The idea to cooperate, collaborate and integrate the resources of a number of departments, who provide services to many of the same clients, is not new to the County.  It merely carries on a tradition established in the mid 80s, when the Children’s Network was created to explore the benefits of various County departments and community agencies coming together to collaborate their efforts for the betterment of serving children.

This concept was further strengthened July 20, 1992, when Department of Social Services (DPSS) Director John Michaelson signed into being the historic Children’s Interagency Consent to Exchange Confidential Information Protocol and Consent Form at a meeting of the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors.  This protocol provided for the exchange of client information between County departments serving the same families and children.  The result was to streamline the client process for obtaining services through multiple County departments, by reducing the number of applications seeking the same information.

Also that year, the Social Services Group (SSG) concept was born by merging social service departments and divisions, who provided similar services, into new departments with a single focus.  Completion of the Social Services Group (which comprised seven departments) occurred in March 1998, with the split of DPSS into two departments: the Department of Children’s Services (DCS) and the Transitional Assistance Department (TAD).

Currently known as Human Services, all departments continue their evolution into the future, committed to working together to better serve the citizens of San Bernardino County.  As part of that evolution, HS has moved to a new customer-based, online and fully integrated information system known as C-IV, designed to manage the data for several social service programs.  It will improve the efficiency and quality of services provided to our customers, our community and other stakeholders.   

Human Services will continue to explore innovative and cost effective ways to deliver services to improve the lives of children, families, veterans and our senior and disabled populations.  Strengthening the well-being of our citizens, whether physical, social, financial or emotional, is our goal and our passion.  Human Services is dedicated to promoting a service delivery system that will consider and address the needs of the whole person, because we realize that people requiring assistance have multiple needs that must be met before each person can ever hope to reach his/her full potential. 

HS is devoted to creating a superior service delivery system that is seamless in nature and sensitive to the needs of the customer.  To that end, we will continue to foster community partnerships through the integration of services between County departments, the faith-based, nonprofit, business, education and medical communities.  HS believes that by working together, we can achieve our goal.