January 2025 Newsletter

Monthly HMIS Calendar

Reminder! SaaS Transition Occurring 1/18!

HMIS will soon be transitioning to a "Software as a Service" (SaaS) model, wherein the HMIS database will be moved to a new storage location that is maintained by our vendor, CaseWorthy.


The official date of this transition will be Saturday, January 18th, starting at 9:00 AM. The HMIS Team will be working over the holiday weekend to ensure the changeover goes smoothly and there are no issues with accessing the system. We will notify users when the system goes down for the update.


How will this change impact Users?


We expect very few changes from the Users' point-of-view. The database will look and act the exact same, and the HMIS Team will still be completing our usual duties. After the transition, there will be new URLs for HMIS. We strongly suggest saving the new URLs to have on hand. We will also be updating the HMIS Team website's Login page to reflect the new URLs at the earliest opportunity.


New HMIS URL - Production/Live: https://prod.caseworthy.com/havenforhope_prod.caseworthy


New HMIS URL - Training

https://train.caseworthy.com/HavenForHope_Train.caseworthy


Also, because the CaseWorthy Team will now be handling System Updates, maintenance will now be completed every other Monday at 10:00 PM Central. The HMIS Team will still be communicating scheduled updates as usual.


Will this affect reports due in January?


We do not anticipate any major issues with HMIS reporting functions, either in Custom or Baseline reports. However, we encourage agencies to submit any data reports before January 18th just in case we do encounter any errors affecting this area.

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As usual, please feel free to submit any errors you find to HMIS.Support@Havenforhope.org. We will also send reminders as the transition date gets closer.


Multi-Factor Authentication Coming Soon to HMIS!

Beginning soon after the SaaS transition, HMIS will also be integrating multi-factor authentication for all user logins. When logging in, users will be prompted to submit a one-time passcode sent to either the cell number or email address on file for the account. This decision was made to better protect the individuals we serve by adding yet another layer of security to the sensitive details we collect.


We encourage all users to review their HMIS Contact Information during the month of January and ensure their phone numbers are up to date, otherwise they may experience difficulties accessing their account once MFA is activated.


To review and change your HMIS Contact Information, to go "MY CASWORTHY" > "My Info" > verify your info > "Save".


The cell number used for your account does not need to be a work-provided number, and it will not be used to contact you other than providing you with the one-time passcode. The numbers saved to your account will not be shown anywhere in HMIS, nor will they be included in HMIS User Lists requested for internal audits.


If you do not have a mobile phone capable of receiving text messages, or for other reasons will not be able to accept work-related text messages, the Cell Phone text-box should be left blank, and your account will default to sending the authentication code to your email on file. Once a login is successfully authenticated, the device will be registered for 14 days.


The official date for this update will be Monday, March 3rd. We will send reminders in the coming months to give due warning beforehand.

2025 Point-in-Time/Housing Inventory Count

The Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) Team will be providing PIT/HIC live webinar training on:

·        Wed. January 22, 2025 at 2pm-3pm

·        Thurs. January 23, 2025 at 11am-12pm

A link to the Teams webinar will be sent to agency POC's with a training guide on how to run reports.

 

The Point-in-Time (PIT) count is a count of sheltered and unsheltered people experiencing homelessness. HUD requires each Continuum of Care (CoC) to conduct an annual count in the last 10 days of January. This year's count will be the night of Tues. January 28, 2025.


  • Unsheltered count -Persons living in a Place not meant for Habitation.
  • Conducted by Close to Home (CTH) every year.
  • Done by community volunteers that go out on the night of the count to survey persons living on the streets, in vehicles, abandon buildings, etc.


  • Sheltered count -Persons in shelter (ES, SH and TH only)
  • Collected using HMIS data.
  • Non-HMIS project client count data are collected by CTH.

 

The HMIS PIT Report is used to collect information about all sheltered homeless individuals within the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS).

The following project types are included, regardless of funding source:


  • ES: Emergency Shelters
  • SH: Safe Haven
  • TH: Transitional Housing


On Wed. January 29th, run the PIT report for all your projects.


