Emergency Housing Workflow Manual CITY OF PHILADELPHIA HMIS PROJECT

OFFICE OF SUPPORTIVE HOUSING
CITY OF PHILADELPHIA HMIS PROJECT
June 2014
Emergency Housing
Workflow Manual
 Community Technology Alliance
1315 Walnut Street • Suite 320
Philadelphia, PA 19107
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Table of Contents
2 City of Philadelphia/OSH Web Portal
3
 Training icon
4
 Community Resources icon
 SEPTA Trip Planner
Updated 6.29.2014
5 Access ETO software
6 Search and Navigation Bar
7 My Dashboard
8 Review Incoming Referral
9 Accepting Incoming Referral
10 Housing Check-In
13 RRH/TH Application Tracker
14 TH Application/RRH Application
16 Required TouchPoints and Required Documents
17 HUD Assessment
23 Service Plan
25 Case Notes
26 TouchPoints
27 Client Scanned Documents
28 Activities
29 Send Referral
31 Housing Check-Out
32 Add a Caseload
33 2014 HUD Assessment: A2, A5, A14-16
38 Glossary
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
1
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
City of Philadelphia/OSH HMIS Web Portal
Access the Philadelphia portal at: www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
The portal provides a convenient one stop place from which to access the
ETOTM HMIS database. There are eight icons on the portal:
See next page for
more information on:
Training
Community
Resources
Access the ETOTM HMIS
database
Access a variety of HUD
documents
Forget your password?
Reset your password here
Access a variety of OSH
documents and HMIS
forms
Access the online Video
Library
Access Data Quality Plan
Access Simtech
AgencyDash log-in page
Access the In-Person
Training Schedule
HMIS Planning & Regs
Information on how new
Agencies, Programs and
Users can access HMIS
List of Resources
Interactive listing of
Agencies accessing HMIS
Send a request for Help
to OSH and CTA
SEPTA Trip Planner
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
2
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Training Icon
Clicking on the Training icon provides all HMIS users with access to:
 Access Online Training Courses (video library)
 Access In-Person Training Schedule
The Training site is password protected. Active HMIS users with an email
address are set up with a username and temporary password. This allows
current HMIS users to access training videos and to sign up for trainings.
Clicking the Training icon takes you to the log-in page:
Your username appears in Username.
Password: enter your password provide by CTA.
You can create your own password once in the Training site:
Click Log in.
Two icons appear. Click on an icon to access the feature.
Access Online Training Courses:
 A list of videos will appear
 Click on a video to access
Note: this site is currently under construction
Access In-Person Training Schedule:
 Click on Philadelphia In Person Trainings
 Click training you wish to attend
 Description of training appears (see below for an example)
Questions?
Need assistance
accessing Training?
Click
HelpDesk
& let us know how
we can help


Click Reserve (bottom of page)
And that’s it. You are reserved
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
3
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Community Resources
Click Community Resources icon to access the City of Philadelphia’s Office of
Supportive Housing Emergency Housing and Assistance Resource Guide.
At the bottom of page is the Septa Trip Planner. The planner provides a
client with directions to Service Provider or other location:
Click
(bottom left of Planner)
Taken to SEPTA Trip Planning Page
Enter in the requested information (Selecting your
route of travel; Selecting when you want to travel;
How will you be travelling? and; How much will it
cost?).
Click Plan My Trip
Details of the route will appear. Fill out the requested data fields (From, To,
Date, Time), then click Plan my trip. Map and Print icons are located at the
bottom of the page.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
4
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Access ETOTM software
From the Philadelphia Web portal, click the Efforts to
Outcomes tile.
The log in page appears.
Enter your Username and Password.
Click Log In
Forgot your password?
Click this link if you have forgotten
your password. Make sure you have
entered your username before
clicking this link.
Click Log In to enter My Dashboard.
Example of a My Dashboard. The dashboard has three sections: Search (blue
arrow); Navigation Bar (red arrow); My Dashboard (black arrow).
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
5
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Access ETOTM software: Dashboard
Information on Search and the Navigation Bar
Search
Look at the top of the page. You will see the program you are in. In this example
you are in the EH Families program (blue arrow). Some users can also access
other programs. If you have access to other programs, click on EH Families to
select another program.
If you clicked Search in this example: a list of all Participants in your program
will appear.
Want to look up a specific Participant? Enter their name in Enter Search
Term(s) and click Search.
Want to see a list of all Families in your program? Leave Enter Search Term(s)
blank, change Participant to Families and click Search.
