CMHA Ottawa Housing

1
CMHA Ottawa Housing

• Dwane UnRuh,
• Senior Manager, Housing
• CMHA Ottawa
• April 4, 2008
• CHRA Conference

2
Housing First

• Housing First and CMHA Ottawas Philosophy
• Housing First versus Other Models
• Evidence Base
• The Right Thing Anyway (Consumer Preference
  Surveys)

3
William Anthony on Choice in Housing

• No doubt one of the biggest failures of this
  decade is how we continue to wall out people who
  are homeless and disabled.
• For example, when people with disabilities want
  to work, for the most part we try to help them
  obtain work. When people with disabilities want
  treatment, for the most part we try to help them
  obtain treatment. In contrast, when people who
  are disabled and homeless want a place to live,
  what do we do for them? We get them a case
  manager!

4
Supported Housing Model at CMHA Features

• Supports and Housing Model
• Direct Tenant Leasing
• No Special Restrictions in Lease
• Integrated, Comprehensive Supports
• Range of supports
• Intensive Case Management
• Concurrent Disorders Treatment

5
CMHA Housing First Portfolio over 200
partnership units

• Approx. 230 units are Special Referral Agreements
  with Non-Profit Housing Providers and For-Profit
  Landlords
• 23 units with Ottawa Community Housing
• 20 units with CCOC
• Over 100 units with Private For-Profit Landlords
• All the units are self-contained and scattered,
  except 6 units that are in a designated building,
  of which 4 are semi-bachelor, not entirely
  self-contained
• Many of the units have been occupied since 2000

6
Housing Portfolio 27 Condo Units

• 27 condominium units
• 22 of these purchased with Ministry of Health and
  Long-Term Care HIF dollars
• 2.2 million dollars capital expenditure (approx.
  100,000 per unit)
• Only owner-occupied
• Require rent supplements from City of Ottawa to
  operate
• Located across the city, easy access to buses
• Most with amenities some with swimming pool,
  in-unit laundry, exercise room, one with Jacuzzi
• Some units occupied since July 2003
• Units have been added gradually over the period
  July 2003 to April 2004
• 5 units added last year with federal SCPI Capital
  funding and MOHLTC rent supplements

7
A Condo Building
8
A Condo Building
9
A Unit in a Condo
10
A Unit in a Condo
11
UH OH
12
CMHA Tenants

• Clients are Among the Most Complex
• SMI Addictions
• Other Complicating Features

13
Addictions among Tenants (n 126)

• Insert
• Quote, Graph or Picture
• Here

14
People in the Housing Units Primary Diagnosis
15
People in the Housing Units Previous Housing
2003 Snapshot
16
Multidisciplinary Support _at_ CMHA
17
Concurrent Disorders Program

• Two components to the Concurrent Disorder program
• Treatment.
• Concurrent Disorder training.

18
Concurrent Disorders Treatment Groups

• Program began in 2001 with 2 groups
• In 2004 program had grown to 10 groups
• Currently 15 groups operating weekly
• CMHA partnered with 5 addiction agencies

19
Reflective of best practice in the field

• Best Practices Concurrent Mental Health and
  Substance Use Disorders (2001) Prepared by the
  Centre for Addiction and Mental Health for Health
  Canada. This publication is available on line at
  the following address www.cds-sca.com
• Components of integrated treatment from Mueser,
  K. T., Noodsy, D.L., Drake, R.E., Fox, L.,
  (2003). Integrated Treatment for Dual Disorders
  A Guide to Effective Practice. New York
  Guilford Press.

20
Research

• Promising Practice (Debra Rog, 2005)
• HUD directives
• Sam Tsemberis, studies
• Replication of studies going on
• Seattle
• Portland
• San Francisco
• Phillip Mangano
• Nelson, Lafrance Aubry, Lit. Review
• Tim Aubry, Risk Factors and Behaviours Among
  Homeless Persons Effectiveness of Intensive Case
  Management in Reducing Housing Instability for
  Persons with Severe Mental Illness

21
What Do the Landlords Want?
22
Conclusion

• Some client stories
• Housing Impact Team Model