  • Review the client list to ensure all the clients should be counted.
  • Click client level drilldown, if needed.
  • Verify Household composition:
  • Households with at Least One Adult and One Child
  • Households without Children
  • Children Only Households, if applicable.
  • Review and verify all Demographics (age, race, etc.), Chronic Homeless status, Veteran information and Youth (Parenting and Unaccompanied)

·        

  • Export the Parent Report to excel and send it to CTH:


o   Alfonzo Galvan at alfonzogalvan@closetohomesa.org

o   Joshua Yates at joshuayates@closetohomesa.org

 

Housing Inventory Count (HIC) is the count of our CoC’s housing capacity and inventory. It is the total count of units and beds in housing projects in our community, regardless of whether they enter data into HMIS or not.


All agencies in our CoC, who’s main focus is to serve homelessness (homelessness has to be the criteria and main focus of the agency) will submit their project’s bed and unit inventory information to HUD (via CTH).


The HIC collects information about all the beds and units in each Continuum of Care homeless system, categorized by Project Types. Beds and units reported in the HIC are dedicated to serving homeless persons, or for permanent housing projects, dedicated for persons who were homeless at entry.


The bed and unit inventory in HMIS must match the bed and unit inventory reported on the HIC (In HUD's Homelessness Database Exchange -HDX 2.0).


The following project types are included, regardless of funding source:

  • ES: Emergency Shelters
  • TH: Transitional Housing
  • SH: Safe Haven
  • PH: Permanent Housing
  • PSH: Permanent Supportive Housing
  • RRH: Rapid Re-housing
  • OPH: Other Permanent Housing

Prior to Tues. Jan. 28th, run the HIC report for all your projects.

  • Verify Bed and Unit capacity of each household type:
  • Households w/Children
  • Households w/o Children
  • Children Only Households
  • Verify Client’s Move-In Dates are entered correctly. -All Permanent Housing project types (RRH, PH, PSH) are required to have a Move-In Date. 

o   Run the ‘Missing Move-In Date’ Report to see who is missing their Move-in Date.

  • Review the sheltered PIT Counts by Program information
  • Click client level drilldown, if needed.
  • If you find your HIC bed/unit inventory needs to be updated, please submit a ticket to the HMIS Team at HMIS.Support@havenforhope.org

 

On Wed. Jan. 29th, run the HIC report for all your projects.

·        Export the Parent Report to excel and send it to CTH:

o  Alfonzo Galvan at alfonzogalvan@closetohomesa.org

o  Joshua Yates at joshuayates@closetohomesa.org

New Privacy Notice Approved by Board

Last month, the CoC board formally approved a new HMIS Privacy Notice with updated verbiage. The changes made reflect new HUD standards for notifying HMIS clients of their rights and of how their data will be used.


As a reminder, in order to remain in compliance with the HMIS Policies and Procedures, agencies must follow all of the below items:


  • Participating agencies must post a copy of the Privacy Notice at each workstation where client data is gathered and entered.


  • Outreach workers inform clients about the Privacy Notice and provide a copy, if requested.


  • The participating agency will post the Privacy Notice to its website, if one exists. '


  • The participating agency should include in the Privacy Notice the contact information for their agency HMIS Security Officer for purposes of seeking additional information or submitting complaints.


Agencies will be required to update all posted notices as soon as possible. Agency HMIS Security Officers will be asked to verify compliance individually.


Click the button below to view the updated document. Each agency should include in the footer any contact information the agency can provide for requesting privacy info or complaint submissions. Should agencies have any questions about the new notice or any HMIS Privacy Policy, please email the HMIS Security & Compliance Specialist at Ashley.Boyer@havenforhope.org.

Privacy Notice
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HMIS Team

VP of Transformational Services | David Huete

HMIS Director | Nina Gall

HMIS Business Systems Analyst | Jenni Hernandez

HMIS Security & Compliance Specialist | Ashley Boyer

HMIS Training Coordinator | Gloria Collins

HMIS Systems Administrator | Spencer Walker

HMIS Database Administrator| Villian Asong

HMIS Data Analyst | Jose Marines

HMIS Application Support Specialist | James Moses

HMIS Senior Data Analyst | Lori Stewart

HMIS Data Quality Analyst | Tracie Dixon

Why am I receiving this email?

If you are receiving this email, it is because you either have an active San Antonio/Bexar County HMIS account, or you are designated as an important point-of-contact for HMIS-related updates. As an HMIS User, it is important for you to stay up-to-date on all major updates regarding the database.


We ask that you do not Unsubscribe from these alerts as long as you use HMIS.


If you believe this description no longer applies to you, please submit a ticket to HMIS.Support@Havenforhope.org to request your account be deactivated.


(Our Contact lists are uploaded on a monthly basis, so please allow time to account for this.)