Want to look up a specific family? Enter name of family in Enter Search
Term(s), change Participant to Families, click Search.
Navigation Bar
Click on a title to see what options are available. The screenshot
shows what options are available when you click on TouchPoints. You
will do most of your data entry from the My Dashboard page.
Shortcut
Use the Navigation Bar if you know what you need to do for a
Participant. Example: a HUD assessment needs to be entered for one
of your Participants.
Click on Record TouchPoints, select HUD Assessment, select
Participant, then click Continue. The HUD Assessment for this
Participant appears.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
6
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
My Dashboard
EH Menu Bar
Review Incoming Transfer: review referrals from an Intake Center.
Find/Enroll Participant: find Participant not enrolled in EH but in database,
then enroll Participant in EH.
Create a Meal Group:
Meal:
Refer Family to RRH/TH/EARU: select family to refer to RRH/TH/EARU.
Housing Check-In: check in Family or Participant to emergency housing.
Housing Check-Out: check out Family or Participant.
Review POS/Intake for HOH: create case note for Family or Participant.
Record HUD Assessment: complete the HUD Assessment for Head of
Household.
Record Dependents Not Placed in EH: able to record name, basic
demographic information, and notes on dependents not placed in EH
Household Budget: create a household budget.
Enter Case Note: create case note for Family or Participant.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
7
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Review Incoming Referrals
The workflow
described is for
Families.
Click Review Incoming Referrals. Then click the Households tab. A list of
one or more households should appear.
Is your EH program for Single Men or
Single Women? Click the Households tab
as well to find referrals.
Clicking the Households tab displays family referrals. In this screenshot the
Asia Africa family (a family of 3) is shown referred from Intake.
Scenario
The number of
Participants on
the referral does
not match the
number of
Participants who
show up at EH.
What do I do if …?
The referral says 3 people, but only 2 people show up:
 Do Not Accept the Participant(s) who is a no show.
 Accept Household for the Family for those who did show up.
 How to do both these things are described on the next page.
The referral says 3 people, but 4 or more Participants show up:
What to do will depend on the situation. Check with your supervisor to find
out your Program’s policy. The following are general guidelines:
 Contact the Intake Center that made the referral. Ask Intake to
update referral to include the missing Participant(s). OR
 Send the Participant(s) back to the Intake Center. This may be
necessary if Intake has no information on the Participant(s). OR
 Contact your Supervisor for assistance.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
8
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Accept the Referral
Scenario
The number of
Participants on
the referral does
not match the
number of
Participants who
show up at EH.
This workflow describes what to do if not all family members listed on the
referral show up at EH.
Make sure the family relationships are correct:
Relationship from Referring Site: Details the family relationships as entered
by the Intake Center. (blue arrow)
Relationships in Current Site: (red arrow) you will need to select the
relationships between family members. If Intake Center entered
relationships correctly, you would select:
 Child for Africa, Antartica
 Head of Household for Africa, Asia
 Child for Africa, Australia
What if the relationships are not correct? Select the correct relationships in
the Relationships in Current Site column.
Africa, Antartica is a no show. Select Do Not Accept under Take Action
(red arrow).
Accept Household for the family (blue arrow).
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
9
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Housing Check-in
Remember the
name of the
family.
This will make
finding the family
much easier.
After accepting the referral, the next step is to check the Participant or
Family into EH.
This workflow describes how to complete a family check-in.
In order to complete a check-in, access the Household Dashboard:
 Click My Dashboard tab (top of page).
 Since the Asia Africa family’s referral was accepted, your Search
terms would look like this. Click Search.
Page refreshes. The Family Name appears.
Click name of family (blue arrow).
The Household Dashboard appears.
The screenshot below shows the Asia Africa
Household Dashboard and the RRH/TH Tracker.
What you can do
on this page will
be explained
later.
For now, let’s
do the check-in
for the family.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
1 0
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Housing Check-in
Click Housing on Navigation Bar (red arrow) to reveal Housing options.
Click Manage All Rooms HMIS (blue arrow).
Clicking on Manage All Rooms HMIS takes you to this page:
A family of 2 is looking for housing. Room 104 is empty and has 2 beds (blue
arrow). To place the family in Room 104, click Manage Room (red arrow).
The page will refresh.
Click Add New Occupants.
Type in the name of the family.
Click Search Families.
The names of family members will appear below.
Click the name of family members to
check in.
Note: Antartica Africa is not checked
because she is a no-show.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
1 1
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Housing Check-in
Continued from previous page
What is the Backdate Occupancy Start Date?
