Bright Spot: Gulfport, MS | Sustain Housing through Coordination of Social Service Data

Host separate case-conference meetings for veterans already in housing to assess their housing stability and coordinate support and interventions as needed.

Check out this Bright Spot if…

● You need to track recently housed individuals usage of social services 

● You want to try it!

Summary

HMIS is configured to generate a list of Veterans who are homeless and housed. The system flags homeless veterans who appear on the By-Name List, as well as veterans who are housed, but who may be showing warning signs of returning to homelessness by accessing other community services. When a veteran accesses these services, such as drop-in centers or churches providing meals, the HMIS administrator contacts the service provider who last had contact with the person based on information in HMIS. 

Gulf Coast’s strong data system supported by strong community partnerships, allowed them not only to reach functional zero, but also to sustain functional zero for over a year and dramatically reduce the number of actively homeless veterans in their community. This consistently excellent performance speaks to the high level of effectiveness associated with this Bright Spot. 

Key Action: SSVF Coordination with Non-Traditional Partners

The continued availability of SSVF resources has been crucial to success. SSVF and VA providers participate actively in regular case conferencing. The relationships between these formal service providers and other less formal community services are just as crucial to the success of this practice. These relationships are an outgrowth of regular formal case conferencing meetings. 

Key Action: Bringing the Leadership

In the Gulfport CoC, statewide coordination of SSVF resources was critical in the success of this practice. In 2014, the SSVF provider that served the Gulfport CoC was not renewed. Because of strong state level coordination, through a combination of shifting priorities and grant amendments in other regions, the state was able to divert SSVF resources from other regions to the Gulfport CoC. The main leverage point for the CoC was their strong by-name list and powerful data collection systems. Their advanced data systems gave other providers in the state the opportunity to target their resources to those most in need. 

The Gulfport CoC is a strong case example for leaders in other communities. The combination of powerful data collection, strong community partnerships, and strong state leadership, has resulted in a drastic reduction in Veteran homelessness in Gulfport, and housing retention for those who have become housed. 

Fail forward moments

A strong data management system is crucial to the implementation of this practice. The community initially used a more primitive data management system, involving faxing spreadsheets back and forth. Through a strong partnership between the HMIS lead and the vendor, the community was able to create a data system that enabled them to track housing retention for Veterans. 

For more information:

Contact Mary Simons (marysimons2@aol.com) at the Open Doors Continuum of Care