Supportive Services for Supportive Services for Veteran Families:Veteran Families:

Critical Program Design Decisions Critical Program Design Decisions and Start-Up Activitiesand Start-Up Activities

August 11, 2011August 11, 2011

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Presenters

John Kuhn, Acting Director, SSVF Program Office

Melany Mondello, Technical Assistance Collaborative

Marge Wherley, Abt Associates

Stephanie Nagy, Abt Associates

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Agenda

Webinar Purpose and Welcome

Critical Program Design Decisions and Activities:• Outreach• Case Management• Accessing VA Benefits• Accessing Mainstream Benefits• Other Supportive Services/Temporary Financial Assistance

Closing Thoughts

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What Will You Learn Today?

Decisions that can increase your program’s operations and effectiveness

Start-up activities and resources to help you operate a successful program associated with mandated and optional program components

Ideas for obtaining input from the populations that you serve, your staff and your community partners.

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Webinar Format

• Webinar will last approximately 2 ½ hours

• Participants’ phone connections are automatically “muted” due to the high number of callers

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Submitting Questions During the Webinar

• Questions can be submitted via email at SSVF@va.gov

• Questions will be answered through the publication of a Question and Answer resource.

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Webinar Presentation Materials

• Material from this webinar will be available in the near future on: http://www.va.gov/homeless/ssvf.asp

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Welcome!

• Supportive Services for Veteran Families offers an important opportunity to develop and evaluate best practices for homeless or imminently homeless Veteran families.

• VA, TA providers and Grantees are all part of a Learning Community, and will share data, insights, problem-solving.

• The Learning Community is built into the grant program. More to follow!

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Critical Program Design Questions

• THINK about the inter-relationships between philosophy, target population, performance targets/outcomes and staff methods.

• If one element is changed, it will affect all the others.

• How does your program recognize participant choice? How do you solicit and use Veteran family input?

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General Program:Design Decisions

• Program Philosophy

• Performance Targets

• Quality Assurance

• Staffing

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Program Philosophy

• SSVF focuses on promoting housing stability, utilizing a Housing First approach.

• SSVF is “person-centered.” The Veteran defines his/her household; services are focused on the household’s needs as they define them.

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Program philosophy is not just a mission statement!

It should affect:

Who you hire, how you train and supervise

How you select participants and use their input into program policies and evaluation

How you deliver services and work with partner agencies

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Performance Targets

KEEP IN MIND:

• The goal of SSVF is to “enhance housing stability.”

• “The SSVF program is not intended to provide long-term support or address all the household’s financial and supportive service needs.”

• VA encourages targeting Veteran households with extremely low incomes and current/former experiences of chronic homelessness (i.e., “most in need”).

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Promote a Healthy Emphasis on Performance

Know how and when to review outcomes

Track environmental factors (local housing and job markets) that affect outcomes

Don’t make staff afraid to “fail”? Encourage staff to take risks, to be client-centered.

Don’t reward “safer” (less individualized) decisions about intake, case planning and termination.

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Quality Assurance

• Quality Assurance (QA) includes:o effectivenesso consumer satisfactiono accesso efficiency

• Use HMIS data, quarterly reports, and participant satisfaction surveys for QA.

• You will also have technical assistance that can help with QA: online training, SSVF website, and one-to-one consultation.

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Promote Quality Assurance

Decide who is responsible for asking the right questions

Set up a schedule for regularly reviewing the questions and the data

Seek input from participants to improve quality

Use the information to make program adjustments

Follow up with more data to decide if changes improve your program

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Staffing

EVERYTHING should promote your philosophy:

• Staff selection

• Training

• Supervision

• Performance reviews

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Promote your Philosophy through your Staff

Consider:• Hiring staff who have walked in your participants’ shoes

(or boots)

Why? They can rapid engage with program participants, They have practical, hard-won advice They are successful role models: I did it and so can you!

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General Program Activities Checklist

Create a Policy and Procedures Manual that operationalizes program philosophy, housing focus and participant choice in all aspects of operations.

Establish evaluation and QA policies, procedures and timelines for regular analysis of the program’s target population characteristics, outcomes, participant satisfaction and environmental factors.

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General Program Activities Checklist (cont)

Develop personnel infrastructure— Job Descriptions— Training— Performance Review

— Staff Supervision

Develop methods and timelines for monitoring program compliance with SSVF requirements.— Eligibility— Case Files— Data Collection— Fiscal Management— Reporting

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Outreach: From the Regulations

• “Grantees must provide outreach and use their best efforts to ensure that hard-to-reach very low-income Veteran families are found, engaged and assisted.”