When adding Participants the Program Start Date default to today’s date. If
you want to show Participant(s) entered on an earlier date, click Backdate
Occupancy Start Date and select the date.
Click Add Checked Participant(s) to Room.
After clicking Add Checked Participant(s) to Room, this
pop-up should appear. Click OK
This page will appear. Your family is checked in!
What is Add New Occupant(s)? (blue arrow)
If you want to add more people to a room, click on Add New Occupants.
What is Submit Room Changes? (red arrow)
If you checked Exit Room, you would then click Submit Room Changes. Since
you just checked this family in, you probably will not exit them at this time.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
1 2
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
RRH/TH Application Tracker
Click My Dashboard.
Search is at the top of screen.
In order to access the Asia Africa
Household Dashboard, we must first
search for this family.
Enter the family name (red arrow). Make sure Families is selected, then
click Search. The name of the family will display. Clicking on the family
name displays the Household Dashboard.
The family configuration is displayed (blue arrow).
POS is showing no POS has been completed yet (black
arrow).
Case Notes (green arrow) shows several notes have
been entered.
Immediately below is the RRH/TH Application Tracker.
There




are four (tabs) on the Tracker:
TH Application Tracker
RRH Application Tracker
Required TouchPoints
Required Documents
Next Section:
Review the 4 tabs to the Application Tracker.
We will return to the Application Tracer near
the end of the manual: when it is time to send
the referral to TH or RRH
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
1 3
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
TH Application /RRH Application
The first two tabs on the Tracker are the TH Application and RRH
Application. TH Application details the TH application process; RRH
Application details the RRH application process.
This page will detail TH Application. The functions detailed for TH are the
same functions found on RRH Application.
Screenshot shows first six
steps in TH Application
process.
If this was a real referral,
dates would be displayed.
Example: Application
received by OSH Clearinghouse would display the date this referral was
received by the Clearinghouse.
Click Review Application (red arrow).
New page displays. The first page of the application
report details family demographics. This screenshot
shows the top section of the page.
Required TouchPoints information is also detailed on
this page.
There are six (6) tabs to the report. This reports gives an overview of the
status of the family’s application: what has been completed, what is
missing, and what is out of date.
Click on a tab to access information. Example: click Required Documents to
see a list of what documents are required, and if any document(s) are
missing or out of date.
Finished reviewing the report? Close the window.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
1 4
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
TH Application /RRH Application
Continued from the previous page.
At the bottom of the Application is this link:
Update Status allows you to send a message to the Referral Site if
something is missing or if you have a question about the application.
Click Update Status displays this page:
Top portion of Update Status.
Type: Transitional Housing selected. RRH
is the other choice.
Tracker List: Application approved by OSH
selected.
At the bottom of the page is space to
enter notes.
Note: enter in your question or
concern. Be as specific and
detailed as possible.
Click Save.
Message will be forwarded to the
Referral site.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
1 5
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Tracker: Required TouchPoints and
Required Documents
Required TouchPoints tab
Details the status of
Required TouchPoints.
If this was a real referral,
more dates would be
shown.
Example: there would be
dates for Client Assessment
and for Coordinated Intake.
Refer to Clearinghouse:
this is the link you will click when this application is ready to refer to TH or
RRH. We will return to this later in the manual when it’s time to make the
referral.
Required Documents tab
Required Documents details all
documents on file or uploaded for
each member of the family.
The last column (not shown) is the
View Link column.
If you see View in
the column, click
to review the
upload document
(red arrow).
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
1 6
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
HUD Assessment
Need help
finding Household
dashboard?
Go to Housing
Check-In (page 10):
top of page details
how to access
dashboard
A HUD Assessment must be completed on each family member. The HUD
Assessment for Adults must be completed for each adult. A shorter HUD
Assessment is completed for each minor.
Access the Household Dashboard (this will show each member):
 Click My Dashboard tab (top of page).
 Enter the name of the family, Click Search, then click on the name of
the family. The family’s Household dashboard appears.
 A HUD Assessment needs to be completed on each checked-in
Participant.
 Click on Head of Household (blue arrow)
The difference
between Household
and Participant
Dashboards
Household
Dashboard
Information entered
here is for the
entire family


The page refreshes. You are now on the Participant’s Dashboard.
Scroll down until you see the HUD Assessment box.


Click New
The HUD Assessment appears
Participant
Dashboard
Information entered
here is only for the
Participant
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
1 7
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
HUD Assessment
There are six (6) pages to the HUD Assessment.
