Medical school receives $1.2 million grant from City of Columbia to tackle homelessness

Helping the homeless obtain permanent housing is the goal of a $1.2 million grant from the City of Columbia to the University of South Carolina School of Medicine.

The formal announcement Friday (March 14) by Columbia Mayor Bob Coble creates Housing First, a program that will place 25 homeless people into apartments and homes in the city of Columbia beginning in April.

Housing First, implemented in cities throughout the United States, differs from many programs for the homeless because of its emphasis on providing people with permanent housing, rather than temporary placement in shelters, and supportive services, including counseling, transportation, employment placement and legal services.

“The City of Columbia is pleased that the department of medicine at the University of South Carolina’s medical school was chosen to implement the city’s pilot Housing First program,” Coble said.

“We have worked with the department of medicine on other projects and have respect for the department’s professionalism and abilities,” he said. “We look forward to a successful Housing First program that will not only benefit those served in the program, but will benefit the larger Columbia community.”

University of South Carolina President Andrew Sorensen said Housing First is a comprehensive approach to helping the homeless and involves more than giving people a place to live.

“The grant to our university’s School of Medicine will ensure that people have a wide range of services and support,” he said. “With its counseling, healthcare and case-management expertise, the University of South Carolina School of Medicine is in an excellent position to make a difference in the lives of these individuals and, as Mayor Coble has stressed, the community.”

David Parker, director of Supportive Housing Services at the university’s medical school, said Columbia is the first Housing First program to have a medical school coordinate services for the clients.

As the lead agency, Supportive Housing Services will provide care and coordination. The Housing Authority brings years of experience in housing management to the program, with an established reputation for excellent programs, he said.

Emphasis will be on providing housing and services for the city’s chronically homeless people, defined as those who are alone and have a disabling condition, such as developmental disability, chronic physical illness, mental illness or diagnosable substance abuse disorder. The program will focus on providing services specifically to those who are not eligible for more traditional programs, Parker said.

The supportive services component of Housing First, known as the Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) team, will serve the needs of participants seven days a week, 24 hours a day, he said.

“The ACT team is a crucial component of Housing First,” Parker said. “People on this team have expertise and skill in employment placement, alcohol- and drug-abuse counseling, permanent housing, government benefits and other important needs of those who have been homeless. Their goal is to assist our Housing First clients in finding employment and transportation, maintaining their healthcare and medication and addressing any other needs.”

Cities that have had success with Housing First have found that individuals eventually end their homelessness or at least make important changes to keep the housing that Housing First has provided, he said.

“Other cities have seen cost savings by comparing the cost of emergency services for the homeless and the cost of the same types of services for people once they are housed,” he said.

With approximately 1,700 homeless people in Columbia, Housing First is an important step in changing the way that homeless people receive assistance and the city responds to their needs.

“What we learn from this program will provide the foundation for the types of services and housing that are planned in the future,” Parker said. “Having the university’s medical school involved will be invaluable for the healthcare needs of the clients that Housing First serves.”