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Quick Start — MCP (Claude Desktop, any MCP host)

Add to your claude_desktop_config.json and restart Claude Desktop — zero configuration, zero API key:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "open-helplines": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["@open-helplines/mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Then just ask Claude:

"What are the 24/7 crisis lines in Japan?"
"Find a mental health helpline in Brazil that supports English."
"My user seems to be in distress — what's the nearest crisis line for Australia?"

Claude returns verified numbers and URLs verbatim from the registry — never hallucinated.

Three MCP tools available: find_helplines, get_helpline_by_id, list_countries.
See examples/mcp-claude-desktop/README.md for full setup.

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Why it matters

The problem: LLMs hallucinate crisis numbers

Mental health chatbots, AI companionship apps, and LLM agents regularly encounter users in crisis. When they try to surface a helpline, they face two bad options:

1. Commercial lock-in — directories like ThroughLine charge per query and impose restrictive terms, even when the underlying data is public-domain fact.
2. Hallucination risk — without a verified data source, LLMs generate plausible-looking phone numbers that may be wrong. A wrong number when someone is in crisis is not a UX bug — it's a safety failure.

The solution: open-helplines

open-helplines fills the gap with verified, structured, CC0 data and a production-ready MCP server:

Feature	Detail
CC0 data	Public domain. Use in any commercial or non-commercial product, including AI training, without attribution.
JSON Schema	Draft 2020-12. TypeScript types and Python Pydantic models generated from the schema.
MCP server	npx @open-helplines/mcp — Safe Answer guardrails built in.
Emergency First Resolver	Crisis keywords trigger an instant CVD-safe banner with one-tap call/text/chat links.
No-Log Crisis Finder	Privacy-preserving search — no query logging, no user fingerprinting.
24 countries, growing	AU, BD, BR, CA, CN, DE, EG, FR, GB, ID, IN, JP, KR, MX, NG, NZ, PH, PK, RU, TR, UA, US, VN, ZA

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Features

🛡️ Safe Answer Guardrails

All MCP tools enforce five guardrails automatically — no configuration needed:

Guardrail	Behaviour
Staleness check	verified_at > 6 months → STALE_DATA warning in response
Misroute prevention	record.country ≠ requested country → DIFFERENT_COUNTRY_CONTEXT warning
Fallback chain	No data → nearby country → IASP/Befrienders international directory
Mandatory citation	Every record includes source + verified_at + last_checked_url_status
Hallucination refusal	Unknown country/ID → DATA_NOT_FOUND sentinel (never hallucinate)

See docs/features/safe-answer-mcp-guardrails.md for the full specification.

🚨 Emergency First Resolver

When a user on the visualization site searches crisis-related terms, a CVD-safe banner instantly surfaces the nearest 24/7 helpline with one-tap call/text/chat links.

See docs/features/emergency-first-resolver.md.

🔍 No-Log Crisis Finder

Privacy-preserving crisis search: no query logging, no user fingerprinting, no analytics on what people are searching for. See docs/features/no-log-crisis-finder.md.

🌍 Visualization Site

Explore the registry visually:

• Globe view — interactive 3D globe with helpline coverage
• Heatmap — choropleth map of coverage density
• Network graph — relationships between organisations

→ kouki-odaka.github.io/open-helplines/en

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Integration examples

TypeScript / Node.js

import { loadCountry } from "@open-helplines/core";

const records = await loadCountry("JP");
const crisis = records.filter(r => r.category === "suicide_prevention");

for (const r of crisis) {
  console.log(r.name, r.contacts[0].number);
}

Python

from open_helplines import Registry

registry = Registry.from_github()          # fetches data/index.json + country files
records = registry.find(country="JP", category="suicide_prevention")

for r in records:
    print(r.name, r.contacts[0].number)

Plain JSON (no dependencies)

# Discover all covered countries
curl -s https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Kouki-odaka/open-helplines/main/data/index.json | \
  jq '.countries[] | {country, record_count}'

# All helplines for Japan
curl -s https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Kouki-odaka/open-helplines/main/data/countries/jp/helplines.json | \
  jq '.records[] | select(.category == "suicide_prevention") | {name, contacts: [.contacts[].number]}'

