Why Choose Northwoods?
Health and human services made easier with real people and in-the-field technology.
We mean it when we say, “Less Paperwork. More Peoplework.” That philosophy shapes every interaction with you and every service we offer.
Traverse software helps you capture, organize, and find case information fast. Case Aide Services provides documentation and administrative support from real people, saving you time and stress.
You have a tough job to do and families who depend on you. We make sure you can depend on us at Northwoods.
Why Health and Human Services Agencies Choose Northwoods
Across the U.S., agencies like yours partner with us for the long haul to reduce burnout and improve outcomes.
20+ years focused solely on health and human services
Purpose-built tools for caseworkers, supervisors, and administrators
Integrated software and services (Traverse + Case Aide Services)
Proven time savings and documentation improvements
Implementation, training, and change management led by HHS experts
Long-term partnerships with nationwide county and state agencies
We Help Agencies Solve Real Problems
Northwoods helps agencies relieve strain, improve documentation, stay compliant, and free up time for families.
Your work’s never been simple.
Health and human services workers face higher expectations, stricter requirements, and fewer hours in the day. When paperwork, systems, and processes pile up, the ripple effects reach every worker and every person you serve:
- High caseloads and documentation overload
- Fragmented systems and data silos
- Compliance and audit pressure
- Worker burnout and turnover
- Data stuck in paper, email, or shared drives
- Inefficient administrative workflows
- Limited time for face-to-face work with children, families, and clients
Challenges for Caseworkers
When workers face these pressures every day, even small improvements in tools and support make a big difference.
Traverse and Case Aide Services reduce busywork so you regain more time and energy. They won’t erase every frontline challenge, but they do make the day-to-day load easier to carry.
Constant context switching between visits, calls, court, and documentation
Duplicate data entry across multiple systems and forms
Limited mobile tools in the field, leading to rushed notes or paper workarounds
Secondary trauma and emotional fallout with little protected time for support
Low pay and unclear advancement, even as expectations rise
Teams too large to support consistently through coaching and case review
Limited or lagging visibility into case status or documentation quality
Frequent policy changes that you have to translate into daily workflows
Carrying staff stress while managing your own workload and metrics
Continual hiring and onboarding in high-turnover environments
Challenges for Supervisors
These realities make it harder for supervisors to coach, keep up with quality, and support staff before problems escalate.
Northwoods helps you see cases more clearly, support staff, and manage quality with less manual effort. Supervision will always be demanding, but it doesn’t have to be quite so overwhelming.
Challenges for Administrators
HHS administrators navigate a difficult landscape while planning budgets, setting priorities, and choosing technology partners.
Traverse and Case Aide Services give you better tools, data, and support to modernize responsibly. They don’t replace leadership decisions, but they make those decisions clearer and easier to act on.
Modernizing legacy systems and processes without disrupting service
Coordinating across programs with different systems and priorities
High-stakes technology decisions with limited internal IT bandwidth
Turning fragmented data into clear insights for oversight and reporting
Balancing long-term transformation with daily operational crises
What We Offer Health and Human Service Agencies
We provide modern health and human services software, staffing support, and implementation services in one cohesive partnership.
We’re with you every step of the way, from implementing Traverse to requesting Case Aide help. We won’t leave you hanging.
Agencies using Traverse save each worker up to 2 hours per day. Agencies using Case Aide Services have seen up to a 44% improvement in investigation timelines and a 31.5% increase in meeting-mandated timelines.
Who We Serve
Northwoods works alongside health and human services caseworkers and agencies across America.
We support these program areas and more:
- Child welfare
- Adult and aging
- Child support
- Eligibility and economic assistance
- Related health and human services programs, including behavioral health and developmental disability
Your agency type and location are covered:
- County health and human services agencies
- State-level departments
- Regional and multi-county collaboratives
- U.S. agencies coast to coast
Northwoods supports an array of HHS roles:
- Caseworkers and visit workers
- Supervisors and program managers
- Directors and administrators
- IT, project, and quality assurance teams
From county-level casework to regional coordination, we tailor our services to you. We don’t shoehorn you into rigid services without room to breathe.
An Approach Built for Health and Human Services, Not Adapted to It
Now that you’ve seen what we offer, here’s how we design those tools and services around genuine casework. We don’t retrofit generic tools; we build software and services with HHS workers, for HHS workers.
- Purpose-built with caseworkers, supervisors, and program staff
- Deep familiarity with federal and state requirements
- Field research, usability testing, and iteration
- Focus on accessibility, mobility, speed, and real-life use
Our team has firsthand knowledge of the health and human services industry. We know its range of challenges, so we aim to alleviate them in any way we can.
What Makes Northwoods Different?
Expertise, technology, and hands-on service set us apart from other, less specialized health and human services solutions.
