D@ta.HESED. Why is digitalization so important?
newsletter No.2, April 2021
where helping professionals encounter digital solutions
Digital services and digital inclusion are becoming an increasingly important part of our daily lives. This has become a particularly topical issue in the context of Covid-19 and the transfer of large parts of our daily routine to the digital environment.
HESED started the process of digitalization of services with the implementation of project D@ta.hesed funded by the Active Citizens program.
Although funded by the Active Citizens’ Small initiatives scheme, the project is of great importance to our organization because it allows us to improve the transparency of the organization’s activities, the efficiency of services and their accountability.
In order to present how the digitization of clients’ files and the process of preparing reports will affect the work of our colleagues, we conducted short interviews with Teodora Bochukova, psychologist and manager of MIR Center in Filipovtsi neighbourhood and with Milena Kirilova, social worker.
Teodora manages the center in Filipovtsi, but she also conducts training in parenting skills, psychological counselling, psychological assessment and many other activities for support of children and families in the neighborhood
Q: According to you – what is the mission of the organization you work for? What are you trying to achieve?
A: Improving the quality of life of families, inclusion and “creating a better future” by working with children and increasing their skills and knowledge. Opening opportunities for a better life through education.
Q: How do you explain to your child what your job is? What about your friends / husband?
A: I talk about my work mainly with colleagues, with whom we share similar thinking and similar context.
Q: If I ask a client of yours what you do – what will s/he answer me?
A: I help the children.
Q: Describe to me one of your days at work – how is it going?
A: Dynamically. In structuring and re-planning assignments by priority.
Q: How will the introduction of a new data storage and reporting system affect the work? And the work of your colleagues?
A: I believe that the new system will give more structure and consistency of work and facilitate the tracking and development of cases, it will provide information on the frequency of services sought, which will give up-to-date information about the needs of our clients.
I hope it will save time and make administrative work easier.
Q: And do you think it will affect clients? How?
A: I hope after the initial entering of data, it will facilitate the subsequent communication and provide a basis for better trust and work afterwards. Last but not least, I think it will give me the opportunity to quickly recall the history of families, which will give them a sense of being remembered and respected.
Milena is a social worker in the Filipovtsi neighbourhood.
Q: According to you – what is the mission of the organization you work for? What are you trying to achieve?
A: Improving the lives of people from the Roma community. We are trying to achieve better education of children, prevention of dropping out of school, raising the literacy of adults, access to health services.
Q: How do you explain to your child what your job is? What about your friends / husband?
A: Everyone has difficult moments. Like when have conflict with a classmate, you lost a friend, you are offended and sad … Then you have a conversation with a person like me – social worker. The social worker supports, inspires hope, refers, motivates … My work is a teamwork, diverse, difficult.
Q: If I ask a client of yours what you do – what will s/he answer me?
A: That I help the people in the neighbourhood.
Q: Describe to me one of your days at work – how is it going?
A: Meetings, groups, documentary work, trainings, telephone conversations with doctors, teachers, other specialists …
Q: How will the introduction of a new data storage and reporting system affect the work? And the work of your colleagues?
A: It will facilitate it and shorten the time for recalled information and case details.
Q: And do you think it will affect clients? How?
A: The creation of a deeper trust with the client will be mediated, as the social worker will be able to recall in detail and knows information on the case / chronologically /.
One of the main reasons why HESED team has taken this important step towards the digitization of clients’ files is to increase the security of clients’ personal data stored. We met some users of our services to find out how they see us and how they evaluate our work.
We are talking to Sonya, 28 years old in MIR Center – Filipovtsi
Q: Hello, how are you today?
A: All right
Q: Why are you coming here?
A: Because of my children, they help us here. I have two children – Strahil at 11 and Spaska at 7, she looks like a little child because she is small, but now she will be in 1st grade.
Q: And how do they help you here, who welcomes you?
A: A while ago my sister brought me here, she was going to get food (note: free food aid packages), but she realized that except the food there is a lot of useful information and help here, if you do not know how to deal with a problem for example. My sister told me and I came. Everyone here is very smiling and always responds to me when I have questions.
Q: What information is required from you here, what documents do you fill out? Does anyone help you?
A: Here you have to say your name, that’s what they want. But I can’t read and write, so I don’t fill in anything, they write what they need instead. That was in the beginning when I came, now we know each other, and they know everything about me.
We are talking to Milena, 34, mother of 2 children, at the MIR Center – Filipovtsi
Q: Hello, Milena, how are you?
A: Hi, I’m fine.
Q: Why are you here today?
A: I was in a group with mothers (note: parental skills training) and it was very interesting, we talked about cooking and feeding.
Q: Who welcomes you here, is the information you receive useful to you?
A: I have been coming here for a long time and everyone knows me. I came to trainings while I was pregnant with both of my children and all the information was very interesting.
Q: What information is required from you here, what documents do you fill out? Does anyone help you?
A: They want names, sometimes other data, depending on what you came for. I fill in documents every time, and I come often. I sign the documents. It will be easier if they have the data entered and then just add what they gave me or in which group I participated… This way everything will happen faster and we will have more time to discuss children’s nutrition and what to learn…
The team of Center MIR – Filipovtsi is testing the new electronic system
The sole responsibility for the content of this publication lies with Health and Social Development Foundation and under no circumstances can it be assumed that this document reflects the official opinion of the Financial Mechanism of the European Economic Area and the Operator of the Active Citizens Fund in Bulgaria.
