The Leadership to End Homelessness Audio Conference Series is a monthly series of national conference calls focusing on the leading strategies that states, local jurisdictions, and nonprofit organizations have employed to end homelessness. The series is sponsored by the Council of State Community Development Agencies, the National Alliance to End Homelessness, the National Council of State Housing Agencies, the National League of Cities and the U.S. Conference of Mayors.

Ending Homelessness for People with Chronic Medical Illness
Thursday, October 14th from 3-4 pm ET

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The next call in the Leadership to End Homelessness Audio Conference Series will feature the Chicago Housing for Health Partnership (CHHP), a housing first initiative for homeless people with chronic medical illnesses. CHHP works with local hospitals to identify homeless people with chronic medical illnesses.  For assessment purposes, half of the participants are randomly assigned to the housing first program, while the other half receive usual care. Those in the housing first program stay in interim housing or a respite care facility until suitable housing, often permanent supportive housing, can be located. Their goal is to locate such housing as quickly as possible, usually within 30 days. Participants receive integrated case management services throughout their experience. Arturo Bendixen, housing director for the AIDS Foundation of Chicago and Director of CHHP, will describe the experiences of the initiative so far and share data about outcomes and service utilization that have been gathered.

In addition to listening to the audio conference, webcast participants are invited to ask questions or submit comments during the discussion part of the call. To do so, please email questions and comments to audio@naeh.org .

Transitioning to a Housing First Approach

The September Leadership to End Homelessness Audio Conference Series focused on Transitioning to Housing First. This approach pairs immediate assistance in obtaining permanent housing with follow-up case management services after a family or individual is housed. Housing First can significantly reduce the time people spend homeless and help better ensure that their return to housing is successful and permanent.  Featured speakers were Shirley Hendrickson of Hennepin County, Minnesota and Karen Murphy of the Salvation Army in Columbus, Ohio.  The call covered the challenges and strategies for transitioning from the more traditional shelter and transitional housing-centered approaches to a Housing First approach. More information on the Housing First approach can be obtained at http://www.naeh.org/networks/housingfirst

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Breaking the Cycle of Chronic Homelessness

The August Leadership to End Homelessness Audio Conference Series highlighted California 's AB 2034 programs. The featured guest for the audio conference was Dr. Steven Mayberg, Director of the California Department of Mental Health.   California 's AB 2034 legislation set up funding for local mental health programs to act as the single point of responsibility for the comprehensive service needs of individuals who are homeless and have serious mental illness, including provision of immediate and ongoing housing.  Adding to the success of the programs are flexible funding and an emphasis on the collection and reporting of “real-time” client and system outcomes.  More detailed information on the AB 2034 programs is available at http://www.dmh.cahwnet.gov/PGRE/Integrated_Services.asp

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The Public Health System and Ending Chronic Homelessness

The July Leadership to End Homelessness Audio Conference focused on the San Francisco Department of Public Health's innovative strategy to both help end chronic homelessness and reduce the escalating costs incurred by "high-utilizers" of the public health system. The featured guest on the call was Marc Trotz, the Department's Director of Housing and Urban Health.  Mr. Trotz gave a brief presentation and answered questions from the call's participants about how the Department's Direct Access to Housing program achieved successful housing and health care outcomes by providing permanent housing with on-site supportive services for approximately 400 adults who were formerly homeless and most of whom have concurrent mental health, substance use, and chronic medical conditions. A profile of the Direct Access to Housing program can be viewed at http://www.endhomelessness.org/best/directaccess.htm

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Preventing and Ending Homelessness for Mental Health Systems

On June 10, the Leadership to End Homelessness Audio Conference Series focused on steps that mental health systems can take to prevent and end homelessness. The audio conference provided examples of how public mental health agencies, including state mental health departments, can meet the long-term housing needs of people with mental illness who are homeless or at-risk of homelessness.  Marie Williams, Director of Housing Planning and Development for the Tennessee Department of Mental Health, and Martha Kinsley, Director of the Washington DC Department of Mental Health were the presenters.

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The May Leadership to End Homelessness Audio Conference focused on the growing role of state interagency councils and state action plans in preventing and ending homelessness. Featured guests included U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano, Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey, and Minnesota Housing Finance Agency Commissioner Timothy Marx.

Mr. Mangano presented a national perspective on new partnerships/collaborations, strategies and resources emerging among an increasing number of states and the federal government and Commissioner Marx shared some of the challenges and successes seen in his state, including the recently released business plan to end long-term homelessness by 2010.

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Prevention Strategies for Youth at High Risk of Homelessness

April's Leadership to End Homelessness Audio Conference featured speakers Al Lick and Susan Wagner from the Division of Juvenile Services for the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Lisa Driscoll from the Connecticut Department of Children and Families.  Mr. Lick and Ms. Wagner presented the collaboration between the Department of Corrections and Department of Human Services in North Dakota to provide a community case management system for youth that starts as they enter the system and stays with them - no matter where they go in the system - until they are able to transition to independence.  Ms. Driscoll shared details about Connecticut's housing continuum for youth, which provides a range of options from highly structured, supervised living arrangements to housing where support is provided while structure and restriction are decreased.

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Community-Based Approaches to Housing First

The Leadership to End Homelessness Audio Conference Series focused on partnering with community-based agencies to implement a Housing First approach to end homelessness. The one-hour call, which was Thursday, March 11, featured guest speakers Shirley Hendrickson of Hennepin County, Minnesota, and Steve Cleghorn from Washington, DC. Hennepin County's Rapid Exit Program and Washington, DC's Community Care Grant Program have each been recognized by the National Alliance to End Homelessness as best practices in Housing First (see http://www.endhomelessness.org/best for program profiles).

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Developing Partnerships Between Homeless Service Providers and the Veterans Administration

Recent increases in federal funding for veterans health services are providing new opportunities for increasing the housing and support available for veterans who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. In February's Leadership to End Homelessness Audio Conference, Steve Werthman from Broward County, Florida, and Dan Robbin from the VA office that covers Broward County shared two different perspectives on developing a productive partnership between homeless services providers and the VA. The one-hour call included both a brief presentation and a discussion period.

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Measuring Outcomes in Ending Homelessness

On Thursday, January 8th, the Leadership to End Homelessness Audio Conference Series kicked off its 2004 series of calls with a presentation on using performance-measures to improve evaluation and planning of homeless assistance programs.

The Audio Conference featured two speakers. Matt White, an independent consultant, developed and implemented a performance measurement system while working at the Community Shelter Board in Columbus, Ohio. This system provides regular reports on the performance of shelters and other homelessness programs, which has helped reduce the length of time that people remain homeless.

Katy Gaul, a Senior Policy Analyst with New York City's Department of Homeless Services, discussed the Family Services Results Card--a performance measurement system that includes outcome measures on the rate of placement in permanent housing. With the help of the Results Card, New York City has improved the rate at which families move into permanent housing.

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The content of these audio presentations does not necessarily reflect the opinions or views of the Center for Mental Health Services, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration or the US Department of Health and Human Services.