“The mission of the Mental Health Division is to promote recovery and safety.”
HOUSING ACTION PLAN
The Mental Health Housing Action Plan was developed through a contract with Common Ground. The Plan presents the consultant’s recommended package of budget and policy initiatives to address one critical element of the high utilization of Eastern and Western State Hospitals: the lack of appropriate community based housing for people with mental illnesses.
Stable housing is an integral element of recovery for every individual with a mental illness. In a recovery based system there is an increased emphasis on consumer choice and a preference for housing models that promote independence. Every community in Washington State needs a range of housing options. Among the most effective housing alternatives that respond to the tenets of recovery is permanent supportive housing (PSH). There is solid evidence that providing community based PSH is a cost-effective alternative to the revolving door of the street, shelter, emergency rooms, psychiatric hospitals, jails, and prisons.
The PSH model includes a consumer leased apartment or single
family home with flexible supporting services titrated to meet individual
needs. Features of successful PSH models include:
• Case manager caseloads of 1:8-1:20;
• Consumer and landlord access to support services staff 24/7;
• Landlord access to incentive funds to encourage and support them
when renting to people living with mental illnesses;
• Selective use of master leasing of units
• Access to short-term respite care to avoid loss of housing if the
person’s illness spikes.
In 2007 the plan estimates the unmet need for community based housing for people served in the public mental health system at approximately 5000 units and proposes a way that approximately 40% of that need would be met over the next eight years. This includes housing for single adults, families where a parent has a mental illness or a child has a serious emotional disturbance, and seniors. People who are served by the public mental health system with a history of cycling through the streets, shelters, hospital emergency rooms, jails, and/or local and state hospitals are emphasized. Current available service capacity is calculated as is housing currently “in the pipeline” when determining the remaining need.
Creating successful housing alternatives for people with mental illness will require strong partnerships with other state-level agencies, homeless housing advocates and planners, federal and local housing funding entities and governmental, non-profit and for-profit housing providers. It will require development of new housing, rehabilitation of existing housing and increased access to existing units.
The Supportive Housing Institute (SHI) is an example of the
type of partnership proposed in and motivated by the Plan. The SHI is comprehensive,
highly interactive and targeted technical assistance provided to participating
development teams over several months. The first such Institute will be held
in Washington State in 2008. The Washington State Supportive Housing Institute
will provide eight county teams from throughout the State with the tools to
create permanent supportive housing for homeless individuals, families, and
those experiencing mental illness and other barriers to housing. Team members
represent community-based housing and services organizations, housing authorities,
housing development organizations, and county government. Teams were selected
and primarily financed by the State of Washington Department of Community,
Trade and Economic Development, the DSHS Mental Health Division, and Washington
Families Fund.
HOUSING ACTION PLAN RESOURCE LINKS: |
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| Name |
Year |
File Type |
| Additional PowerPoint materials available: System Transformation Initiative table | 2007 | Web Site |
| 2008 | pdf Viewer | |
| Preliminary Mental Health Housing Plan DRAFT (3-23-07) | 2007 | pdf Viewer |
| Final Mental Health Housing Action Plan Executive Summary | 2008 | pdf Viewer |
| Mental Health Housing Action Plan Appendicies | 2008 | pdf Viewer |
| Supportive Housing Institute Brochure (March - September 2008) | 2008 | pdf Viewer |
| STI Forum Housing Notes (11-15-06) | 2006 | pdf Viewer |
| Using Medicaid to Help End Homelessness PowerPoint Presentation (7-17-06) | 2006 | pdf Viewer |
| www.endhomelessnesswa.org | 2006 | Web Site |
| Sourcebook on Ending Family Homelessness | 2006 | Web Site |
| www.nrchmi.samhsa.gov | 2006 | Web Site |
| www.csh.org | 2007 | Web Site |
Contact Information:
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For more ways to get in touch with the Department of Mental Health Services, go to the DSHS Contact Information Web page. Mental Health Related Questions Contact:
