Kansas Health Institute | Information For Policy Makers. Health for Kansans.

TOPEKA — The Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services has overhauled its website.

“This has been a priority of mine for two or three years now,” said SRS Secretary Don Jordan.

The new site – www.srs.ks.gov - was activated Sunday.

“We didn’t go out and spend a bunch of money on this,” Jordan said. “We did it with people who were in-house and already on the payroll, that’s why it took so long. But they did a good job. It’s a lot more user friendly.”

Over time, he said, the earlier site had become a repository for reports, policy manuals, and copies of department testimony rather than a place that helped members of the public find the services they need.

The new site includes a services section that asks visitors what services they’re looking for.

Jordan said he had the site designers meet with workers from the front desk at the Topeka SRS office to find out what services people ask for and what words they use when they ask for them.

Now, rather than the site depending on people typing in “food assistance,” “housing assistance,” or “utility assistance,” it asks the visitor if they’re looking for help “buying groceries,” “paying the rent,” or “paying my utility bill.”

It also offers information on collecting child support, finding a soup kitchen, applying for health care assistance, finding a job, or finding services for children with autism.

The department’s reports, policy manuals and testimony are still available on the site.

Historically, the site has received between 25,000 and 30,000 inquiries a day.