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The City of Long Beach Homeless Assessment
A comprehensive one-on-one interview survey will be conducted within the 30-days following the physical count. The survey will be designed to collect demographic information as well as assess service needs using questions in such areas as Ethnicity, Age, Residency, Income, Education, Familial Status, Health Care and Nutrition, Domestic Violence, Substance Abuse History, Mental Health History, etc. The survey will be completed to compile information concerning each of the sub-populations listed in the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Continuum of Care Gaps Analysis Chart including: Chronic Substance Abusers, Seriously Mentally Ill, Dually-Diagnosed, Veterans, Persons with HIV/AIDS, Victims of Domestic Violence, and Youth.
The one-on-one survey will be administered to a representative sample of the homeless population living on the streets, using homeless services, or living in a residential homeless program. A representative sample will consist of at least 25% of the total number of people counted on the designated day. There will be two primary methods of contact with homeless persons to participate in the survey. They will be: i) interviews with homeless street dwellers; and ii) interviews with homeless shelter/transitional housing residents and homeless persons using non-residential services.
Interviews With Homeless Street Dwellers
The one-on-one survey will be administered to a number of street dwellers that is at least equal to 25% of the total number of homeless persons counted on the streets during the designated day of the count. Teams of trained interviewers would go out to pre-identified homeless encampments and other pre-identified locations to conduct a designated number of surveys. Incentives would be provided to potential interviewees to encourage participation in the survey process.
Interviews With Homeless Persons in Facilities and Programs
The one-on-one survey will be administered to a number of homeless persons living in homeless service facilities and using non-residential service programs that is at least equal to 25% of the total number of homeless persons counted in facilities and programs during the designated day of the count. Trained volunteers and service provider staff would go would go to pre-identified locations to conduct a designated number of surveys. Incentives would be provided to potential interviewees to encourage participation in the survey process.
The questionnaire/survey instrument will be administered by trained interviewers. In other words the survey will not be self-administered (completed by homeless persons). Training interviewers to administer the survey increases the accuracy of answers. Also, interviewers are then able to provide useful evaluation information.
A broad range of questions will be included in the questionnaire/survey instrument that will gather information concerning sub-populations. The questions will help collect information concerning each of the sub-populations listed in the Continuum of Care Gaps Analysis Chart that the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requires for the County's Continuum of Care grant submission each year. Sub-populations for 2002 include: Chronic Substance Abusers, Seriously Mentally Ill, Dually-Diagnosed, Veterans, Persons with HIV/AIDS, Victims of Domestic Violence, and Youth.
The categories and proposed related number of questions are noted in the table below.
|
Category
|
# of Proposed Questions Per Category
|
| Sub-Population* |
|
|
Persons w/HIV/AIDS
|
12 |
|
Persons w/Mental Illness
|
20 |
|
Persons w/Substance Abuse Needs
|
14 |
|
Veterans
|
7 |
|
Victims of Domestic Violence
|
10 |
|
|
63 |
| Personal Information |
|
|
Disability
|
3 |
| Education |
4 |
| Foster Care |
2 |
| Geo-History |
15 |
| Health Status |
18 |
| Income |
2 |
| Physical Characteristics |
3 |
| Sub-Total: |
47 |
| Grand Total: |
110 |
*Data concerning the Sub-populations of children/teens and seniors can be obtained through the existing question concerning age.
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