Improving Access to Mainstream Services for Persons Experiencing Chronic Homelessness

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Improving Access to Mainstream Services for
Persons Experiencing Chronic Homelessness

• Jointly Sponsored by
• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
• and
• U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

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OVERVIEW OF THE POLICY ACADEMY PROCESS
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What is a Policy Academy?

• Process, not an event
• Technical assistance to help decision makers
• Think through policy options
• Make existing systems and programs more effective
  and coordinated and/or
• Design and implement new systems and programs

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What are the Objectives of the Policy Academy?

• Bringing stakeholders together to focus on
  increasing access to mainstream services
• Enhancing coordination, collaboration, and
  integration among systems providing mainstream
  services for people experiencing chronic
  homelessness
• Identifying and sharing evidence-based practices
• Identifying and coordinating resources

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Whats Involved in the Policy Academy Process?
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Why a Policy Academy?

• Promote strategic planning
• Provide opportunities to learn from other State
  experiences
• Establish/reinforce dialogue
• Build consensus among stakeholders and plan for
  change
• Provide technical assistance and develop local
  capacity

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Purpose of this Academy

• For your team to develop a State-wide policy
  initiative (Action Plan) that can be
  realistically implemented in your State to
  increase access to mainstream services for people
  experiencing chronic homelessness, enhance the
  linkages between services with housing, and
  develop prevention strategies.

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Participant States - Academy I (focusing on
homeless families with children)
Connecticut Illinois Kentucky
Maryland Nevada New Jersey Oregon Washington
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Participant States - Academy II(focusing on the
chronically homeless)
Colorado Georgia Hawaii Maine New
Hampshire New York Puerto Rico
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Participant States - Academy III (focusing on the
chronically homeless)
Arizona Arkansas Florida Minnesota
Mississippi Missouri New Mexico North
Carolina South Carolina
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General Team Composition

• Senior-level policymakers from State agencies
• State legislators
• Local, county, or city-level government
  representatives
• Regional health and human service officials
• State/local advocates
• Providers
• Consumers

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Key Leaders from MainstreamPrograms and Services

• Governors Office
• Veterans Affairs
• Medicaid
• Mental health treatment systems
• Substance abuse prevention and treatment systems
• Primary health care and treatment systems
• State-level homeless services administrators or
  Continuum-of-Care contacts

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Potential Outcome(s)

• Executive Order(s)
• Legislation
• Budget proposals/funding mechanisms
• Interagency agreements (Memoranda of
  Understanding/Agreement)
• Informal partnerships
• Program standards/ guidelines (licensure
  requirements)
• Task forces/Committees

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During the Site Visit

• Become familiar with the Academy process
• Identify key components of a comprehensive
  service system
• Develop a common vision
• Develop a draft SWOT analysis
• Begin to identify TA needs
• Formalize decision-making process and choose
  leader(s), timekeeper, and scribe
• Identify key points for team presentation

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During the Academy Meeting

• Teams briefly present vision statement and their
  States key issues and efforts
• Faculty present on systems change, evidence-based
  practices, and resources
• Teams continue developing Action Plans and
  identifying TA needs
• Teams receive feedback and technical assistance
  from faculty and peers
• Teams report-out on Action Plan, priorities, next
  steps, and TA needs

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Following the Academy Meeting

• Finalize strategies (short- and long-range)
• Finalize specific action steps
• Submit revised action plan and receive comments
  from Federal Planning Committee
• Prioritize and coordinate TA with HSR
• Implement the Action Plan
• Submit 6-month progress reports

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Team Challenges

• Building team consensus around Action Plan
• Identifying feasible strategies
• Presenting a clear message to influential
  policymakers
• Generating public and political will to support
  Action Plan
• Implementing the Action Plan through executive,
  legislative, administrative, and private sector
  (non-government) processes

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Team Tips

• Try to stay focused
• Develop and respect Team ground rules
• Encourage ideas
• Challenge your assumptions
• Highlight and explore your differences
• Differentiate between what you are totally
  committed to and what you can live with

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What Should Be Accomplished Before Arriving At
The Academy Meeting?

• Circulate draft vision statement to all members
  of team for polishing
• Provide HSR with revised vision statement and
  completed SWOT analysis to be included in meeting
  packet (by January 4, 2003)
• Select team leader(s), timekeeper, scribe
• Review resource material

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THE ACTION PLANNING PROCESS
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Policy Initiative Framework(The Action Plan)

• The Vision (Your State Tomorrow)
• The Reality Assessment (Your State Today)
• Priorities/Goals (Gaps)
• Strategies with Potential (Tactical Plan)
• Action Steps (Work Assignments)
• Technical Assistance and Follow-up

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The Vision for Improving Access to Mainstream
Services for People Experiencing Chronic
Homelessness(Your State Tomorrow)

• Provides a statement of purpose
• Presents a picture of your ideal future
  (independent of the current reality)
• Serves as a reference point for all future
  decisions
• Specifically addresses issue of improving access
  to mainstream services

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Sample Vision Statement (using oral health as an
example)

• We envision a State where every child enjoys
  optimal oral health where prevention is
  emphasized and treatment is available,
  accessible, affordable, and timely where parents
  are involved, providers are engaged, and insurers
  are responsible where government is a guarantor
  of resources, quality, and patient protection
  and where total well-being of the child is
  promoted.

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Puerto Ricos Vision Statement

• To provide a dignified and comprehensive network
  of public and private agencies that can offer
  chronically homeless persons an opportunity to
  live life fully by providing accessible,
  affordable, available, and timely preventative
  and active specialized and mainstream services
  and housing.

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The Reality Assessment of Access to Mainstream
Services for People Experiencing Chronic
Homelessness(Your State Today)

• Requires a review/inventory of
• Key problems issues in your State
• Previous policy actions taken to address these
  issues
• Current political environment
• Assesses your strengths, weaknesses,
  opportunities, and threats
• Helps to identify resources at your disposal
• Provides context for your efforts

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Team Priorities/Goals (Gaps)

• Areas where you will focus your energy and
  resources in order to influence policy
• Likely to be the gaps between your vision and
  the current reality
• Form the basis for planning, policy-making and
  setting performance standards
• May be short-term and/or long-term

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Strategies with Potential(Tactical Plans)

• Broad range tactics to affect change
• Often require Statewide or cross-agency efforts
• Usually involve the combination of several
  courses of action
• Should be directly related to your
  priorities/goals

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Action Steps(Work Assignments)

• Specific activities undertaken based on your
  strategy(-ies)
• Require action from specific individuals or
  entities (differentiate between what is within
  your control and what is not)
• Considerations
• Who is responsible for coordinating each action?
• Who is responsible for completing action?
• What resources are required?
• What is the timeline?
• Who will be affected?
• How will success be measured?

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Visualizing the Action Plan
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Visualizing the Action Plan
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Technical Assistance and Follow-up

• Teams will clarify, and prioritize technical
  assistance needs with HSR via conference call
• Requests may include
• Written or internet-based materials and contacts
• Web site chat room and other resources
• Peer-based TA with other States
• Teleconference with content experts/consultants
• On-site visit from content experts/consultants
• On-site facilitation of State Team
• Teams will submit 6-month progress reports
• HSR will track and coordinate evaluation of TA