A HUD Assessment
must be completed
for each family
member
Questions in red with an *: these questions must be answered.
Question with red but with no *: only some programs are required to
answer these questions. Check with your Supervisor or Agency Administrator.
Recommendation for these question: ask the client and enter answers for
these questions.
Questions in black: answers are not required unless your program requires
this information. Check with your Supervisor or Agency Administrator.
Many questions include these options:
 Client doesn’t know
 Client refused
 Data not collected
Select Client doesn’t know if the client does not know the answer. Select
Client refused if the client says she/he will not answer the question.
Data not collected: selecting this means you did not ask the question.
When to complete the HUD Assessment
The HUD
Assessment
contains many
questions. It will
take time to
complete the
Intake.
The good news
When you go to
complete the
Update, Annual or
Exit: all answers
from the previous
Assessment appear.
Update only those
questions where
the answer has
changed.
One of the first questions that must be answered is: At what point is this
data being collected?* Select one (1) answer from these choices:
Intake (at enrollment)
 Select when enrolling the Participant in your program.
Update
 Select if there is already a HUD Assessment on Participant and
something has changed since enrollment.
 Example: in Intake HUD Assessment the Participant refused to answer
Development Disability question. Later the Participant states s/he
does have a Developmental Disability.
Annual
 Select if Participant in your program for a year. Must enter within 30
days before or after the anniversary of their entry date.
 All HUD and OSH Contracted TH/PSH programs must complete an
Annual HUD Assessment.
Exit

Select if Participant is leaving your program.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
1 8
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
HUD Assessment
A HUD Assessment
must be completed
for each family
member
There are six (6) pages to the HUD Assessment.
Page #1: Universal Information
Below are the first eight questions that appear on page 1 if Intake selected:
Help!
I am not sure which
answer to select
Go to
The 2014
HUD Assessment
(page 31)
for assistance
Click Next Page (bottom of page) when finished with this page.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
1 9
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
HUD Assessment
There are six (6) pages to the HUD Assessment.
A HUD Assessment
must be completed
for each family
member
Page #2: Veteran Information
 The Participant’s Veteran Status will appear. Veteran Status should
have been answered at Intake.
 Status incorrect? Status missing? Follow the instructions on this page
to enter or update the Participant’s Veteran Information.
Click Next Page when finished with this page
Page #3: Disability Information
The number of questions that appear will depend on the answers entered.
This is called conditional formatting: Answer Yes to a question and
additional questions will appear. Answer No and some questions disappear.
Here is a screenshot of the Disability Information page. Does the client
have a physical disability* has the answer No.
Here is what you will see if you answer Yes for Does the client have a
physical disability?* Three additional questions appear.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
2 0
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
HUD Assessment
There are six (6) pages to the HUD Assessment.
A HUD Assessment
must be completed
for each family
member
Page #4: Housing Information
This question appears: Is the client in a Permanent Housing program?*
 The answer ‘No’ should appear
 No not appearing? Select No
 Click Next Page
Page #5: Education, Employment and Income
Conditional formatting is on this page. This screenshot shows the Participant
is receiving income from 2 sources.
Since 2 income sources (Earned Income and
SSDI) were selected, these data fields appear:
Enter in the monthly amount for each income
source. A-86. Total Monthly Income will autopopulate and display the monthly amount from
all income sources.
Total Yearly Income will also display on this
page.
Click Next Page after completing this page. One more page to go!
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
2 1
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
HUD Assessment
A HUD Assessment
must be completed
for each family
member
Page #6: Health Insurance
Answer Yes or No to Is the
client covered by Health
Insurance?*
If Yes, select the
insurance type.
Click Save.
This pop-up will appear.
Click OK
You will be taken back to the
Participant’s Dashboard.
The HUD Assessment box will show a
completed Assessment.
How to complete
the HUD
Assessment for
each member of
the family
The HUD Assessment for the Head of Household and have been returned to
this person’s Dashboard. Look for this box (top right of page):
Click on the family member (blue arrow)
You will be taken to their Dashboard.
Scroll down to the HUD Assessment box.
Click New.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
2 2
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Service Plan
I took a break from
entering data …
Service Plan and Case Notes can be accessed from the Participant’s
Dashboard. Top right of the dashboard displays:
How do I find a
Participant’s
Dashboard?
At top of screen:
Enter name, select
Participant, then
click Search
Service Plan: Goals
Click New to access
Goal page appears. In this example: Housing has been
selected as the Goal. Additional information about the goal
has been entered.
