This ZenGuide will review the importance of using HMIS to keep clients active in HMIS projects & how to maintain a client’s active status; what triggers a client to be considered inactive & what to do in HMIS when a client’s status becomes inactive.
Why Should a Client's Active/Inactive HMIS Status be Monitored?
By accurately noting a client’s active/inactive status in HMIS, the CoC will be able to determine if the client is:
- In the CoC area
- In need of housing, or
- Actively engaging in services
Consistent data entry and updating information in the clients HMIS record leads to clients being housed faster and vacancies filled faster.
How to Determine Inactivity & Steps Required in HMIS
NCCEH policy is that clients are considered inactive after 90-days of no activity & must be exited from HMIS projects. The full NCCEH policy can be found here HMIS@NCCEH Operating Policies and Procedures.
Below is an overview of HUD standards 1.6 and 3.11. Detailed guidance on when & how client should be exited from an HMIS project can be found here HUD Exchange Data Standards Page.
1.6 Data Collection Guidance by Project Type:
- Street Outreach: Project exit represents the end of a client’s participation with a project. The exit date should coincide with the date that the client is no longer considered to be participating in the project. This standard should be applied consistently across all Street Outreach projects. In the event a client has not been in contact longer than the "community-defined length of time" (aka 90 days), the project exit date should be recorded as of the last recorded CLS.
- Street Outreach Services Project: Clients may be exited when the outreach worker has been unable to locate the client for an extended period of time and there are no recorded contacts. In the event a client has not been in contact longer than the "community-defined length of time" (aka 90 days), the project exit date should be recorded as of the last recorded CLS.
- Coordinated Entry: Project exit represents the end of a client's participation with the CE system. The exit date should coincide with the date that the client is no longer considered to be actively seeking crisis or housing assistance from the CoC.
3.11 Project Exit Date:
- If a client uses a service for just one day (i.e., starts and stops before midnight of same day), then the Project Exit Date may be the same as the Project Start Date.
- For residential projects, the client's 3.11 Project Exit Date would be recorded as the last day the client appeared at the residential project (in the case of Night-by-Night Shelter, the day after the last 4.14 Bed Night Date) and the 3.12 Destination would be marked as 'No exit interview completed’ unless completed.
- For non-residential projects, the exit date must represent the last day a contact was made (such as the last CLS update) or a service was provided and the 3.12 Destination would be marked as ‘No exit interview completed’ unless completed.
- The exit date should coincide with the date the client is no longer considered a participant in the project.
- Projects must have a clear and consistently applied procedure for determining when a client who is receiving supportive services is no longer considered to be participating in the project.
- For example, if a person has been receiving weekly counseling as part of an ongoing treatment project and either formally terminates their involvement or fails to return for counseling, the last date of service is the date of the last counseling session.
How to monitor client Active/Inactive HMIS status
Per the NCCEH policy, Agency Admin’s are responsible for monitoring client project participation and exits. However, all HMIS users should monitor their client active/inactive status. Two options to do this are by running the ESG CAPER or Service Transaction reports.
ESG CAPER Report:
-
Table 6f - Inactive Records: Street Outreach and Night by Night Emergency Shelter logic:
- Data quality includes maintaining accuracy in the number of active records in a system. For projects where clients often leave or disappear without an exit (street outreach and night-by-night shelters), the records often remain open and hamper the project and community’s ability to generate accurate performance measurement.
- This section sets a 90-day limit on inactive records and reports how many records within the report range are inactive (i.e. should have been exited but were not) based on contact with the client for outreach or bed nights for shelter.
- Column B - # of Records - contains all clients active according to start and exit dates regardless of project type.
-
Table 22a2 - Length of Participation - ESG Projects:
- Breaks down client length of time in projects, ‘Leavers’ vs ‘Stayers’.
- Clients in timeframes between ‘91 to 180 days’ & ‘More than 1,825 Days’ should be verified that they remain active in project.
Service Transaction Report
- Fill out prompts as applicable.
- Report will display the below information.
- Clients whose last 'Need Date' is beyond 90-days are considered Inactive & should be closed out.
ARE YOU LOOKING FOR ADDITIONAL RESOURCES? BELOW ARE RELATED ARTICLES!
- This link to Data Entry Workflows ZenGuide, contains individual links to each project type HMIS workflow. By following the project type workflows, HMIS users will be able to properly maintain client’s active status or exit clients that transition to inactive status.
Comments