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Northerners concerned about social services

News Release ******************* Members of the Northern Ontario Service Deliverers Association (NOSDA), the association of all Northern deliverers of social services, are very concerned about the province’s implementation the Social Assistance

News Release

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Members of the Northern Ontario Service Deliverers Association (NOSDA), the association of all Northern deliverers of social services, are very concerned about the province’s implementation the Social Assistance Management System (SAMS) recently mandated by the Ministry of Community & Social Services.  

“We want citizens to know we’re all working to deliver services to our clients.  SAMS is replacing a computer system that’s over ten years old,” Fern Dominelli, Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) for the Manitoulin-Sudbury District Services Board (DSB) and CAO Lead for NOSDA explained.  “But the new provincial system is causing a multitude of problems for clients and the Northern Delivery staff that are responsible for administering benefits to clients. We do welcome the one-time, additional provincial dollars announced last week to help service managers cope with the SAMS implementation problems.  It’s clear that we do not want local, Northern property tax payers to be ‘on the hook’ for the up-front implementation costs related to the province’s technology.” 

The CAO Lead stated “We recognize the struggles of our clients. Staff across the North are doing everything they possibly can to ensure clients receive the assistance they require when they need it. We are proud of their work in dealing with this problematic, province-wide computer program implementation. We are continually working with the Ministry to correct deficiencies and identify solutions. In fact, we just participated in a province-wide meeting of service managers to review the issues related to the new system and conveyed the Northern perspective on this province-wide concern. ”

 

Gary Scripnick, President of NOSDA concluded, “Our municipal, ODSP and DSSAB staff have been our strength in this situation and we’ve been pleased across the North with the exceptional work they’ve done on behalf of our clients during this system overhaul.” 

  

About NOSDA:

Northern Ontario Service Deliverers Association (NOSDA) is an incorporated body that brings together Northern Ontario’s 11 Municipal Service Managers. Its membership is comprised of ten District Social Services Administration Boards (DSSABs) that are unique to Northern Ontario; and one Consolidated Municipal Service Manager (CMSM) – the City of Greater Sudbury. NOSDA has an intimate understanding of local human services and social infrastructures across all of Northern Ontario. The association looks to coordinate human services delivery and social infrastructures in ways that result in measurable gains in the quality of life of Northerners. NOSDA has been supporting its members for over a decade.