Our Homeless Response System at Work

At the last Continuum of Care General Assembly meeting, Lester Collins, our CoC Performance Analyst walked us through the newest MDHA Homeless Response System Community Dashboard. The Dashboard provides a snapshot of the core system metrics that inform us on achievements in moving individuals to permanent housing. In the next few days, we will be publishing the latest iteration of the Dashboard, which will include a brief executive review of what the data tells us, methods for systemic improvement, and other impacts to the system of care.  

As part of his presentation, Lester also shared the latest Housing Priority List (HPL) Tracker (pictured below). The HPL has been operational since early 2016. It represents the demand side of the housing equation. It is managed by the Documentation and Prioritization Status (DOPS) Coordinator, who ensures that the persons on it have not only been assessed and prioritized for service, but also have all necessary documents, so they may be housed without delay. Housing providers are expected to house those with a lower P number (indicating greater need and vulnerability) first.  

 

 

Cindy J. Crain, MDHA President and CEO, emphasized that what the HPL now tells us, with more than 750 individuals on it ready to be housed now, is that our Homeless Response System is working, and that what we really need is more housing. This is important information for local governments, who now have the hard data they need to act to create more housing.

We will be sharing a refresher/update of the workings of our Homeless Response System on this blog, Ending Homelessness, in the next few weeks, so stay tuned!

MDHA Homeless Response System Community Dashboard and CoC Strategic Work Plan Progress Report Dashboard

We are pleased to present you with these two data rich documents:

The MDHA Homeless Response System Community Dashboard 3Q July-September 2017, tracks our community's progress in making homelessness rare, brief and non-recurring in Dallas and Collin Counties, in the third quarter of 2017. The Homeless Response System Community Dashboard provides a snapshot of the core system metrics that inform us on achievements in moving individuals to permanent housing. The current iteration of the Dashboard includes the current Housing Priority List Tracker (pictured).

The Continuum of Care Strategic Work Plan (CoCSWP) 2017-2018 Progress Report Dashboard - November 15, 2017 tracks the progress of the CoC in completing the 60 action items in support of the seven goals of the CoCSWP 2017-2018 approved in July.

 

Becoming a Top Gun Homeless Response System

In the opening scene of Top Gun, we are introduced to the hero of the movie, known by the call sign Maverick, as he accomplishes an incredible feat, trolling an enemy pilot:

It is so quick, that it is difficult to see how Maverick did this. So, how did he?

“When two pilots faced off in a dogfight, the pilot who was able to observe the variables, orient his aircraft to the best possible position relative to his opponent, decide on the best course of action to engage his opponent, and act rapidly on that decision would win the fight.” (Mark Bonchek and Chris Fussell, Decision Making, Top Gun Style; Emphases mine – DSG.)

What the fictional Maverick uses is a conceptual decision making framework originated by the real larger than life character, U.S. Air Force Colonel John Boyd. This framework is known as the OODA Loop, because, as illustrated by Maverick, it involves four steps, Observe, Orient, Decide, Act. Boyd believed that this framework could be useful beyond the military, and it is seen as particularly helpful in competition in the business world. I believe, that it is applicable to our fight to end homelessness, too.

You can probably reflect on different situations, where you have engaged in decision making, and have used some or all the elements Maverick used. The extent to which you have been successful may have depended on your adherence to the OODA Loop framework.

You could, for instance, observe carefully, orient yourself to your situation very well, and even decide on the right course of action, but then due to various obstacles, not act. Conversely, my father’s admonition from when I was a child, still echoes in my head. To my pleading, “But I thought,” he would respond, “No, you didn’t think!” In those cases, I decided and then acted, without observing and orienting.

So, how does this apply to ending homelessness? If you think about our new MDHA Homeless Response System Community Dashboard, it gives us the perfect tool to make decisions in a way that would make Colonel Boyd proud. It allows us to observe all of the performance metrics or variables related to our number one job, as a homeless response system, housing the homeless. We can then orient ourselves into the best possible position, by drilling down into the data, and addressing three simple questions:

• How are we doing in housing the homeless?
• What is helping us house the homeless?
• What is impeding us from housing the homeless?

 

Once we have carefully observed and oriented ourselves, we can decide what corrective action we need to take to do a better job. Then, we follow through, and take that corrective action.

 

That the most important component in the real world is action, is a given. However, it is the Dashboard that allows our action to be much more well informed than ever before, and that is the true game-changer. The Dashboard allows our action to be guided by genuine data-driven evidence-informed decisions, born of careful observation and orientation.  With that, we can win this dogfight and defeat our foe, homelessness in Dallas and Collin Counties.

MDHA Homeless Response System Community Dashboard October-December 2016

As we announced earlier this month, yesterday we began publishing quarterly reports tracking our community's progress in making homelessness rare, brief and non-recurring in Dallas and Collin Counties.

This Homeless Response System Community Dashboard will provide a snapshot of the core system metrics that inform us on achievements in moving individuals to permanent housing.

This first report published yesterday, February 13, 2017, covers activity between October 1 and December 31, 2016. Click here to download this first dashboard, which establishes a baseline to which we can compare future performance: MDHA Homeless Response System Community Dashboard - October-December 2016.  

With this baseline now in place, each subsequent Homeless Response System Community Dashboard will include a brief executive review of what the data tells us, methods for systemic improvement, and other impacts to the system of care.

Introducing the MDHA Homeless Response System Community Dashboard

In February, the Metro Dallas Homeless Alliance (MDHA) will begin to publish quarterly reports tracking our community’s progress in making homelessness rare, brief and non-recurring in Dallas and Collin Counties. This Homeless Response System Community Dashboard will provide a snapshot of the core system metrics that inform us on achievements in moving individuals to permanent housing.

Simply put, it will capture who is homeless and in need of housing, and inform the community on how well we are utilizing the housing resources we have. The dashboard is purposely centered on housing as the primary solution to homelessness.

The core system metrics conform to U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) performance indicators. The data comes directly from agencies reporting into MDHA’s Homeless Management Information System (HMIS). As more emergency shelters begin reporting into the HMIS system, the more valuable this report becomes to the community.

The dashboard will be organized across ten measures, five on the ‘demand/need’ side, and five on the ‘supply’ side. Click through to view all ten measures in detail. (For convenience, this document includes all of the language in this blog post too.)

The first report, scheduled to be published on February 13, 2017, will cover activity between October 1 through December 31, 2016. This first dashboard will establish a baseline to which we can compare future performance.

With each Homeless Response System Community Dashboard, MDHA will provide a brief executive review of what the data tells us, methods for systemic improvement, and other impacts to the system of care.