Case Management Case Study:
Helping to House San Diegans

Homelessness in San Diego County has increased 10 percent since January 2020, according to the San Diego Regional Task Force on Homelessness. The actual number is likely much higher, officials said, and it could worsen as pandemic housing subsidies and protections expire.  As more people need services, the San Diego Housing Commission realized it needed to

  • Invest in rapid rehousing programs that help prevent long-term homelessness
  • Reduce the time case works spent on administrative activities so they would have more time to help people

Case Management

A typical case manager workload is often working with dozens of clients.  The case manager needs to collect hundreds of data points – from a person’s birth date to job history.  Sometimes, the new information is compared to what is in the County’s Homeless Management Information System (HMIS).  Other times, the information needs to be entered on multiple forms so people can participate in  state and federal  Information about housing units is often in Yardi, software made for landlords.

CloudBase Services reviewed these processes and created an application to streamline operations.  The application generates forms for case managers and people needing housing – reducing the time people wait for housing.   The app. makes it easy to see what services clients need and provide them more quickly.  This screen prevents critical information – with color highlighting the status of various activities.

The app. is available from CloudBase Services.  For  organizations that use Excel spreadsheets and emails to share information, the app can significantly reduce the paperwork and tracking involved in case management.

CloudBase Services worked with SDHC to streamline their business process & create a set of easy-to-use, online data collection forms.

“With staffing issues, we had to be able to have access to case data and be able to give access to cover case management efficiently and effectively. Without one place for everyone to work out of, we couldn’t have kept up with the demand.” – Said somebody somewhere

The San Diego Housing Commission (SDHC) has earned a national reputation as a model public housing agency, creating innovative programs that provide housing opportunities for individuals and families with low income or experiencing homelessness in the City of San Diego.

Innovation

With the CloudBase app, SDHC managers have information at their fingertips.

This chart compares the time it takes staff to find housing for people with a specific type of need.

 

 

 

This chart compares the case load of staff.

 

 

The data on the charts is updated whenever staff enter new information – eliminating the need to create reports for monthly meetings and reducing team discussions about who is serving the most clients and resolving cases most quickly.

San Diego Housing Commission saw:

  • Twenty percent reduction in workload by automatically generated
  • Swifter case resolution with better delegation and time management.
  • Increased transparency of data across cases and initiatives.

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With real-time updates and quick access to information, the San Diego Housing Commission helps the most vulnerable of people in San Diego’s to find housing more quickly.

 

Work Cited

Warth, Gary. “Homeless count up 10% in San Diego County. ‘More miserable out there than I have seen in years.’” The San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 May 2022, https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/homelessness/story/2022-05-19/despite-more-shelters-outreach-programs-homelessness-on-rise-in-san-diego. Accessed 30 May 2022.

 

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