 or 411.
Residents hoping to use 211 as a free version of 411 will be disappointed.
Stanfill said 211 operators have been trained not to answer questions about pizza delivery numbers or any similar inquiries. Those calls will be directed to 411, which costs $1.25 per call.
But if residents need help finding a job or have questions about where to go for food stamps, for instance, Nevada 211 can help.
Help numbers similar to Nevada 211 are currently operating in 32 states. In Nevada, the $200,000 to start the system came from the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services.
Officials hope to get more residents the services they need through Nevada 211.
"Our community will only grow stronger when our citizens and our families have their basic needs met," Williams said.
Many but not all cellular phone services offer access to 211.
There is a Web version of 211 for those who do not have access to a phone. For more information, log on to www.nevada211.org.
To inquire about volunteer opportunities, dial 211.
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