• “Outreach services must include active liaison with local VA facilities, State, local, tribal (if any), and private agencies and organizations providing supportive services to low-income Veteran families.”

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SSVF Eligibility Definitions

• Veteran: Served and was released under conditions other then dishonorable

• Veteran family: The Veteran and household members (if any).

• Very low income: Annual income does not exceed 50% of local Area Median Income

• Occupying permanent housing: 1. Residing in permanent housing; 2. Homeless and scheduled to become a resident of permanent housing within 90 days; or 3. Exited permanent housing within the past 90 days to seek other housing responsive to their needs/preferences

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Target your Population

Determine who you are targeting within the eligible population of Veteran families

Homeless populations: In shelters? On the streets? Leaving institutions?

Which households at risk of homelessness? “But for this assistance…” would become homeless? Risk factors to define and prioritize target households?

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Outreach: Design Decisions

Outreach should be matched to the target population. Determine where will you find the priority population(s)?

Determine what outreach approach results in rapid engagement?

Screening/Assessment: information should be timely and relevant to the participant’s situation.

Determine what you will and will not assess

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Provide Effective Outreach

Tips for Staff to engage quickly with participants:

Offer “choice plus opportunity”

Allow people to disclose at their own pace

Don’t set people up to choose to lie to obtain services (requirements for sobriety, etc.)

People are experts in their own lives: respect their expertise

Rules set people up to spend their energy pleasing or fighting you

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Outreach Activities Checklist Develop an outreach plan with appropriate materials.

Focus training on the target population’s housing preferences and barriers, and rapid engagement.

Use formerly homeless Veterans families for input and as trainers

Define how and when to screen, assess and obtain eligibility documentation.

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Outreach Linkages

• Contact VA resources, public benefits programs, and homeless services providers in your community and make sure they know whom you assist and how to make a referral.

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National Call Center

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has founded a National Call Center for Homeless Veterans hotline

•To ensure that homeless Veterans or Veterans at-risk for homelessness have free, 24/7 access to trained counselors. •To assist homeless Veterans and their families, VA Medical Centers, federal, state and local partners, community agencies, service providers and others in the community. 

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Case Management:From the Regulations

Case management must:

• Assess the participant’s needs, develop and monitor a case plan

• Establish linkages with appropriate agencies and service providers in the area or community

• Provide referrals (and, as needed, help to access services) to help Veteran families to meet their identified needs

• Educate participant households on issues such as rights and supportive services available

• Decide how resources are allocated to participants on the basis of need

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Case Management Design Decisions

Determine how you will respectfully assess SSVF participant and household housing needs and functioning o How will participate choice affect your assessment of “need”? o When and how should more in-depth assessments be sought and

from whom?

Determine what kinds of case plan goals will enhance participant choice and housing stability o How do you assure the goals reflect the participant’s own priorities?

Determine the staff: household ratio for case managers

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More Case Management Decisions

Determine how the program will allocate resources between program participants o What level of sign-off is needed for temporary financial

assistance?

Determine what program participants should know about rights/responsibilities and available services o How should this be taught?

Determine how staff should conduct home visitso How will case managers respond to what they observe during

home visits (e.g., a household member using illegal drugs?)

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Case Management Activities Checklist

Design or adapt an assessment process and tool

Develop policies and procedures for home visits and provide staff training

Train staff in some level of “mediation” and conflict resolution for response to landlord-tenant and/or household problems

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Case Management Activities Checklist (cont)

Design or adapt a case plan process and format that supports housing stability and participant choice

Develop policies and procedures for allocating resources

Develop, borrow or adapt educational materials and a strategy for teaching participants

Develop policy and procedures for case assignment, coordination and transfer

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Assistance with Obtaining VA Benefits: From the Regulations

Grantees must provide assistance in obtaining services that include, but are not limited to:

Vocational and rehabilitation counseling;Employment and training services;Educational Assistance; andHealthcare services

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Veteran Resources

VA and other Federal resources:• Outreach (HCHV)

• National Call Center for Homeless Veterans (NCCHV)

• Prevention (VJO, HCRV, SSVF, VHPD)

• Vocational Rehab (CWT)

• Employment (VWIP, HVRP)

• Permanent Housing (HUD-VASH)

Program info: www.va.gov/homeless

Services must address needs identified by those we serve

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Healthcare for Homeless Veterans (HCHV)

VA social workers and other mental health clinicians:

•Offer Outreach•Identify homeless Veterans who are eligible for VA services•Assist them in accessing appropriate healthcare and benefits•Contracts with providers for community-based residential treatment for homeless Veterans

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Veteran Justice Outreach (VJO) Initiative

• Avoid the unnecessary criminalization of mental illness and extended incarceration among Veterans

• Ensure that Veterans have timely access to VHA mental health and substance abuse services, and other VA services and benefits.