Click Save. A pop-up window appears stating Your
TouchPoint was Submitted. Click OK.
Want to add another Goal? Repeat the above steps.
Want to add Action Steps to a Goal? Click Goals for Service
Plan Dashboard for the goal you want to add Action Steps:
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
2 3
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Service Plan
Continued from previous page.
Clicking on Goals for Service Plan Dashboard takes you to the Goals for
Service Dashboard. Information about the goal is displayed on the left.
On the right is this box:
Click New
Enter information about the Action Step.
Click Save.
Your TouchPoint was Submitted pop-up appears.
Click OK.
Details about the action step entered appears in
the Action Step in Recent TouchPoints box.
Want to add another action step? Click New in
the Recent TouchPoints box and repeat the above
process.
Want to return to the Participant’s Dashboard? Click on the Participant’s
name (top left of screen)
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
2 4
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Case Notes
I took a break from
entering data …
Service Plan and Case Notes can be accessed from the Participant’s
Dashboard. Top right of the dashboard displays:
How do I find a
Participant’s
Dashboard?
At top of screen:
Enter name, select
Participant, then
click Search
Case Notes
Click New to enter a Case Note. The Select TouchPoint screen appears.
From the drop down menu, select Case
Notes.
The Case Note page appears. Type in the
case note for this Participant.
Option: create your Case Note in Word (if
you want to use spell check). Then cut
and paste your case note.
Click Save.
Your TouchPoint was Submitted will appear. Click OK.
You will be returned to the Participant’s Dashboard.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
2 5
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
TouchPoints
TouchPoints can be assessed from the Navigation Bar (dark green box, top
right of screen).
Click TouchPoints.
Drop down menu appears (in light green).
Click Record TouchPoints. (blue arrow)
Select TouchPoint appears. Click to reveal a drop
down menu of available TouchPoints.
A list of TouchPoints is displayed.
Check with your Supervisor or Agency Administrator
as to which TouchPoints must be completed and
which TouchPoints are optional.
We will look at three (3) TouchPoints:
 Client Scanned Documents
 Activities
 Placement Request
After accessing a TouchPoint you must search for
the Participant. In this example: Client Scanned Documents (red arrow)
was selected, and a list of Participants appears. Find and select your
Participant (black arrow), then click Continue.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
2 6
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
TouchPoints: Client Scanned Documents
Client Scanned Documents allows you to attached scanned document(s).
Click TouchPoints on Navigation Bar, click Record TouchPoints. Select Client
Scanned Documents. Search for and select Participant, click Continue.
Change date if necessary.
Identifier: clearly state what the document
is. Example: Birth certificate.
Document verifies: select best match.
Example: if uploading a Birth certificate,
select Identification.
Type of document: select best match.
Before selecting File Upload*: the document
must be scanned and saved in your
Documents Library or Network Drive.
Not sure what the above means? Check with
your IT staff.
File upload: click Select. A pop-up window appears. Locate the document.
Click on the document. Click Save. It may take 10-15 seconds or more to
upload. File is uploaded when you see a green dot and the name of the
document.
Not the correct document? Click Remove.
Document is removed. Repeat above steps to
attach correct document.
Correct document? Click Save.
Your TouchPoint has been Submitted will appear. Click OK.
Remember to delete the scanned document from your
computer or network drive.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
2 7
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
TouchPoints: Activities
Activities allow you to record activities provided the Participant or Family.
Click TouchPoints on Navigation Bar, click Record TouchPoints. Select
Activities. Search for and select Participant, click Continue.
If necessary, change the date to the date service
was provided.
This screenshot show the top half of Activities
TouchPoint. Selections have been made for the
first three data fields.
Contact Location: select best match
Select Activity: select best match
Activity Status: select best match
The next data field is optional and is called
Activity Comments. It is a place to enter notes on
the activity.
Now select the service(s) provided. In this example
Case/Care Management has been selected.
The amount of time spent on the activity can be entered.
In this example, the Case/Care Management session lasted
1 hour and 15 minutes.
Want to add another Activity? Click Save and Record
Similar.
Finished? Click Save.
Your TouchPoint was Submitted appears. Click OK.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
2 8
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Send Referral
Ready to send a referral to Transitional Housing or Rapid Rehousing?
To access the RRH/TH Application Tracker:
 From My Dashboard: search for family
 Click on the name of the family
 Household Dashboard appears
 RRH/TH Application Tracker displays near bottom of screen.
The workflow described on this page assumes the Application is complete
and ready to be referred to either TH or RRH.
