OUTREACH COORDINATION
IN CHICAGO
What is Outreach Coordination and why is it
important?
What is Outreach Coordination
• A referral is sent if a Housing Provider cannot locate the person pulled
from the Central Referral System (CRS)
• The referral is assigned to a variety of outreach team based on the
individuals criteria
• The mobile Outreach Teams check their own resources and make
physical visits to locate the person
• If the Outreach Teams locate the participant, they assist with the
Housing Provider until the participant is officially housed
Benefits of Mobile Outreach Team
• Have the ability to physically look for participants in the
streets/shelters
• Engagement and relationship building with participants
• Can assist participants with documentation gathering and
transportation, if necessary
• Give a warm handoff to the housing provider
Coordinated Access
• HUD HEARTH Act Mandate
• No Wrong Door
• Access and direction to all homeless services
• Common Assessment
Coordinated Access – Mobile Outreach Role
• Identify and accompany most vulnerable
• Initial Assessment
• Assist in access to other services
• Housing
Central Referral System (CRS) and Housing
Focused Outreach
Elements of CRS
• Part of Coordinated Access, specifically for PSH
• After an assessment, a vulnerability ranking is assigned
• All enrollees prioritized based on vulnerability
• Vulnerability for singles based on medical conditions leading to
mortality. Vulnerability for families based on interaction with DCFS,
time homeless and household disabilities.
CRS Needs Outreach
• Outreach for CRS in an integral part of Coordinated Access
• Interaction between housing providers and outreach providers
• Silos in the system
• Close communication
• Outreach Coordination
• Without outreach, highly vulnerable people won’t make it to PSH
• Participants are more transient
• Contact information is sparse to non-existent
• Need assistance with documentation gathering and keeping appointments
Referral Process
Referral Process for the Other 2013 HUD Bonus Programs
Outreach Coordination Model
NO
YES
Homeless
Individuals
& Families
on CRS
Did
Housing
Providers
Engage
Client?
NO
Did Outreach
Coordinator
Enlist
Outreach
Providers To
Engage
Client?
NO
YES
Did
Outreach
Providers
Engage
Client?
NO
YES
Was Client
Housed?
YES
END
Was Client
Housed?
YES
END
NO
Mobile Outreach Teams
Currently Participating in OCP
• Heartland Health Outreach
• Thresholds (CTA)
• DFSS
• Featherfist
• Beacon Therapeutic
• Polish American
• Salvation Army
Rapid Re-Housing Bridge Units
• Temporary bridge between homelessness and permanent supportive
housing
• Eligibility: HUD defined homeless and acceptance into a PSH program
• Goal: To have participants moved out in less than 3 months
• 15 units in Uptown and 5 south and west, overseen by 2 HHO
Outreach Workers and Thresholds
Evaluation and Survey Findings
What Was Evaluated?
• Models: There were two outreach models implemented.
• Housing: How many participants that were served by Outreach
Coordinated reached housing?
• Outreach: How effective were the outreach teams at locating and
engaging referrals?
2013 Totals
Outreach Coordination Services - By Outreach Provider
177
156
Outreach Referrals Received (282)
Clients Engaged via Outreach Coordination (221)
108
Clients Housed via Outreach Coordination (129)
22 22
21
9
HHO
Chicago
House
11
21
5
Thresholds
20
14
1
CHH*
*Although the CHH Outreach Coordinator engaged clients directly, CHH is not considered an outreach team.
8
DFSS
1
5
15
3
1
Featherfist
7
4
Beacon
1
0
0
Salvation
Army
Total Housed in 2013
129
Housed in 2013
Client's Housed by Housing Provider
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Client's Housed,
By Housing
Provider (129)
COLLABORATION Between Agencies
• # of Different Agencies in 2013: 16
• SIT meetings: Twice a month
• Outreach Coordination Meetings: Every month in 2014
• Working together: ONE TEAM!
• I pity the fool not using Coordinated Outreach
Qualitative Findings:
Program Integration
• Outreach Providers:
• Outreach Providers felt that program integration helped them locate
landlords, helped participants communicate with landlords, made the project
more organized and provided a smoother transition for the participant.
• Housing Providers:
• Housing Providers felt that working with OPs helped them with
locating/engaging clients, building rapport with clients, and transporting
clients to appointments.
• Sometimes the roles of the HPs vs. OPs is not clear to clients
Qualitative Findings:
SIT Meetings
• Outreach Providers
• Meetings offer safe and supportive space where members can discuss/process
challenges together
• Meetings help staff know where participants are in the housing process and
allow face time with the program coordinator
• Housing Providers
• Meetings allowed them to build stronger relationships with other HPs.
• Meetings provide structure, information, and space to ask questions; allow you
to express concerns about a client; and connect you with the program
coordinator on a regular basis
Qualitative Findings:
Recommendations
• Programs should have a medical provider available and willing to sign
medical letters
• Mandatory cultural competence trainings for Outreach Providers and
Housing Providers would help in effectively assisting participants of
different cultures and socio-economic backgrounds
• Reduction of paperwork through condensing pre-intake and intake
process.
Recommendations continued…
• Create communication protocol
• When clients are enrolled into CRS additional questions geared
towards assisting the Outreach Team locate participants would be
helpful
• The CRS managing entity could create a time limit for how long a
participant’s file can remain inactive before he/she is housed or their
file is returned to the CRS.
Challenges
• Highly vulnerable have sporadic contact information
• Information on CRS printout can be sparse
• Funding may dictate the participants an outreach agency can work with
• Limited capacity for new referrals
• Learning curve for new housing
providers pulling from the CRS
Challenges continued…
• Limited authority with Outreach Providers
• Inconsistent communication between partnering agencies
• Limited authority with OBP Housing Providers
• Documentation needed to enter a PSH unit
• Housing clients with criminal records
Discussion Questions
• What are some characteristics of a successful outreach team?
• How could you see outreach coordination improving your work?
• What are some of the biggest challenges for outreach today?
• How does a CRS application directly affect the chances of a
participant reaching housing?