No ID, No Insulin, No Cheque

What Happened

We received a call from Mr. N, who was in a City of Toronto social services office in a state of crisis. He told us that he had lost his wallet, so had no money and no ID after losing his wallet. He was diabetic and had not had insulin in two days, but City staff at the social services office had told Mr. N that they could not help him without identification.

What We Did

We knew the priority was to help Mr. N get his insulin. We recommended that he phone his doctor and ask him to fax a note to the City’s social services office, confirming he had diabetes. This would let him get insulin. We then called the social services office to speak with City staff and explain the situation.

The Result

After speaking with our office, City staff helped Mr. N get his insulin and provided him with an application for a birth certificate so he would have ID in the future.