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Veteran Treatment Courts

• Hybrid Drug and Mental Health Courts that serve Veterans struggling with addiction, serious mental illness and/or co-occurring disorders

• Promote sobriety, recovery and stability through a coordinated response

• Involve the traditional partners found in Drug and Mental Health Courts

• Include the Department of Veterans Affairs healthcare networks, Veterans' Benefits Administration, volunteer Veteran mentors, and Veterans/Veterans' family support organizations.

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Health Care for Re-entry Veterans (HCRV) Program

• Addresses the community re-entry needs of incarcerated Veterans.

• Prevents homelessness, reduce the impact of medical, psychiatric, and substance abuse problems upon community re-adjustment, and decreases the likelihood of re-incarceration for those leaving prison. 

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Veterans Homeless Prevention Demonstration (VHPD)

Collaboration of HUD, VA, and Department of Labor (DOL)• HUD: housing assistance• VA: health care assessment and services• DOL: education and job training

Announced 5 sites—near military bases• Targets Veterans from wars in Iraq and Afghanistan • Urban and rural

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VET Centers

• Community-based counseling centers located in all 50 states, DC, Puerto Rico, & Guam

• Provide readjustment counseling & outreach services to all Veterans who served in any combat zone

• Staffed by small multi-disciplinary teams of dedicated providers, many of which are combat Veterans themselves.

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Compensated Work Therapy (CWT)

• VA vocational rehabilitation program to match and support work-ready Veterans in competitive jobs, and to consult with business and industry regarding their specific employment needs.

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DOL/VETS Programs

• “Employment focused” o Increasing employability of (homeless) Veteranso Matching (homeless) Veterans with potential employers

• Use case management to provide & coordinate direct services to (homeless) Veterans

• Establish critical linkages to variety of supportive services available in the community

• Homeless Veterans’ Reintegration Program (HVRP) and Veterans’ Workforce Investment Program (VWIP)

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HUD-VASH

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) VA Supportive Housing (VASH)

oProvides housing (HUD) with case management (VA) and supportive services (VA) designed to promote housing stability and recovery.

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Homeless Veteran Benefit Assistance

VHA funds twelve Veterans Benefits Counselors

These specially funded staff provide: • Dedicated outreach, • Benefits counseling, • Referral, and • Additional assistance to eligible Veterans applying for VA

benefits.

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VA Benefits Activities Checklist

Identify the VA programs in your community/area:Check www.va.gov/homeless/index.asp

Check https://www.dol.gov/vets/index.htm

Check http://www.nationalresourcedirectory.gov

Check the Website for the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans http://www.nchv.org

The Call Center may have info about programs in your area 1-877-4AID-VET (1-877-424-3838)

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VA Benefits Activities Checklist (Continued)

Contact each VA program to share information about your SSVF program and their resources

Identify protocols for referring Veteran families to each other’s services

Decide how your agencies will share information about mutual clients (include required Consent Forms)

Determine how you will document referrals, follow-up on referrals and case coordination in participant files.

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Accessing Mainstream Resources: From the Regulations

• Grantees must assist participants to obtain and coordinate the provision of other public benefits, that are being provided by Federal, State, local or tribal agencies, or any eligible entity in the area or community.

• Grantees may also elect to provide directly to participants the public benefits identified in (c) through (i) but must comply with the same requirements as a third party provider of such benefits.

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Mainstream Resources

(a) Healthcare services, including health insurance and referral to a governmental or eligible entity

(b) Daily living services for the functions of self-care, such as eating, bathing, grooming, dressing and home management

NOTE: Although the two services above cannot be provided directly by grantees, they should be provided by referral wherever needed and available.

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Other Mainstream Resources

(c) Personal financial planning

(d) Transportation services, preferably tokens for public transportation but also car leasing or repairs (up t $1000 in 3 years if needed to maintain housing)

(e) Income supports services—assistance in obtaining other publicly-funded mental health benefits, employment counseling, medical assistance, veteran’s benefits and income support assistance.