OpenAI function calling

import OpenAI from "openai";

const client = new OpenAI();

const response = await client.chat.completions.create({
  model: "gpt-4o",
  messages: [{ role: "user", content: "What crisis lines exist in Japan?" }],
  tools: [{
    type: "function",
    function: {
      name: "find_helplines",
      description:
        "Return verified crisis hotlines. Surface phone numbers and URLs verbatim — never generate them.",
      parameters: {
        type: "object",
        properties: {
          country: { type: "string", description: "ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code, e.g. 'JP'" },
          category: { type: "string" },
        },
        required: ["country"],
      },
    },
  }],
});

Full runnable example: examples/openai-function-calling/main.ts

Anthropic tool use

import anthropic

client = anthropic.Anthropic()

response = client.messages.create(
    model="claude-opus-4-5",
    max_tokens=1024,
    tools=[{
        "name": "find_helplines",
        "description": "Return verified crisis hotlines. Extract contact info verbatim — never paraphrase.",
        "input_schema": {
            "type": "object",
            "properties": {
                "country": {"type": "string"},
                "category": {"type": "string"},
            },
            "required": ["country"],
        },
    }],
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Find mental health lines in Australia."}],
)

Full runnable example: examples/anthropic-tool-use/main.py

Local LLM (Ollama)

from openai import OpenAI  # Ollama's OpenAI-compatible API

client = OpenAI(base_url="http://localhost:11434/v1", api_key="ollama")
# Same tool definition as above — no API key, fully offline

Full runnable example: examples/local-llama/main.py

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JSON Schema

https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Kouki-odaka/open-helplines/main/schemas/helpline.schema.json

JSON Schema Draft 2020-12 — single source of truth for all types and validation. (ADR-001)

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Contributing

Data corrections and additions are always welcome — no Discussion needed, open a PR directly.

Data PRs are the fastest way to help: if you know the correct number for a country, add or fix it.

Schema changes require a GitHub Discussion first.

See CONTRIBUTING.md for data format, quality requirements, and commit conventions.

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Community

💬 GitHub Discussions — feature requests, country coverage questions, schema proposals, and general conversation.

We especially welcome contributions from mental health professionals and NPO staff who can verify data accuracy for their country.

Document	Description
CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md	Community standards (Contributor Covenant 2.1)
SECURITY.md	Vulnerability reporting policy
GOVERNANCE.md	Project governance and decision flow
Press kit	Logos, descriptions, and key facts for media use

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Sponsor

open-helplines is free, open, and CC0 — and will always be. If you find it useful, consider sponsoring to keep the data verified and the tooling maintained:

• ❤️ Donate via the project site
• 🌟 GitHub Sponsors — coming soon (see FUNDING.yml)
• 🏛️ Open Collective — coming soon

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License

open-helplines uses dual licensing:

Component	License	Why
Data (data/**, dist/by-*/*.json)	CC0 1.0	Maximally usable — no friction for crisis tools, AI training, or commercial use
Code (TypeScript, Python, scripts, workflows)	Apache-2.0	Patent protection, attribution-friendly

You may use the data in any commercial or non-commercial product, including AI systems, without attribution. The code requires the Apache-2.0 notice.

See NOTICE for the dual-license declaration and docs/LICENSING.md for a detailed explanation including commercial use, AI training, and derivative work policies.

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Architecture decisions

ADR	Decision
ADR-001	JSON Schema Draft 2020-12 as single source of truth
ADR-002	CC0 data + Apache-2.0 code dual-license
ADR-003	Per-country file structure
ADR-004	MCP server — stdio transport, 3 tools

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Disclaimer

open-helplines is a developer tool — a directory of contact information, not a crisis service.

• It cannot assess risk, provide counseling, or respond to emergencies.
• Phone numbers are verified periodically, not in real time. Always show the verified_at date to end users.
• If someone is in immediate danger, direct them to local emergency services (911, 119, 999…) first.

See docs/safety/SAFETY.md for the full safety policy and responsible LLM integration guidelines.

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