Need to review the Application before creating the referral? Go to
RRH/TH Application Tracker (page 13) for details.
Ready to send
referral to
TH or RRH?
Click Required Touchpoints (blue arrow)
Click Refer to Clearinghouse (bottom of screen)
Multiple Referrals screen
displays. Since we are referring
a family, click the Families box
(red arrow).
A list of families appears. Click
on family to refer.
Family configuration displays.
Antartica was unselected since she
was a no-show (blue arrow).
Click Submit.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
2 9
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Send Referral
Continued from previous page.
Select Type of Referral screen display.
Click to Site (red arrow).
Click Submit.
Screenshot displays a referral
that will be send to TH.
Site: select a TH or RRH site
Program: select a specific TH
or RRH program.
Reason for referral: select
best match.
Referral Date: defaults to
today’s date.
Pending Drop Off Date:
defaults 30 days after Referral
Date.
Referral Notes are optional.
Dismiss the Family from EH.
Click Dismiss from Program. Enter Reason for Dismissal. Program Dismissal
Date defaults to today’s date. Click Successfully Completed.
Click Submit.
Message appears: Participant Referrals have successfully added.
Click OK.
Print Referral screen appears. Click print icon (top right of screen) to print.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
3 0
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Housing Check-Out
To check out the
whole family:
Remember the
name of each
family member
This workflow describes how to complete a check-out.
From the Navigation Bar (dark green box, right side of screen)
 Click Housing.
 Click Housing Check-Out.
 Housing Check-Out screen appears.
 Click on the Participant(s) to check out.
 In this example we want to check out the Africa family (2 people:
Asia and Australia)
.
Check-Out Date: defaults to today’s date. Change if necessary.
Click Save.
Screen refreshes. A message will appear (top left) stating Successfully
Checked out.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
3 1
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Add a Caseload: Program Manager
Locate Staff Caseloads on the Dashboard Landing Page.
View the list of staff and select Edit.
Check boxes for participants to add to the staff member’s caseload.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
3 2
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
2014 HUD Assessment
Definitions for A-2
A-2 At what point is this data being collected?*
HUD questions
include these
response categories:
Intake (at enrollment)
Select when enrolling Participant into your program.
When is it necessary to change or update data in the Intake Assessment?
Client doesn’t know
Client Refused
Data not collected
(selecting this means
you did not ask the
client the question)
Example: A Participant refused to respond to Developmental Disability at
Intake but later discloses that they were diagnosed with a developmental
disability as a child. Access the Participant’s Intake, go to the Developmental
Disability question and change ‘Client Refused’ to ‘Yes.’
You would enter this data in the existing Intake rather than creating a new
Update Assessment because Participant was disabled at the time of entry.
Update
Select Update when wanting to track changes over time (e.g., Income and
Non-cash Benefits) or to enter activities.
Updates NOT required by HUD for TH and PSH programs. If Updates are
required and when required depends on the provider’s own business rules.
Annual
Participant has Intake Assessment and has spent almost one year in program.
 Required for all HUD & OSH Contracted TH and PSH programs




Record no more than 30 days before or after the anniversary of Project Entry
Date.
Even if Update Assessment entered, an Annual Assessment must be entered.
Information must be accurate as of the Information Date.
Regardless of whether the responses have changed since project entry or the
previous annual assessment, a new record must be created for each year the
Participant is in your program.
Exit
Select when Participant leaves program. The data must accurately reflect
the client’s circumstance as of the date of project exit; the information date
must correspond to the project exit date.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
3 3
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
2014 HUD Assessment
Definitions for A-5
HUD questions
include these
response categories:
Client doesn’t know
Client Refused
Data not collected
(selecting this means
you did not ask the
client the question)
A-5 Housing Status upon Entry*
Category 1-Homeless
An individual or family who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime
residence:



Example 1: place not ordinarily used as a place to sleep (such as a car, park,
abandoned building, train or bus station, airport) OR
Example 2: supervised shelter designed to provide temporary living
arrangements OR
Example 3: exiting an institution where he or she resided for 90 days or less
and who resided in an emergency shelter or place not meant for human
habitation immediately before entering that institution.
Category 2-At imminent risk of losing housing
Housing Loss in 14 Days: An individual or family who will lose their primary
nighttime residence in 14 days or less provided that:



The primary nighttime residence will be lost within 14 days of the date of
application for homeless assistance; AND
No subsequent residence has been identified; AND
The individual or family lacks the resources or support networks, e.g.,
family, friends, faith-based or other social networks needed to obtain other
permanent housing.
