Emergency social services

Emergency social services provide support in serious and sudden emergency and crisis situations that require urgent help and support.

Emergency social services provide guidance and advice to clients in crisis situations, as well as organise required urgent support by means of social work and social guidance. In addition, emergency social services, together with healthcare services, provide first-stage crisis assistance in serious and sudden crisis situations. Emergency social services also offer authorities the possibility for consultation, either in relation to transferring a client's case to another authority or in other social welfare matters. During office hours, clients are referred to services available during office hours.

The most important tasks of emergency social services include:

• Provision of urgent help, guidance and advice to clients of all ages in emergency and crisis situations
• Provision of first-stage crisis assistance, together with healthcare services, in serious and sudden crisis situations, such as accidents or deaths, becoming a victim of crime, intimate partner violence, and other crisis situations.
• Assessment of the need for child protection, especially outside of office hours
  Emergency social services do not handle the following tasks:
• Paying bills or making bank transfers
• Child custody and visitation matters
• Matters related to booking or cancelling healthcare appointments, other matters related to healthcare services
• Other situations that can be handled during office hours without putting anyone's safety at risk