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Vulnerability Index: Prioritizing Outreach & Housing Placement by Mortality Risk. Why?. Homelessness is lethal Scarce resources + lethality compels hard data to justify more resources renewed sense of urgency from policymakers
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Vulnerability Index: Prioritizing Outreach & Housing Placement by Mortality Risk
Why? • Homelessness is lethal • Scarce resources + lethality compels • hard data to justify more resources • renewed sense of urgency from policymakers • prioritization of outreach and housing placement in the meantime
Vulnerability Index • Based on Dr. Jim O’Connell’s research • Presence of a risk factor indicates a 40% mortality rate over 7 years • Most Vulnerable = individuals with the most co-occurring risk factors who have been homeless the longest
Vulnerability Index • More than 6 months homeless AND at least one of the following: • End Stage Renal Disease • History of Cold Weather Injuries • Liver Disease or Cirrhosis • HIV+/AIDS • Over 60 years old • Three of more emergency room visits in prior three months • Three or more ER or hospitalizations in prior year • Tri-morbid (mentally ill+ abusing substances+ medical problem)
Vulnerability Guides Outreach & Housing Placement • Every person encountered during outreach is offered survey – most agree • Create on-going name and photo registry • Prioritize by mortality risk and length of homelessness • Direct outreach workers efforts on a weekly basis • Next vacancy offered to next most vulnerable person
Basic Steps to Implement VI: • Convene community stakeholders • Identify an area of focus • Train surveyors • Conduct baseline count • Administer surveys • Analyze data • Brief community on findings • Develop housing action plan based on results
Vulnerability in Action NYC: 500 Washington, DC: 1,100 Santa Monica: 260 Skid Row: 350 New Orleans: 150
Reframing & Rapid Transformation • 35/50 most vulnerable from Skid Row • Realignment and new resources for Santa Monica • Humanitarian closure of encampment in New Orleans • NYC and Washington, DC using techniques city-wide – will house 800 most vulnerable by September 2009
Hospitalizations 50 Most Vulnerable Report 124 hospitalizations over past year
For more information on CG Vulnerability Index Becky Kanis Director of Innovations Common Ground bkanis@commonground.org (917) 957-7104