Category 3-Homeless only under other federal statutes
Unaccompanied youth under 25 years of age, or families with children and
youth, who do not otherwise qualify as homeless by HUD, but who:




Defined as homeless under section 387 of Runaway and Homeless Youth Act,
section 637 of Head Start Act, section 41403 of the Violence Against Women
Act of 1994, section 330(h) of the Public Health Service Act, section 3 of the
Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, section 17(b) of the Child Nutrition Act of
1966, or section 725 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act; AND
Have not had a lease, ownership interest, or occupancy agreement in
permanent housing at any time during the 60 days immediately preceding
the date of application for homeless assistance; AND
Have experienced persistent instability as measured by two moves or more
during the 60-day period immediately preceding the date of applying for
homeless assistance; AND
Expected to continue in such status for an extended period of time because
of chronic disabilities or physical health or mental health conditions,
substance addiction, histories of domestic violence or childhood abuse, the
presence of a child or youth with a disability, or two or more barriers to
employment, which include the lack of a high school degree or GED,
illiteracy, low English proficiency, a history of incarceration or detention for
criminal activity, and a history of unstable employment.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
3 4
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
2014 HUD Assessment
Continued from previous page
HUD questions
include these
response categories:
Client doesn’t know
Client Refused
A-5 Housing Status upon Entry*
Category 3-Homeless only under other federal statutes
Unaccompanied youth under 25 years of age, or families with children and
youth, who do not otherwise qualify as homeless by HUD, but who:

Data not collected
(selecting this means
you did not ask the
client the question)



Are defined as homeless under section 387 of the Runaway and Homeless
Youth Act, section 637 of the Head Start Act, section 41403 of the Violence
Against Women Act of 1994, section 330(h) of the Public Health Service Act,
section 3 of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, section 17(b) of the Child
Nutrition Act of 1966, or section 725 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless
Assistance Act; AND
Have not had a lease, ownership interest, or occupancy agreement in
permanent housing at any time during the 60 days immediately preceding
the date of application for homeless assistance; AND
Have experienced persistent instability as measured by two moves or more
during the 60-day period immediately preceding the date of applying for
homeless assistance; AND
Expected to continue in such status for an extended period of time because
of chronic disabilities or physical health or mental health conditions,
substance addiction, histories of domestic violence or childhood abuse, the
presence of a child or youth with a disability, or two or more barriers to
employment, which include the lack of a high school degree or GED,
illiteracy, low English proficiency, a history of incarceration or detention for
criminal activity, and a history of unstable employment.
Category 4-Fleeing domestic violence
Select only when the household does NOT meet any other category but is
homeless solely because they are fleeing domestic violence. Includes any
individual or family who:



Is fleeing, or is attempting to flee, domestic violence, dating violence,
sexual assault, stalking, or other dangerous or life-threatening conditions
that relate to violence against the individual or a family member, including a
child, that has either taken place within the individual’s or family’s primary
nighttime residence or has made the individual or family afraid to return to
their primary nighttime residence; AND
Has no other residence; AND
Lacks the resources or support networks, e.g., family, friends, faith based or
other social networks, to obtain other permanent housing.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
3 5
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
2014 HUD Assessment
Continued from previous page
HUD questions
include these
response categories:
Client doesn’t know
Client Refused
Data not collected
(selecting this means
you did not ask the
client the question)
A-5 Housing Status upon Entry*
At risk of homelessness
For clients being served by Homelessness Prevention or Coordinated
Assessment projects:
An individual or family who:
 Has an annual income below 30 percent of median family income for the
area, as determined by HUD; AND
 Does not have sufficient resources or support networks immediately
available to prevent them from moving to an emergency shelter or another
place described in Homeless Category 1 above; AND
 Meets one of the following conditions:
o Moved due to economic reasons two or more times during the 60
days immediately preceding the application for homelessness
prevention assistance;
o Is living in the home of another because of economic hardship;
o Notified in writing that their current housing will be terminated
within 21 days after the date of application for assistance;
o Lives in a hotel or motel and the cost of the hotel or motel is not
paid by charitable organizations or by Federal, State, or local
government programs for low-income individuals;
o Lives in a single-room occupancy or efficiency apartment unit in
which there reside more than two persons or lives in a larger housing
unit in which there reside more than 1.5 persons reside per room;
o Is exiting a publicly funded institution, or system of care; or
o Otherwise lives in housing that is associated with instability and an
increased risk of homelessness, as identified in the recipient’s
approved consolidated plan (for ESG projects) or the jurisdiction’s
approved consolidated plan (for non-ESG projects); OR
A child or youth who does not qualify as ‘‘homeless’’ under the categories
described above, but qualifies as ‘‘homeless’’ under section 387(3) of the
Runaway and Homeless Youth Act, section 637(11) of the Head Start Act, section
41403(6) of the Violence Against Women Act of 1994, section 330(h)(5)(A) of the
Public Health Service Act, section 3(m) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, or
section 17(b)(15) of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966; OR
A child or youth who does not qualify as ‘‘homeless’’ under the categories
described above, but qualifies as ‘‘homeless’’ under section 725(2) of the
McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, and the parent(s) or guardian(s) of that
child or youth if living them.
