Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The History And Future Of Homeless Management Information Systems, Stephen R. Poulin, Stephen Metraux, Dennis P. Culhane

Dennis P. Culhane

This chapter reviews the history of the development of management information systems in the homelessness program area. Efforts begun in the 1980s and 1990s by individual cities are discussed, as are the Congressional initatives that led to the mandated implementation of such systems in the US. The use of these systems for the Annual Homelessness Assessment Report to the US Congress is described, as are potential future uses of HMIS for research, policy and program planning.

Rearranging The Deck Chairs Or Reallocating The Lifeboats?: Homelessness Assistance And Its Alternatives, Dennis P. Culhane, Stephen Metraux

Dennis P. Culhane

Problem: At present, homelessness in the United States is primarily addressed by providing emergency and transitional shelter facilities. These programs do not directly address the causes of homelessness, and residents are exposed to victimization and trauma during stays. We need an alternative that is more humane, as well as more efficient and effective at achieving outcomes. Purpose: This article uses research on homelessness to devise alternative forms of emergency assistance that could reduce the prevalence and/or duration of episodes of homelessness and much of the need for emergency shelter. Methods: We review analyses of shelter utilization patterns to identify subgroups …

Homelessness And Child Welfare Services In New York City: Exploring Trends And Opportunites For Improving Outcomes For Children And Youth, Dennis P. Culhane, Jung Min Park

Dennis P. Culhane

No abstract provided.

Translating Research Into Homelessness Policy And Practice: One Perspective From The United States, Dennis P. Culhane

Dennis P. Culhane

Like social scientists everywhere, homelessness researchers in the US are usually ignored. Good science that identifies what causes homelessness, sound evaluations which document that certain programs will never work, and even evidence that promising solutions deserve broad replication, are often disregarded. Such wanton indifference for science would constitute malpractice in the field of medicine, but it sometimes passes as acceptable policy in the field of social welfare. Ideology, politics and preservation of the status quo usually prevail. So, what’s a well intentioned researcher to do? Persevere and become more tactical. After all, policy failures can’t be ignored forever. Like good …

Homeless Shelter Use And Reincarceration Following Prison Release, Stephen Metraux, Dennis P. Culhane

Dennis P. Culhane

This paper exmaines the incidence of and interrelationships between shelter use and reincarceration among a cohort of 48,424 persons who were released from New York State prisons to New York City in 1995-1998. Results show that, within two years of release, 11.4% of the study group was again imprisoned. Using survival analysis methods, time since prison release and history of residential instability were the most salient risk factors related to shelter use, and shelter use increased the risk of subsequent reincarcerations.

New Strategies And Collaborations Target Homelessness, Dennis P. Culhane

Dennis P. Culhane

No abstract provided.

Homelessness Among Persons With Severe Mental Illness In An Enhanced Community-Based Mental Health System, Eri Kuno, Aileen B. Rothbard, June Averyt, Dennis P. Culhane

Dennis P. Culhane

Objective: Homelessness and patterns of service use were examined among seriously mentally ill persons in an area with a well-funded community- based mental health system. Methods: The sample consisted of 438 individuals referred between 1990 and 1992 to an extended acute care psychiatric hospital after a stay in a general hospital. Those experiencing an episode of homelessness, defined as an admission to a public shelter between 1990 and 1993, were compared with those who were residentially stable. Data from a longitudinal integrated database of public mental health and medical services were used to construct service utilization measures to test the …

Help In Time: An Evaluation Of Philadelphia's Community-Based Homelessness Prevention Program, Yin-Ling I. Wong, Meg Koppel, Dennis P. Culhane, Stephen Metraux, David E. Eldridge, Amy Hillier, Helen R. Lee

Dennis P. Culhane

This report provides an evaluation of Philadelphia's neighborhood-based homelessness prevention initiative. Results indicate that nearly all households served do not become homeless. But it is unclear if households would have become homeless had they not been served. Recommendations are made for targeting prevention interventions to families requesting shelter.

One-Year Rates Of Public Shelter Utilization By Race/Ethnicity, Age, Sex And Poverty Status For New York City (1990 And 1995) And Philadelphia (1995), Dennis P. Culhane, Stephen Metraux

Dennis P. Culhane

This study calculates public homeless shelter utilization rates by sex, race/ethnicity and age status for New York City (1990 and 1995) and Philadelphia (fiscal year 1995) to determine the relative risk for shelter use among different demographic groups in these cities. The resulting shelter utilization rates reveal large disparities among age groups and across racial/ethnic groups, as well as showing different trends in shelter utilization among the two cities. Among the results reported, the rate of shelter utilization declined by 11% in New York City over this period, while the overall utilization rate in Philadelphia has increased to where it …

Where Homeless Families Come From: Toward A Prevention-Oriented Approach In Washington, Dc, Dennis P. Culhane, Chang-Moo Lee

Dennis P. Culhane

No abstract provided.

Making Homelessness Programs Accountable To Consumers, Funders And The Public, Dennis P. Culhane, David Eldridge, Robert Rosenheck, Carol Wilkins

Dennis P. Culhane

This paper discusses how different types of performance measurement can be used to improve the accountability of homeless programs to consumers, funders and to the public. A distinction is made between the kinds of data used in formal research projects and data that can be practically obtained in a practice setting. Consumer outcomes are discussed in terms of accountability to consumers, program outcomes in terms of accountability to funders, and systems outcomes in terms of accountability to the public. Cost-benefit analyses are also discussed as providing another critical dimension of accountability to funders and the public.

Where To From Here? A Policy Research Agenda Based On The Analysis Of Administrative Data, Dennis P. Culhane, Stephen Metraux

Dennis P. Culhane

Philadelphia Eligible Metropolitan Area Aids Housing Needs Assessment: 1997-2001, Kimberly Acquaviva, Dennis P. Culhane, Ellen Alpert, David Fair

Dennis P. Culhane

This report describes the results of a survey of people in Philadelphia with HIV/AIDS regarding their current and projected housing needs.