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REGISTRY MODEL

Self-updated list

Authority requires it

Monitored for trust

UTILITY MODEL

One steward maintains

Open access database

Pay for premium

COLLABORATIVE MODEL

A federation

Shared responsibility

Mutual benefit

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3

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Complementary models for the sustainable

provision of reliable, open-access data about

community resources.

Open Referral has developed

data exchange standards for

human service directories –

enabling interoperability

among systems that collect,

publish, and use information

about the resources that are

available in a community for

people in need.

In order to be reliable,

community resource data

needs to be actively

maintained. Since resource

directory information ought

to be openly accessible to all,

how can its maintenance

be sustained?

Good answers to this

question will depend upon

any number of variables in a

given community's local

context; however, we can

observe a common set

of patterns that we have

named and described

in the following models.

These models are not

mutually exclusive; rather,

each can complement

the others.

Producing

human service

directory

information as

a public good

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Help Seekers

Funder

Service Providers

Service Register

Referral Systems

Data Analysts

Help seekers might

seek help from any

number of intermediaries

– hotlines, websites, social

workers and other care

providers, etc. When

resource directory

information is made

available as standardized

open data, any

intermediary can access

the same information,

and provide it through

their own tools in

whichever way is most

appropriate for the

context in which they

help help-seekers.

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5

4

Open resource data

can be published

through a Service

Register, which is an

official list of services.

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When a network of

referral providers

can access the same

standardized open

resource data, they can

also aggregate and

share data about their

usage of data – enabling

analytics about search

terms, referral patterns,

resource gaps, etc – to

drive decision-making

by funding institutions,

policy-makers, etc.

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For a Service

Register to become

and remain trustworthy,

there should be a

designated Data

Custodian who will

monitor the accuracy of

the Register's records

and ensure compliance.

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A funder (or any

authority institution)

can establish a Service

Register by requiring the

service providers within

its remit to be accurately

listed in the Register as a

condition of funding (or

licensing, etc).

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Funds

Requirements

Designates

Ensures

compliance

Monitors

accuracy

Open

Directory

Data

Establishes

Data about

quality of data

Data about

use of data

Accesses

services

Community

needs

assessment

REGISTRY MODEL

Self-updated list

Authority requires it

Monitored for trust

Data Custodian