A simple solution improves services for vulnerable people
Kolfinna and Símon Ágúst are team leaders in the field services and counseling team at Reykjavík City's welfare department (VoR). The team provides individualized counseling and field support, serving people who struggle with homelessness, substance abuse and mental health issues.
"It's a cliché,“ but no two days are alike," says Kolfinna. "We serve about 60 individuals in Reykjavík City housing, both in homes and small units," Símon agrees. "This is obviously a very diverse group, and it can be challenging to keep track of everything that needs to be done."
Staff left field early for manual data entry
Since the work takes place almost entirely in the field, documentation and reporting were challenges for the team. Staff had to record information in Word documents on a shared drive and connect to a VPN (Virtual Private Network) to complete documentation. "We always had to leave the field 30 minutes early to document the entire day," says Kolfinna. "We were recording what had happened at the end of the day.
The nature of the work is constantly changing, and staff often need to respond quickly when calls come in. We're not always following the plan. At the end of the day, we had to try to remember what happened, which was a real challenge."
Kolfinna Arndísardóttir, Símon Ágúst Steinsson and Magnús Bergur Magnússon.
A simple solution changes everything
The team has now adopted a digital solution that simplifies all documentation and improves continuity in services for service users. The solution is built entirely in PowerApps, which is part of the Microsoft suite. Magnús Bergur, digital transformation lead for the welfare department, worked on developing the solution with the team. "Since this is a solution already in use by the City, it was both simple and cost-effective to develop and deploy, with no additional operating costs," says Magnús. "We started with a short meeting where we reviewed the main challenges. That's when this idea was born – we could try using Power Apps. I decided to put together a simple prototype that we could test and get immediate feedback on."
Símon says the process was simple and convenient. "It's great when things just work. To meet and create something so we have something we can use right away. I think that's fantastic.“
A rock in people's lives
The result is a solution the team now uses every day. "After we got the PowerApps solution, we can just look up information on our phones in the field and see exactly what has happened," says Kolfinna. "So we can better serve service users and they experience more continuity in our services."
Kolfinna says this has had a major impact on the work. "We're serving people who rely somewhat on us being a rock in their lives," she says. "Now we can always stay up to date with what's happening in their lives."