Stably Housed
An individual or family who is not otherwise experiencing homelessness or at
risk of homelessness according to the categories above.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
3 6
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
2014 HUD Assessment
Defintions for A-14, A-15 and A-16
HUD questions
include these
response categories:
A-14 Address Prior to Entry
Enter in the street address, city and state of the apartment, room, or house
where the Participant last lived for 90 or more days. Addresses of emergency
shelters should not be entered here. In A-16 record the address data quality.
Client doesn’t know
Client Refused
Data not collected
(selecting this means
you did not ask the
client the question)
A-15 Zip Code
Enter in the Zip code for the address entered in A-14.
A-16 Address Data Quality
Select the best match based on the amount of information entered in A-14
and A-15:
Example 1: Select Full address reported if address, city, state, and zip
entered.
Example 2: Select Incomplete or estimated address reported if one or more
data fields are left empty (in other words, the address is incomplete). An
example of an estimated address: Participants remembers s/he lived on Elm
Street but cannot remember the street address or apartment number).
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
3 7
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Glossary
Term Definition
Attribute Characteristics of Entities that are not expected to change as
a result of service. ETO is configured with standard
Attributes. Additional Attributes are created with the
Attribute Wizard.
Collection Collections are built to group subjects (participants or
entities) together. Example: classes, families, etc. All types
of information can be collected about that set of subjects.
Demographic Characteristics of Participants that are not expected to
change as a result of service. ETO comes with standard
Demographics, which can be disabled if they do not meet an
organization’s needs. Additional Demographics can be created
with the Demographics Wizard.
Enroll To bring a Participant entered in ETO into the selected
program and enter a program start date.
Entities Typically a 3rd party that somehow impacts Participants, such
as employers, institutions or other community based
organizations where Participants are referred.
Family Synonymous with Household in ETO. Participants that are
somehow related or share a home. Families are recognized as
a unit of linked Participants.
Feeder Table Drop boxes found throughout ETO. Feeder tables include
Contact Location Method, Reason for Dismissal, Family
Relationships and Reason for Referral.
Group A subset of Participants who receive services simultaneously.
Household Synonymous with Family in ETO. Participants that are
somehow related or share a home. Households are recognized
as a unit of linked Participants.
Manage Feature used by Administrators to make additions and
modifications to ETO. The majority of these features are
found below the Site Administration component.
Navigation Bar The green bar on the right side of the ETO interface.
Administrators can add or remove features.
Outcome Outcomes can be tracked in Point of Service elements that
are built to measure an increase or decrease in attitude,
performance, knowledge, etc.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
3 8
O F F I C E O F S U P P O R T I V E H O U S I N G
E M E R G E N C Y H O U S I N G M A N U A L
Glossary
Term Definition
Output TouchPoint and Point of Service elements that track neither
increases or decreases; used for counting.
Participant Member of the target population; recipient of service.
Program Group A group of programs that fit into the same category. Example:
Demographics can be secured to a Program Group.
Query A request for information that can only be completed by a
user with an assigned role of Department Head or higher.
Queries appear in a grid that can be copied to Excel.
Referral To ‘push’ a Participant (versus Enroll, which is to ‘pull’) into
another program , Entity Employer, Institution or Service
Provider.
TouchPoints Touchpoints are used to track information in ETO. A
Touchpoint captures details of any interaction, activity, etc.
Example: a TouchPoint can be used to record case notes,
progress towards a goal, service plans, attendance, etc.
User Account A unique log-on that is provided with access to specific
features and programs in ETO.
Wizard A building tool in ETO that is used to create a new field or set
of fields.
Contact Us
Help Desk
Email: janel@ctagroup.org
www.ctagroup.org/hmis/philadelphia-hmis/
3 9