Kane County IRIS Reaches Major Milestone with 10,000th Referral

The Integrated Referral and Intake System (IRIS), managed by the Kane County Health Department (KCHD), made its 10,000th referral earlier this month. IRIS is a free, web-based communication tool that helps organizations connect the individuals and families they serve to the right resources in the community.

The Kane County IRIS community has representation from 212 local organizations in multiple sectors, including mental health, primary care, dental, early childhood services, K12 education, adult and juvenile probation, parenting resources, substance use services, employment resources, immigration and legal services, emergency shelter, and basic needs.

IRIS, developed by the University of Kansas Center for Public Partnership and Research, is used in 82 counties in six states and recently celebrated its own milestone of 100,000 referrals. Ten percent of those referrals were made by the Kane County IRIS community since the local program began in March 2021.

“Prior to IRIS, there was no standard way to make or receive referrals in Kane County,” said Kim Peterson, KCHD Director of Community Health. “Many times, it was just handing a client (often in crisis) a phone number and asking them to call on their own. A client may call an organization and be told the service they are requesting is not provided, or they do not take their insurance, or there is a long waiting list. Clients would get confused and frustrated and give up on finding help.”

Using IRIS, community organizations can now easily work together to connect people in need with local services by making, receiving, tracking, and responding to referrals.

“We are incredibly proud of the growth of the IRIS system in our community and to have reached this significant milestone of 10,000 referrals. This tool has transformed the way local organizations collaborate to ensure individuals and families receive the support they need, when they need it most,” said Michael Isaacson, KCHD Executive Director. “By streamlining referrals and fostering connections across various sectors, IRIS enhances our ability to provide critical services and strengthens our collective impact on the health and well-being of Kane County residents.”

Collaboration is an essential part of any successful initiative, and the Kane County Health Department wishes to thank all of the organizations that use the IRIS system.

To learn more about IRIS, visit: https://kanehealth.com/AOK/Pages/Initiatives-Pages/IRIS.aspx.