Coordinated Entry

1. Coordinated Entry

2. What is it? A system-wide process that evaluates households for the best housing fit - rather than ‘are you eligible for services here’ it asks ‘what services will best lead your household to secure housing’ A system for triaging the right resources to the right people – i.e. prioritizing those most in need for permanent supportive housing and helping those who are able to move out of the system quickly

3. Purpose of Coordinated Entry Helping people move through the system faster Sends households to intervention best fit from the start Reduces new entries into homelessness by looking for prevention and diversion opportunities Improves data collection and quality Provides accurate information about what services consumers need

4. System Components and Decisions • Access • Centralized or Decentralized? • Region 12: Vanderburgh Centralized, Posey Centralized, remaining counties decentralized • Vanderburgh – Aurora’s Homeless Outreach Team will adjust their services to act as a single entry point for the system (will probably continue to travel, will have restrictions on hours of availability)

5. System Components and Decisions • Assessment • All of the Balance of State will use the same assessment tool(s) • Several tools are being considered – Vulnerability Index, Vulnerability Assessment Tool, Service Prioritization Decision Assistance Tool, and VI-SPDAT (combination of first and last) • Locally we recommended the SPDAT prior to the release of the VI-SPDAT – we will be looking at this updated version

6. System Components and Decisions • Assignment • The assessment process leads the case manager to a prioritized list of referrals for the household • Agencies in the system agree to accept households referred by the intake agency (1 in 3 households expected to be accepted) • Client choice, case manager discretion, and receiving agency recommendation may affect the final placement of the household (warm transfers required)

7. System Components and Decisions • Accountability • Accountability teams provide training and support, monitor the process, and help adjust the process over time • Locally the Coordinated Entry Task Force and Homeless Services Council Standards of Care Committee will work together to provide unbiased monitoring; meets monthly • The state will have an accountability team with a minimum of 5 members; all regions are welcome to have a representative on the team; meets quarterly

8. Making the Transition • Individual providers must release some or all control over the intake process, for the following benefits: • Individual agency’s staff no longer bear the burden of assessment • Providers know that households coming to their programs have already been determined to be eligible • Coordinated Entry can be a component of incorporating the systems focused approach encouraged by HEARTH

9. Making the Transition Staff should be prepared for the changes in intake procedure ‘Side doors’ should be eliminated Local implementation details are under the jurisdiction of the Coordinated Entry Task Force – all shelters are encouraged to participate, ESG recipients may be expected to have ‘decision making’ staff participating

10. Evaluation • Ongoing evaluation looks at: • Increase in Prevention and Diversion • Length of stay • New entries into homelessness • Repeat episodes of homelessness • Program capacities – which programs have waiting lists and which have openings • Consumer survey responses • Feedback from staff • Other indicators chosen by the community