1. Building an Effective Homeless Response System
Coordinated Assessment System Documentation of Priority Status

2. Starting with Why
My Why.
Persons should not have to suffer in homelessness when there are solutions at hand

3. ENDING HOMELESSNESS Diversion Street Outreach Shelter Day Services
Coordination to Resources
Street Outreach
Shelter
Day Services
Employment / Main Stream Benefits
Housing Locator
Furniture/ Household Stuff
Health & Wellness Plan
Bridge Housing
Rapid Rehousing
Scattered Site w/Support
Permanent Supportive Housing
ENDING HOMELESSNESS

4. TRIAGE & CRISIS SERVICES
Diversion
Coordination to Resources
Street Outreach
Shelter
Day Services
Employment / Main Stream Benefits
Housing Locator
Furniture/ Household Stuff
Health & Wellness Plan
Bridge Housing
Rapid Rehousing
Scattered Site w/Support
Permanent Supportive Housing
TRIAGE & CRISIS SERVICES
When emergency shelters become transitional housing, bridge housing, the system gets out of alignment, waiting lists for shelter

5. HOUSING FOCUSED CASE MANAGEMENT
Diversion
Coordination to Resources
Street Outreach
Shelter
Day Services
Employment / Main Stream Benefits
Housing Locator
Furniture/ Household Stuff
Health & Wellness Plan
Bridge Housing
Rapid Rehousing
Scattered Site w/Support
Permanent Supportive Housing
HOUSING FOCUSED CASE MANAGEMENT
This should happen in tandem with crisis and housing access. Get the roof first if possible

6. HOUSING PRIORITIZATION & NAVIGATION
Diversion
Coordination to Resources
Street Outreach
Shelter
Day Services
Employment / Main Stream Benefits
Housing Locator
Furniture/ Household Stuff
Health & Wellness Plan
Bridge Housing
Rapid Rehousing
Scattered Site w/Support
Permanent Supportive Housing
HOUSING PRIORITIZATION & NAVIGATION

7. Where we are today
Uniform Assessment Tool (questionnaire) including VI-SPDAT vulnerability assessment tool for individuals and families that is incorporated into the MDHA Caseworthy HMIS. It generates a Score and Menu of Housing Options based on very basic eligibility criteria
VI SPDAT / SPDAT training by Dr. De Jong on how to administer
Prioritization Policy in place DOPS Matrix V1 (Priority 1 through Priority 8)

8. Consistency in Assessing Client Needs
ASSESSMENT:
Uniform Assessment tool needs to bring in more information other than a VI-SPDAT/SPDAT score and basic eligibility to determine the best housing intervention. The tool is universally and uniformly applied for continuity of measure of severity of service needs.
The CoC has adopted basic policies and procedures for prioritization of permanent supportive housing resources considering homeless experience, severity of services needs SEE PRIORITIZATION DOPS MATRIX
Assessments should be primarily conducted by unsheltered outreach and emergency shelters services and agencies and must be in the HMIS

9. Documentation Priority and Eligibility BEFORE Assigning Housing
ACCESS and ASSIGNMENT:
Assessment processes will include documentation and verifications of homeless status, length of homelessness, disability of severity of service needs prior to housing assignment or being placed on a wait list There will be ONE centralized, dynamic housing priority list for PSH, (subsequent policies in will determine priority for RRH, TH)
Severity of Services needs should also include referral to other community supports especially when housing is not yet available

10. Chronic Homeless 2015 164/0 399/29 23 615 26%+ 2014 92/7 356/22 12 489UN
Ind/Family ES
Safe Haven
TOTAL
Change
2015
164/0
399/29 23
615
26%+
2014
92/7
356/22 12
489
KEY FINDING

11. Goals for Housing Chronically Homeless
Verified, document/application ready Chronic Homeless will be placed into housing before others with less severe needs until we reach at least 85% utilization of PSH. Current rate was just under 72%.
Housing utilization of CoC funded programs will be improved. Current rate is 78%

12. Documentation of Priority Status – DOPS WHY?
Assure the most expensive resources are target to persons with the longest lengths of stay in homelessness and with the
They are documented appropriately and consistently and eligible before assigned housing
HUD monitor – proof. CoC Program Grantees no repay grant funds.
Dramatically improving the accuracy of the count of persons experiencing chronic homelessness in the HMIS
Ability to use a by-name list to target clients to end chronic homelessness
Demonstrate that the CoC has taken significant steps to improve the system of care, target the vulnerable, and reduce chronic homelessness.
Getting Documents Together was a CONSTANT friction between case managers and agencies. It was a housing barrier that added significant time to housing placement. No one wanted to take responsibility. SO: we squarely put the responsibility on the agency/case manager that was trying to ACCESS any housing for the

13. Documentation of Priority Status DOPS all in HMIS/CAS system
Documentation of Homeless Status
How long homeless and proof of homelessness within and outside the CoC
Do they meet the definition of Chronically Homeless
Documentation of Disability
What physical, mental health or behavior health conditions exist that are of a persistent nature and preventing a client and Proof of disabling condition
Documentation of Household Status
Are their children under the age of 18 in the household
Who is the Head of Household? Are THEY chronic?
Documentation of Special Sub Population Status
Are you a veteran, what is the discharge status and are you VA eligible or ineligible
Youth, HIV AIDS
Getting Documents Together was a CONSTANT friction between case managers and agencies. It was a housing barrier that added significant time to housing placement. No one wanted to take responsibility. SO: we squarely put the responsibility on the agency/case manager that was trying to ACCESS any housing for the

14. 1 2 3 4 5 6
Case Manager Seeking Housing Solution for Client Documents Homelessness VI-SPDAT (homeless days)
SPDAT over 180 days
Case Manager Gathers Documentation of Disability and Homelessness
Documentation to client record in HMIS
Attach
Request CAS Documentation of Priority Status DOPS from the CAS office via
CAS researches and provides Priority Status Classification with signed DOPS form
Client is now on the Central Housing Priority List

15. Housing Priority List Published on BASECAMP from HMIS reports
Requires HMIS security training level to view
Managed by MDHA CAS
Updated every 7-14 days
Ordered by Priority (P1, P2, P3, etc.)
Anticipated that CoC Funded Programs must take folks from this list beginning no later than February 15 but encourage NOW from the first list:

16. Basecamp.com Priority Housing List
Outreach Workers and Emergency Shelter workers POPULATE the list
Housing Providers take folks OFF the list

17. Housing Priority List
How do you coordinate housing assignment of people on a waiting list to a handful of turn over beds each month? Gatekeeping. CAS is a centralized function. When a bed turns over the HOUSING agency fills it from the list Replaces passive referral system

18. Steps to Prioritization
Step 1: Collect The Documentation
Critical Documents
Establish Homelessness
Document Disability
Step 2: Upload The Data
Upload the documentation into HMIS
Step 3: Request The DOPS
Request to Coordinated Assessment Staff
Step 4: Process The DOPS
Coordinated Assessment Staff to process documentation, assign priority status and notify case manager
Step 5: Priority LIST
Cooperation between SO, SH, ES completed DOPS form to housing
To Do List for remainder of training
Easy 5 step process to get your clients prioritized and housed

19. DOPS Tools Documentation of Homelessness Documentation of Disability
DOPS request form