CALGARY DROP-IN CENTRE

318 and his team have worked with Knight to bring one of their more cutting-edge initiatives towards maturity . For 10 years , the Calgary Drop-In has used fingerprint scanners in order to identify and admit its clients . “ It took anywhere from about seven to 30 seconds to let an individual in ,” says Twigg . “ Considering that , since 2 February , it ’ s been about -30 º F every day here in Calgary , when you ’ ve got several hundred people coming and going every day , upgrading the intake systems will make entering the facility much more efficient .” To solve this problem , Knight is turning to more modern forms of biometric technology with higher accuracy rates , reducing admission times to around three seconds .

In addition , the nature of the DI ’ s work requires it to keep client records . “ One billion people in the world don ’ t have ID , including people who need emergency services , are victims of crime , have been evicted , are human trafficking victims - maybe they ’ re using drugs or have mental health issues . Regardless of the client ’ s history , we need to know who they are so we can ensure we are meeting their

— Helen Knight , CIO / Director of Technology Calgary Drop-in & Rehab Centre

unique needs .” At the heart of the new biometric identification system the DI is trialing is the desire to not only improve the quality of patient care , but also to “ put the client in charge of their data ”. “ There are 43 conflicting legislations and ethical agreements governing client data ,” Knight explains . “ I ’ m a co-chair of a collaborative work group trying to improve communication between homeless-serving agencies in the City of Calgary , and when we tried to create a decision guide to navigate them , there was no way to figure it out ; they all conflict and there ’ s no way to prioritize the disparate

MARCH 2019