PHOENIX, Arizona.- The DES Division of Benefits and Medical Eligibility (DBME) Client Liaison Unit and Special Accommodations Unit were recently honored with the Putting Families First Award from the National Eligibility Workers Association Professionals Associated Through Human Services (NEW PATHS) for exemplary customer service in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
The Client Liaison Unit provides resolution to customer service issues from sources as diverse as the Governor’s Office, State Legislators, client advocates, the DES Ombudsman and clients themselves. The Special Accommodations Unit modifies notices for clients to accommodate their needs and ensure services and program materials remain accessible to all. From February 2021 through March 2022, the units received and processed over 85,000 actions to ensure eligible clients have access to critical assistance, an achievement that received national recognition.
The award was accepted on the team’s behalf by DBME Assistant Director, Jeff Morley, and Region Program Manager, Mary Guzman, at the American Public Human Services Association (APHSA) Economic Mobility and Well-Being Conference in Savannah, Georgia. The award was presented by Stacy Dean, Deputy Under Secretary for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, there was an unprecedented need for assistance, with SNAP being one of the primary programs to support struggling families. While our teams across DBME worked diligently to serve hundreds of thousands of households, the support provided by the Client Liaison Unit and the Special Accommodations Unit was integral to our success through their creative problem solving on difficult cases, and efforts to make our programs more accessible to individuals with disabilities and other special circumstances.
“The actions taken by each member of this team have a resounding impact on the customers,” said Program Administrator, Linda Schroeder. “Each member displays patience, kindness, and courtesy in all customer interactions, regardless of how complex the situation may be.”
The impact of the two units is enduring, as the customer service issues processed by the unit and their resolution are shared with DBME teams to identify root causes and continuously improve our processes. As a result, we’ve seen an increase in timeliness, a reduction of client concerns and a significant improvement in customer service overall.
Our DBME support teams know what it means to put families first as they dedicate each day to helping our clients access critical nutrition assistance benefits and put food on their tables.
For more information about Nutrition Assistance, please visit des.az.gov/na.