(f) Fiduciary and representative payee services

(g) Legal Services

(h) Child Care

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More Mainstream Resources

(i) Housing Counseling related to stabilizing housing, including referrals, education and outreach on topics such as:• Housing Search Assistance - finding a unit, reviewing the lease,

negotiating with the landlord• Rental and rent subsidy programs• Federal, state, tribal or local assistance• Fair Housing• Landlord-tenant laws• Lease terms• Rent delinquency• Resolution or prevention of mortgage delinquency• Home maintenance and financial management

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Other Mainstream ResourcesActivities Checklist

Contact your local Continuum of Care to identify resources that will be needed by your participants

Introduce your program to critical resources, such as public assistance benefits offices (TANF, SSI, etc.) and find out how to make a referral.

Develop linkage agreements, including communication procedures, data-sharing (Consent for Release of Information forms), documentation.

Decide if and when your program would directly provide any of the benefits listed, and any third-party requirements you would need to meet.

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Accessing Mainstream Resources

• Income supports including food stamps, SSI/SSD, TANF, Medicaid/Medicare.

• National Foundation for Credit Counseling, www.nfcc.org, a counselor can be reached at (800)388-2227

• Legal Assistance at low cost www.lawhelp.org, http://statesidelegal.org

• Available income, health, educational and other supportive services benefits http://www.govbenefits.gov

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From the Regulations: Other Supportive Services

• Grantees may provide the following temporary financial assistance if necessary for maintaining independent living in permanent housing and housing stability.

• As a condition of providing temporary financial assistance the grantee must help the participant develop a reasonable plan to address the participant’s future housing stability and/or ability to pay.

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Temporary Rental Assistance

• Limited to 5 months in any 12-month period; 8 months during 3 years

• Subject to “rent reasonableness”

• Shared housing situations are possible

• Participants may be required to share in the cost

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Temporary Rental Assistance Design Decisions

Determine how you will balance limited temporary financial assistance funds throughout the term of the grant

Decide how you will determine who gets rental assistance

Determine how much the Veteran family will pay toward their rent vs. the SSVF grant and whether the subsidy will be deep or shallow

Determine whether the subsidy will be fixed or decline over time

Determine your strategy for helping the household to aggressively pursue other income or subsidized housing

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Other Temporary Financial Assistance

• Utility-fee payment assistance

• Security deposits and/or utility deposits

• Moving costs

• Purchase of emergency supplies

• Other (SSVF supportive services, such as payment to a child care provider for up to 4 months in a 12-month period)

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Temporary Financial Assistance Design Decisions

Determine the type, intensity and duration of assistance

Determine what kind of “reasonable plan” will be developed with participants

Determine when you will re-examine/evaluate financial assistance

Determine what your program will do when the household’s temporary financial assistance is ending and the housing is not stabilized

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Reminder: Limits on Temporary Financial Assistance

Type of Assistance Limitations

Rental Assistance 5 months in any 12-month period; 8 months in a 3-year period

Utility Fees 2 months in any 12-month period; 4 months in a 3-year period

Security or Utility Deposits Each can be offered once in a 3-year period

Moving Costs Once in a 3-year period

Purchase of Emergency Supplies for a Participant

Up to $500/participant during a 3-year period

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Temporary Financial Assistance Checklist

Develop Policies and procedures for:

Which households will receive financial assistance (screening, priorities) and any limits on financial assistance

Housing units: unit selection; negotiations with landlords; incentives for landlords; mediation assistance; habitability inspections; rent reasonableness

Developing a reasonable plan for participant’s future ability to pay/maintain stable housing (when temporary assistance is provided)

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Financial Assistance Checklist (Continued)

Develop Policies and procedures for:

If/when/how to utilize representative payee services

Participant Rights: Cause and notification re termination of assistance; participant complaint/ grievance or appeal of termination

Assuring SSVF rental assistance isn’t provided for the same time period and cost type as other Federal, State or local housing subsidies

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WHEW! Final Thoughts

• This is a LOT of work! But you will not be alone!

• It’s important work and will affect your success and the stability of your participants’ housing

• Help will be available through online resources and via future Webinars, conference calls and one-to-one Technical Assistance

• Submit any of your questions to SSVF@va.gov

Upcoming Training Opportunities

• Visit www.va.org/homeless/SSVF.asp to view the SSVF Grantee Introduction Webcast (mandatory)

• SSVF Post Award Conference on September 20-21, 2011 in San Diego, CA (mandatory)

• VA Homeless Prevention Conference (optional)• August 15-16: Los Angeles, CA• August 18-19: Philadelphia, PA

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General SSVF Resources

For general information about the SSVF Program, please visit:

http://www.va.gov/homeless/SSVF.asp

Email: SSVF@va.gov or

Call (toll-free) 1-877-737–0111

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