Presenter

Presentation Notes

Overview of Housing ServicesThe Region of Peel’s Housing Services provides a range of supports to assist residents experiencing homelessness and those in urgent need of housing to achieve stability - our focus is on helping people to get and keep safe, affordable housing.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, these services have been adapted to meet the needs of the community while protecting the health of our clients.

2

COVID-19 responseHousing Services is working with community partners to:

• Protect our clients• Respond to the pandemic• Sustain the response

Goals • Reduce risk of transmission of the virus in the community• Provide primary care to individuals who may not otherwise be

connected to the health care system• Reduce impact to local hospitals

Key partnerships to support response• Intersectoral partnerships - with medical, health and social

service partners; share updates, issues/gaps and solutions

• Internal partnerships with Housing Services, TransHelp, Paramedics, Public Heath and Health Services

• Community Response Table of 160 non-profit agencies, community partners, municipalities and organizations that share information regularly

4

Protect

Education and supplies

• Protection protocols - Peel Human Services and Public Health collaborated to develop protocols and resources to support services during COVID-19

• PPE - Peel provided service providers with Personal Protective Equipment and guidance on use

• Resources - Service Providers have made resources accessible to clients on practices to mitigate virus transmission and self-assessment

Protect

6

Prevent

• Use of hotels and other temporary sites to reduce shelter occupancy and ensure physical distancing

• Screening and testing – intake screening to identify and direct care appropriately– daily health checks in facilities to monitor for possible cases– Peel Regional Paramedics provides testing

of people without shelter suspected of having COVID-19

• PPE for front line workers

Protect

Prevent

• Enhanced cleaning guidelines for shelters and drop-in programs– Region of Peel and residential service providers established

enhanced cleaning guidelines and hired cleaning support to comply with Infection Prevention and Control guidelines

• Signage and posters (e.g., physical distancing)

• Peelregion.ca/housing includes COVID-19 response guidelines and signage for shelters and service partners

Protect

8

Screening, testing and transportation

• Screening - to control the spread of COVID-19, the homelessness service providers have implemented screening measures prior to initial intake or meeting to identify anyone who may have COVID-19 so that they can be directed appropriately

• Daily health checks - Residential service providers in the homelessness serving system implement daily health checks to monitor for any possible COVID-19 cases already in the facilities

Protect

• Testing - Region of Peel has partnered with Peel Regional Paramedics to provide testing of homeless persons suspected of having COVID-19

• Transportation - A partnership established with TransHelp to provide compulsory transportation to individuals suspected of having COVID-19 or those who have tested positive

Protect

10

Screening, testing and transportation

Interim services

Region of Peel has partnered with homelessness service providers in the community to provide supports that have been disrupted by the closure of non-essential businesses, including:

• Drop-in centres• Snacks• Restrooms• Showers• Laundry

Protect

Respond

COVID-19 isolation and recovery

• Prevention includes use of temporary emergency housing for homeless individuals to self-isolate and recover

• Holistic wraparound health and social service care provided, including medical services, mental health and primary health care

Respond

COVID-19 isolation program

• Isolation Program offers temporary accommodation of individuals and families suspected of having COVID-19

• Residents are provided with daily medical monitoring by Peel Paramedics

• The Salvation Army staff provide service planning and coordination

• Extensive protocols are in place to prevent any direct or indirect contact with other persons

Respond

14

• Temporary supportive accommodations and medical supports for people who are experiencing homelessness and test positive for COVID-19

• The Program is overseen by a Medical Director

• The first site opened in April 2020 for single individuals (16+), and was relocated in June to support singles and families

COVID-19 recovery programRespond

Isolation and recovery program partners

The Program is delivered in partnership with:• Region of Peel Housing Services• Regeneration• Region of Peel Health Services

– Medical Director– Nurse Practitioner

• Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) Peel-Dufferin• Services and Housing in the Province (SHIP)• Central West and Mississauga Halton Local Health Integration

Network (LHIN)• The Salvation Army• Peel Regional Paramedic Services• TransHelp

Respond

16

• Established medical care partnership with a Palliative Care Physician, Nurse Practitioner, Regeneration, and the CMHA Peel Dufferin

• The partners involved in the Isolation and Recovery programs will work together to provide holistic, wrap around supports to residents

• This includes identifying the social, housing and healthcare supports needed during their stay and after discharge

• The partners will work with residents to ensure short or long-term accommodations are in place

• The lessons learned from this approach will help to inform the design of Peel’s Coordinated Access System

System-level coordination of supports Respond

Objective - to reduce shelter occupancy and provide permanent housing, supporting the most vulnerable in the community through permanent housing supports:

• Permanent housing - working with landlord partners to identify and expedite housing opportunities to re-house some shelter residents

• Housing allowances - a fixed number of housing allowances are being made available to eligible residents based on need and circumstances ranging from short term to longer term supports

• Needs based supports - under Peel’s 10 Year Housing and Homelessness Plan (PHHP), Region of Peel is able to administer housing allowances based on need and not application date

Regional housing allowancesRespond

18

Sustain

Leveraging funding and advocate

• Leverage funding - to address the expansion of services, the Region will leverage all available funding to continue providing supports while housing vulnerable people

– As part of the Peel Housing and Homelessness Plan, the Region will continue to re-assess existing funding and re-allocate to meet community needs

• Advocate – the Region continues to advocate for ongoing federal and provincial investments

Sustain

20

Sustain-moving forward

• Shift to post-COVID-19 planning to sustain current operations and new services while continuing to house people

• Document lessons learned to inform Emergency Response Plan for the sector

• Implement long term responses (e.g., medical model at emergency shelters)

• Focus on permanent and innovative housing solutions

• Implement a Coordinated Access System

• Keep the momentum going!

Sustain

Response 2020 timeline

22