Transformation of Housing and Homeless Services
According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, more than half a million people in the United States experience homelessness each year. In addition, veterans comprise over 10 percent of the unhoused population in the U.S.
Addressing this national crisis will require a regional, multi-stakeholder approach that holistically supports vulnerable populations across their journey of being unhoused to housed, and integrates resources across government, nonprofit, and private sectors. While we acknowledge that technology alone will not solve homelessness, it can certainly play a significant role in streamlining processes and connecting the resources available to those who need them most.
In this article, we will follow along an individual currently experiencing homelessness and explore how a solution providing a 360-degree view of integrated information, guided intake assessment, referral management, and personalized outreach can assist in empowering our internal agents to provide effective services and resources to the unhoused population.
Capabilities and Processes
The diagram below outlines the business capabilities associated with housing and human services. Let’s take a deeper look at the business drivers that are outlined in this capability map:
Personalize each individual journey
In the past, providers and case managers must navigate a maze of manual processes to track down and capture information across disparate systems. Searching for an individual’s information and services that they may be eligible for is manual, unreliable, and often paper-based, leading to increased stress in a time of crisis for both service providers and those who are experiencing homelessness. Homeless Management Information Systems (HMIS) are a step in the right direction, but many are siloed and are used in conjunction with other systems of record across the continuum of care, which only amplifies the reliance on duplicative data entry. In addition, these systems are intended to be program-centric and are not built to support the coordination and delivery of personalized services to individuals in need.
Instead, the goal is to provide all stakeholders with a single source of truth with the ability to integrate with other systems of record, showcasing one unified profile of information. This unified profile provides a comprehensive and integrated view of individual touchpoints, for example, their history of assessments, a record of resources provided, food and shelter allocations, and health and human services needs. Service providers and case workers now have the ability to fully understand this individual’s needs and eligibility to available services.
Enhance discoverability of accessible housing and human services
Often times, service providers rely on institutional knowledge to fill in informational gaps. Due to the high turnover and burnout amongst outreach coordinators and case managers, this information is often times lost in the process. In addition, nonprofit organizations state that direct services staff are the hardest to retain. To minimize turnover disruption, organizations must capture this knowledge in an intuitive solution that can allow staff members to document past notes of interaction and communicate in real-time in efforts to find the support the individual needs at that moment.
So if an the outreach team member completes an intake assessment in the field, notating that an individual is looking for temporary shelter for the night, they can utilize built-in mapping capabilities to pull all homeless shelters in the area. They also have the ability to quickly see the number of beds available based on the color of the pin, targeted populations, and key eligibility criteria to ensure we are matching the individual with the appropriate shelter. Once the shelter is selected, the outreach team member can create a referral directly through Salesforce Maps, with integrated ArcGIS or ESRI layers as needed.
Create a connected experience
An individual or a family’s path into and out of homelessness is often quite complex, and the support system itself is fragmented, with limited communication and data sharing across service providers and regional entities. Improving internal systems and organizational strategies will benefit individuals on the brink of homelessness and can significantly improve the coordination of support to prevent them from experiencing homelessness to begin with.
Today, the need to communicate with multiple case workers requires those who are experiencing homelessness to retell their (often traumatic) story over and over again. This not only increases chronic stress for individuals but also a loss of trust in their service providers and communities. Connecting data and simplifying intake processes would not only save a considerable amount of time, but would also allow case managers to spend their valuable time supporting and counseling through personalized and integrated care plans built specifically to address their needs.
Provide continued outreach and communication
A platform for real-time collaboration and communication across fragmented providers is imperative to create a cohesive experience for people experiencing homelessness and those serving them. Systems should be able to orient both its coordinated intake process and available resources to prioritize access for those with the highest barriers (including chronic homelessness, vulnerable populations, and those with severe service needs). The process can provide individuals and families with streamlined access, standardized yet relevant assessments, and rapid connection to the most appropriate housing option(s).
Based on the referral information and verified eligibility status, an outreach case worker is also able to enroll an individual in outreach campaigns and programs that may be of benefit to them in the future. With Salesforce Journey Builder, the outreach team can create personalized interactions and manage email and text communication touch points across multiple channels.
Analyze data to predict success
In the long run, service providers and case managers struggle to track clients’ risk factors and predictors of success in the search for housing and related services. They need cross-system tools that can help track clients’ journeys in ways that forecast housing and stability success for future users. While a lot of data is captured and reported, the feedback loop back to service providers and case managers is minimal. Providers want to understand the aggregate data and where they stand compared to their peers, so they can improve services overall.
Different data points like late housing payments, loss of employment, missed program attendance can help predict someone who is not experiencing homelessness, but may be at risk. With this data, organizations can be proactive in the prevention of homelessness by providing services based on detected risk factors and/or social determinants of health.
Solution Architecture
The diagram below outlines the solution architecture associated with a 360 degree view of Housing and Homeless Services, along with the associated workforce management and analytics processes.
Each element of this solution connects to construct the overall solution, however the ability to deliver services gradually is crucial for many organizations. The core products highlighted in this solution include Public Sector Solutions, Experience Cloud, and Mulesoft.
Salesforce Industries
Salesforce Industries are a product of Salesforce that offers industry-specific cloud software and customer relationship management (CRM) solutions tailored to various sectors. These industry solutions are designed to help organizations in specific fields streamline their operations, enhance customer engagement, and drive growth. Salesforce Industries specific to Government and Public Sector are tailored to the unique needs of government agencies, helping to improve citizen services, streamline operations, and enhance transparency.
Data Model
Going a level deeper, we can also take a look at the data model. Salesforce Public Sector Solutions has a Composable Case Management data model, which centers around the Case object with strong relationships to program management and care plans, supporting the need for individualized support.
Conclusion
As metropolitan cities are investing the resources to best serve the unhoused population and the surrounding communities, it is essential to take a person-centric approach to truly identify the major disconnects and challenges in today’s environment, and identify key opportunities of change that will drive the most value. While technology alone will not solve the depth of the homelessness crisis, it can play a significant role in streamlining processes, breaking down programatic silos, personalizing experiences, and enabling data-driven support.
