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The Family Help Desk (FHD) is a hospital-based resource and advocacy center intended to help patients’ families access community resources critical to their health, safety and economic survival. The goal of the Help Desk is to extend the scope of care provided to families in the hospital setting. While families visiting Children’s National Medical Center are there primarily to access health care services, they often have additional needs and concerns that require attention beyond the examination room. The Family Help Desk tries to address these needs through a collaboration of medical professionals, social workers, lawyers, community advocates, and undergraduate volunteers.
Mentored by CNMC clinical social worker Deborah Smith and Dr. Ben Gitterman, the volunteer staff of the Family Help Desk provide families a convenient location inside CNMC’s primary care center to connect with agencies offering:
- Food Assistance
- Cash Assistance
- Housing
- Health Insurance
- Immigration
- Childcare
- Adult Education
- Job Training
- Domestic Violence
- Nutrition Counseling
- Summer Camps
- Teen-Specific Services
As more than simply a referral service, the Family Help Desk offers ongoing advocacy and case management services to its clients; volunteer staff continually follow-up with individual clients well after the initial Desk visit to assess the progress of each case.
During its first year of operation, the DC Family Help Desk advocated for over 250 families in the DC metropolitan area.