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Adopting Best Practices: Lessons Learned in the Collaborative Initiative to Help End Chronic Homelessness (CICH)

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Abstract

The Collaborative Initiative to Help End Chronic Homelessness (CICH) was established to provide housing and supportive services for individuals experiencing chronic homelessness. As part of this initiative, 11 projects across the country received funding to apply models of best practices to support their clients in housing. This paper reports on the experiences of the CICH projects in their use of Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) and Motivational Interviewing (MI), clinical practice models commonly used by CICH projects. A qualitative analysis identified five areas of challenge for the projects: (1) Incomplete and underdeveloped staff teams; (2) Incomplete understanding of the practice models; (3) Using the elements of the practice models; (4) Interagency teaming; and (5) Competing expectations of multiple federal agencies. The paper describes the specific challenges in each of the five areas as well as training approaches and gaps in training and the perceived benefits of the practice models as reported by project staff.

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Acknowledgements

The authors dedicate this paper to the memory of Deborah J. Allness, MSSW. With her colleagues, Deborah was a founder and proponent of the Program of Assertive Community Treatment. She was a tireless advocate for improving the quality of services for individuals with mental health conditions. Deborah was an important source of information and guidance for the CICH program. The authors also acknowledge the diligent support and guidance from James Herrell, Ph.D of SAMHSA (retired).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. New England Research Institutes, 9 Galen Street, Watertown, MA, 02472, USA

    Sarah A. McGraw PhD, Mary Jo Larson PhD, MPA, Elizabeth M. Botelho MS & Emily A. Elstad MPH

  2. National Center on Family Homelessness, 181 Wells Avenue, Newton, MA, 02459, USA

    Susan E. Foster MPH, MSSW

  3. The CDM Group, Inc., 7500 Old Georgetown Rd, Bethesda, MD, 20814, USA

    Marilyn Kresky-Wolff MPH, MSW

  4. Columbia University, New York, NY, USA

    Ana Stefancic MA

  5. Pathways to Housing, New York, NY, USA

    Sam Tsemberis PhD

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  1. Sarah A. McGraw PhD
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Correspondence to Sarah A. McGraw PhD.

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McGraw, S.A., Larson, M.J., Foster, S.E. et al. Adopting Best Practices: Lessons Learned in the Collaborative Initiative to Help End Chronic Homelessness (CICH). J Behav Health Serv Res 37, 197–212 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11414-009-9173-3

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