Open Referral
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If you’re going to build a new system, who will maintain the data?

Please note that Open Referral is not developing a product. We don’t manage or hold any resource data. Our primary objective is to help communities answer the question of who should maintain resource data. We’d be glad to help you … Continue reading →

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How are decisions made?

When it comes to making decisions for the Initiative as a whole, simple rule of thumb is rough consensus and running code. We do things that demonstrably work, and to which none of our community members strongly object. That said, … Continue reading →

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What makes you think you know the right solution?

Well, we don’t yet know the right solution! We’re just not going to wait around any longer for it to be figured out. So we’re taking action.  Essentially, we are asking: how should this data be open?  This is a … Continue reading →

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What about the problem of service taxonomies?

Open Referral recognizes the existence of a diverse array of taxonomies that are used to describe types of services, organizations, and people for whom services are available. Given that such categories are inherently subjective – whereas Open Referral’s Human Services … Continue reading →

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Aren’t there already standards for service directory information?

There are existing standards among certified information-and-referral systems, but these are not designed for the open exchange of data among any system. As a result, various organizations and institutions must all independently invest in data production and technology development. This … Continue reading →

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Aren’t calling centers important for people who might not use a computer, etc?

Of course they are! We think it’s important for this information to be accessible to a whole ecosystem of services, and for the foreseeable future, calling centers will be an essential component of a healthy ecosystem. That’s why it’s important … Continue reading →

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Is Open Referral ‘scraping’ 2-1-1 data?

No. Open Referral is not a database or a platform. We help other organizations evolve their resource databases into open platforms.  For what it’s worth, we reject the idea that community resource data can or should be treated like private … Continue reading →

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Is Open Referral trying to build a national database of services?

No. We recognize that this is a local problem that should entail local solutions. That’s why we’ve developed an open data standard, which can be used by any community to find locally-appropriate methods of data sharing.

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What is the difference between Open211 and Open Referral?

Open Referral is both the name of this community of practice, and also the shorthand name of our format for community resource data (which is technically known as the Human Services Data Specification). Open211 is a name that has been … Continue reading →

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How is Open Referral organized?

The Open Referral Initiative is an open community of practice, which means that our documentation and artifacts are freely accessible and adaptable by any participant (assuming they abide by our principles and values). Our network is open to anyone. Anyone … Continue reading →

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  • Just Released: Toolkit for information exchange initiatives from the Office of the National Coordinator of Health IT at HHS
  • Our 2022 Year in Review
  • Introducing the Whatcom County Resource Information Collaborative
  • Michigan 211’s new resource data infrastructure: providing social service information as a service
  • Upgrading the Human Service Data Specifications: 2022 development cycle underway

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