Health involves more than just diagnoses, treatments, and clinic visits. Everyday needs like transportation, food access, housing stability, and utility services can affect whether care is received on time, delivered consistently, or works as intended.
To help address these nonmedical factors that influence health, UAB Medicine implemented Findhelp, a free online service that makes it easier to locate community-based resources.
Finding help isn’t always easy
Challenges related to food, transportation, housing, or finances are common, but finding help for them isn’t always easy. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) describes social determinants of health as the conditions in which people are born, live, work, and age, adding that these social and economic factors influence health outcomes and access to care. For example, transportation is a common barrier. A study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that about 1 in 20 U.S. adults delayed or did not receive needed medical care because they lacked transportation.
Many forms of help already exist in our communities. However, these resources are often local rather than centralized, specific to certain neighborhoods or ZIP codes, and not widely advertised, and their specific offerings tend to change frequently.
Findhelp goes a long way in making sure that our patients and their caregivers don’t have to sort through outdated information and unclear requirements.
How Findhelp works
Findhelp is a third-party service with one goal: to make community-based support easier to find and use. It’s useful for addressing common situations that can affect health care, such as:
- When a need arises after a medical visit
- When recovering from an illness or treatment
- When a change in circumstances makes it harder to continue receiving care
- When helping a loved one who doesn’t know where to start
Users simply enter their ZIP code, then they can browse available services by category and eligibility requirements. Findhelp shows results for commonly needed services related to:
- Food
- Transportation
- Housing or utility assistance
- Financial help
- Caregiver and family support
- Legal help
- Employment assistance
- Education
Findhelp is free and self-directed, so you can use it anytime.
Trustworthy information and next steps
Findhelp draws from a large, national database of community-based programs. Organizations claim and update their own listings, which helps keep information current. You may want to revisit the service from time to time, to check for new resources. When you find one that matches your needs, take the next step by reaching out via the contact information provided in the listing.
Please note that Findhelp is a complement to health care services. It does not provide medical care or insurance.