Blueprint for Change: Ending Chronic
Homelessness for Persons with Serious
Mental Illnesses and Co-Occurring Substance Use Disorders

Using This Report

This Blueprint for Change is divided into eight chapters that comprise four sections: Before You Begin, Plan for Services, Organize Services, and Sustain Services. These sections reflect four action steps that states and communities can take to prevent or end homelessness among people with serious mental illnesses, including those with co-occurring substance use disorders (also referred to in this text as people with serious mental illnesses or co-occurring disorders). Each chapter presents current knowledge and specific strategies designed to carry out the action steps. A brief description of the contents of each chapter follows.

Chapter 1: Understand the Changing Context of Care and the Nation’s Response

This chapter outlines the current state of community-based treatment for people with serious mental illnesses and/or co-occurring substance use disorders. It also highlights the Federal response to homelessness for this vulnerable group.

Chapter 2: Learn About the Population

This chapter examines the characteristics of people with serious mental illnesses and/or co-occurring substance use disorders who become homeless, and the barriers they face to regaining mental and residential stability and sobriety.

Chapter 3: Establish Core Values

This chapter highlights the concept and practice of recovery and outlines a set of both person-centered and system-level values that must be the foundation for service delivery and systems change.

Chapter 4: Establish a Comprehensive, Integrated System of Care

This chapter provides a set of principles and mechanisms designed to help build coalitions, integrate services, and effect systems change.

Chapter 5: Finance a Comprehensive System of Care

This chapter provides an overview of funding sources for housing and supportive services, and principles to access and use these resources in the community.

Chapter 6: Use Evidence-Based and Promising Practices

This chapter highlights a set of evidence-based and promising practices that respond to the housing, treatment, and support service needs of people with serious mental illnesses and/or co-occurring substance use disorders who are homeless.

Chapter 7: Measure Results

This chapter examines the need to ensure accountability in an integrated system of care by demonstrating measurable results and performing ongoing monitoring and quality assurance.

Chapter 8: Use Mainstream Resources to Serve People Who Are Homeless

This chapter highlights the range of mainstream resources available to people who are homeless and ways to make mainstream programs both accessible and accountable to them.

Using this Report to Plan, Organize, and Sustain Services for People with Serious Mental illnesses or Co-occurring Disorders Who Are Homeless

Chapter	Key Lessons
Section I. BEFORE YOU BEGIN
Understand the Changing Context of Care and the Nation’s Response	Understand how treatment for serious mental illnesses and substance use disorders has evolved Study the Nation’s response
Learn About the Population	Recognize individual risk factors Explore service system challenges Learn about societal risk factors
Establish Core Values	Understand the concept and practice of recovery Support values that put people first Create a system that supports recovery
Section II. PLAN FOR SERVICES
Establish a Comprehensive, Integrated System of Care	Develop the infrastructure for systems change Engage in strategic planning Participate in community-wide planning
Finance a Comprehensive System of Care	Streamline existing funding Secure additional resources Leverage new funds
Section III. ORGANIZE SERVICES
Use Evidence-Based and Promising Practices	Adopt or adapt evidence-based practices Offer a comprehensive set of essential services Make use of Federal resources, including toolkits, TIPS,¹ and CAG² and TCE³ grants
Section IV. SUSTAIN SERVICES
Measure Results	Measure client-level outcomes Measure system-level outcomes Use management information systems
Use Mainstream Resources to Serve People Who Are Homeless	Use mainstream resources to prevent homelessness Improve access to mainstream programs Expand the capacity of mainstream programs Promote coordination and collaboration Build the infrastructure of housing and services Create public awareness

¹Treatment Improvement Protocols

²Community Action Grant

³Targeted Capacity Expansion

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Blueprint for Change: Ending Chronic Homelessness for Persons with Serious Mental Illnesses and Co-Occurring Substance Use Disorders

Using This Report

Blueprint for Change: Ending Chronic
Homelessness for Persons with Serious
Mental Illnesses and Co-Occurring Substance Use Disorders