Embedded Social Workers in the San Francisco Public Library

Jonathan P. Bell
INFO 266
May 9, 2016

Fraga, J. (2016). Humanizing homelessness at the San Francisco Public Library. CityLAB. http://www.citylab.com/navigator/2016/03/humanizing-homelessness-at-the-san-francisco-public-library/475740/

Fraga spotlights San Francisco Public Library’s groundbreaking program that brought in a psychiatric social worker as a full-time staff member at the library. Social worker Leah Esguerra has served alongside the information services staff since 2009 connecting homeless library patrons with services and programs. She is the first ever library social worker in the U.S.

As Fraga notes, 67% of San Francisco’s 7000+ homeless suffer from chronic health conditions including physical disabilities and mental health issues. Many of them need treatment, medicine, shelter, and food. The public library is one of the few places homeless people feel safe and comfortable. Esguerra approaches homeless in the library after observing signs of need. As a trained social worker, Esguerra knows how to establish trust. She connects them with core services such as housing and mental health counseling.

An outgrowth of this program was the creation of Health and Safety Associate (HASA) workers who assist Esguerra in connecting homeless to services. The five HASA staff members working under Esguerra are all formerly homeless individuals. They have a rapport with homeless patrons because they’ve been there. Esguerra and HASA workers are the bridge between an at-risk homeless population and much-needed programs and services.

Results are clear. Over 1,000 people have benefitted from the program at SFPL. At the time of publication, 24 U.S. public libraries had developed a similar model of embedded assistance in the library.

Evaluation
Public libraries are situated to help the homeless, and local governments must embrace that fact. SFPL’s trailblazing program placing social workers  in the library is effective precisely because it brings social services to homeless persons in-need, rather than placing the burden on the homeless to find these services. This is a an efficient and compassionate public service innovation. It’s caught on nationwide. My local public library system in Pasadena, CA will soon add social workers in Central Library and selected branches frequented by homeless as part of the city’s robust response plan to the homelessness affecting our community. The staff report to city council cites the success of this SFPL program. Of course it takes commitment and political will to convince elected officials to fund such a bold plan. There will always be detractors calling this government waste. They’re usually the same people complaining that city hall isn’t “doing enough” about homeless! Investment in targeted resources, like embedded library social workers, offers a pathway out of homeless.
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