PALO ALTO, Dec. 11, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Benetech, the leading software for social good nonprofit, today announced significant funding from donors dedicated to some of today’s biggest social issues from healthcare to homelessness. Dignity Health, Fidelity Charitable Trustees’ Initiative, Cisco Foundation, and the Stupski Foundation have committed to funding which will allow Benetech to further develop and scale Benetech Service Net, an open standards data exchange platform, that enables community-based organizations to efficiently share data to connect people in need of human services. The goal of Benetech Service Net is to provide a software infrastructure so people can better access the services they need to live and prosper. Benetech Service Net builds on the organization’s already established suite of inclusive, open source tools to increase access to information and connect communities.
“Benetech Service Net has been designed as an open and inclusive platform that can be used by organizations working to overcome the growing challenges around the fact that 1 in 7 people in the US live in poverty (UC Davis, Center for Poverty Research, 2018)” said Betsy Beaumon, CEO, Benetech. “The social safety net should catch everyone who needs critical human services, like shelter and temporary housing, without delay and redundancy. Today, the social safety net can be challenging to navigate for people who need a variety of human services. By allowing agencies to collaborate, needs can be met with appropriate, quality services.”
The announcement is the first from the company since Benetech’s appointment of Beaumon as CEO and aligns with the mission of the UN’s recent International Day for the Eradication of Poverty (October 18) where the goal is “Coming together with those furthest behind to build an inclusive world of universal respect for human rights and dignity.”
More about Benetech Service Net
Benetech Service Net is an open standards data exchange platform that makes it easier to share and maintain information on local social and human services. Organizations providing referrals or referral technology, and agencies providing information about their services (such as community-based shelters, food pantries, or government agencies), can work together to make better data available for everyone. Benetech Service Net is part of Benetech’s work to help close the gaps in access to education, housing, employment, and other critical socioeconomic factors. All of Benetech’s software solutions are created with deliberate intent around software for social good, which is software built for or applied to the social sector to maximize positive social impact. Benetech has already been collaborating with organizations such as United Way of the Bay Area and Kaiser Permanente to create a more common infrastructure, and a pilot program with additional partners is forthcoming.
Dignity Health Partnership
In addition to funding, Dignity Health’s statewide network of hospitals enables broader coverage of services across more regions in California. Dignity Health plans to begin implementing the platform in Sacramento collaboratively with other health systems and city and county agencies, in addition to existing relationships between Dignity Health hospitals and community service providers. With Benetech Service Net, Dignity Health is convening numerous organizations toward a community solution that will improve connections between patients and access to resources.
“It’s in our DNA as an organization to collaborate with our community partners on critical social services, especially for people with the greatest needs,” said Pablo Bravo, Dignity Health Vice President of Community Health. “We invested in Benetech Service Net because it enables us to more efficiently and accurately provide information on the community services our vulnerable patients need once they are discharged from our acute settings.”
Organizations interested in funding or implementing a pilot program with Benetech Service Net should contact info@benetech.org for more details.
About Benetech
Benetech is a nonprofit that empowers communities with software for social good. Benetech’s work transforms how people with disabilities read and learn, enables human rights defenders and civilians to pursue truth and justice, and connects people to the services they need to live and prosper. Benetech is constantly pursuing the next big social impact. Visit www.benetech.org.