We have decades of industry experience, forming how we listen, design, and problem-solve.
We shape our services according to frontline work demands, including ride-alongs, observation, and usability testing.
Traverse software and people-first Case Aide Services reinforce one another or operate independently.
Our teams have health and human services backgrounds, so they understand your programs and pressures.
We maintain high adoption and lasting client relationships, supported by ongoing training and optimization.
Traverse is a modern, secure, cloud-based (AWS) platform built for fieldwork, so it goes wherever you do.
Agencies see proven results with us, from time savings to better documentation and audit-readiness.
Northwoods at a Glance
- Founded: 2003
- Focus: Health and human services agencies
- Clients: County and state agencies across America
- Team: Licensed social workers, former caseworkers, agency leaders, and supervisors
- Values: Curiosity, community, stewardship, and resourcefulness
- Security: Cloud-based on AWS, using HIPAA- and FedRAMP-compliant services with encryption in transit and at rest
Key Considerations When Choosing a Health and Human Services Partner
- Experience: How long they’ve worked in the industry
- Specialization: Whether they focus on HHS exclusively
- Implementation: Training, change management, go-live support
- Security & compliance: Whether they use HIPAA- and FedRAMP-compliant, cloud-based solutions with strong uptime and disaster recovery
- Results: Documented outcomes for HHS agencies
We speak your language.
The Value You Can Expect
When agencies partner with Northwoods, they work more efficiently and manage risk more confidently. Most importantly, they deliver better outcomes for the people they serve.
- More time spent with families
- Higher documentation quality
- Better compliance readiness
- Faster, more accurate data access
- Reduced administrative burden
- Improved worker morale and retention
- Stronger interdepartmental communication
- Lower risk through repeatable processes
- Increased visibility for supervisors
- Greater consistency and data integrity
In 1 year, agencies completed 679,000 electronic forms in Traverse, saving an estimated 283,000+ hours of paperwork. That’s the equivalent of more than 32 years of work.
How We Work With You
Northwoods becomes part of your team, guiding you from day one.
Collaborative Discovery. We start by listening to your workers and leadership. Then, we map where you lose time in documentation, data entry, and information retrieval.
Solution and Workflow Design. We recommend the right Northwoods solutions and define clear workflows, handoffs, and roles. If you don’t know what your agency needs most, we’ll weigh using Traverse, Case Aide Services, or both.
Implementation and Onboarding. We manage a step-by-step rollout. For Traverse, that includes configuration, data work, and training. For Case Aide Services, it includes setting up your portal, referral process, and communication channels.
Role-Based Learning and Support. Caseworkers, supervisors, and administrators each get targeted guidance so they know how to use the tools in daily work. This includes our Case Aides if you adopt Case Aide Services.
Change Management Support. We help you explain what’s changing, answer questions, and respond to concerns so staff feel informed and supported.
Ongoing Partnership and Refinement. After go-live, we stay involved, review how your Northwoods solutions are working, and adjust workflows. We also introduce new capabilities as your needs evolve.
What Real Agencies Say About Working With Northwoods
Health and human services agencies don’t just see less burnout and more streamlined casework with Northwoods. They also know we understand their work and stay with them as long as they need us.
With Case Aide Services, one county child welfare agency increased on-time investigations from 65% to 96%, even as caseloads grew.
Support Your Agency, Your People, and Your Mission With Northwoods
Let us help you reclaim your time and lessen your stress. Whether you’re a small agency with a handful of caseworkers or a regional administrator with hundreds, Northwoods meets you there.
We’re proud to lighten the load with less paperwork and more peoplework: all day, every day.
Discover secure Traverse software or human-powered Case Aide Services. They’re tailored to health and human services needs, and they work like a charm together.
We’ve been where you’re standing. It’s not easy. Let’s streamline your 9-to-5.
FAQ: Working With Northwoods
Change can be hard in health and human services agencies. Questions come up when you want to make a difference, so let’s answer them.
If you’re a county or state human services agency or a regional collaborative, we’re likely to be a fit. We work with programs like child welfare, adult and aging, child support, and eligibility or economic assistance. Contact us anytime if you wonder whether your agency is a match.
No. Some agencies use Traverse, some use Case Aide Services, and others use them together. We’ll get to know how your agency works, then help you decide what makes the most sense.
We focus exclusively on health and human services agencies. We’ve customized our tools and services around actual casework. We stay involved after launch to support adoption, not just turn on a system and walk away. And our team has deep real-world HHS experience.
No, not unless you want to. We can start small with one program, region, or service, then grow over time as your team is ready.
You don’t just get software or a service; you get a partner. Our team provides continuous support, training, and regular check-ins to see what’s working and where we can help you adjust.