Collaboration as a Solution to Home Instability

About the Program

Category: Human Services (Best in Category)

Year: 2021

In December of 2020,?the Miami-Dade Public Library System?and in-house social work team?began collaborating with?The Homeless Trust,?which is?the lead agency for Miami-Dade County’s?homeless Continuum?of Care (CoC).?The Homeless Trust granted the library system use of?their HMIS?System?(Homeless Management Information System)?which is the?local technology system used to collect client-level data on the provision of housing and services to homeless individuals, families, and persons at risk of homelessness.?The?Homeless Trust trained key library staff?on how to use the system, verify documents, and input information into the system. Using the?HMIS?system?at the library?has allowed?the?social work team to act?as?an access point in the?CoC?and?place?clients?on the?waitlist for permanent supportive housing?programs?funded through the Homeless Trust.?In?this way,?having the HMIS System allows the?library branch?to?function?much like a satellite location,?offering?greater accessibility to?area residents in need of?housing services.?