Housing First Fidelity Review

About this Service:

Research and over 1000 academic articles and studies have shown that the more closely a Housing First program stays in fidelity to the model, the greater the positive outcomes. A fidelity review is an opportunity to have objective, external eyes get to know various aspects of a program to determine its level of fidelity and then provide feedback. This would include reinforcement of the ways in which the program is in line with HF and effectively incorporating those elements and making recommendations about things that could improve program fidelity and in turn, increase positive outcomes. It is also an opportunity to identify systemic challenges making the Housing First efforts and keeping in fidelity more of a struggle.  

 

 

 

Instructor Led (In-person and virtual options)

Service Audience:

This service is appropriate for:

  • Any program or agency claiming to be an official Housing First program who would like to obtain validation of their claim or who would like to understand areas for improvement to obtain more positive outcomes. 
  • Any program that would like to become an official Housing First program and would like to see areas where they would require adjustments and improvement. 
  • Any organization or system funding Housing First programs that would like to invest in the improvement of fidelity to the Housing First model and in turn obtain more positive participant outcomes.  

Service Length:

In-Person: 2 days (16 hrs) – Pre and post onsite work: 2 Days

  • The review team would like up to 30 days post onsite time to complete draft report, obtain feedback, and finalize review report.

Virtual: To be discussed

Required Staff for Review:

  • All staff involved in direct service of program participants
  • Managers and direct supervisors involved in day-to-day operations of the program

Service Objectives:

This process will result in: 

  • Ongoing feedback and support during the review process. 
  • Insight into best practices for Housing First programs 
  • The opportunity to complete a self-assessment and learn the perspectives of their own team 
  • A full report noting highlights and recommendations, which can assist the program in team and outcome improvements as well as an advocacy tool within their community and/or region.  
  • A greater understanding of the principles and philosophy of Housing First 
  • A better knowledge of how to be recovery-oriented and participant-driven in their work

Service Prerequisite Onboarding Modules:

Mandatory: None
Beneficial Options: Access here 
– Trauma-Informed Care and Practice: The Basics (FEE REQUIRED)
– Coordinated Access 101 (FEE REQUIRED)
– Homelessness 101 (FREE)
– Housing First 101 (FREE)

Training Costs:

Please inquire using the “Request More Info” button to the right regarding fees. Please note that all fees quoted should be considered an “all-inclusive” cost which means there would be not additionl costs for travel, prep, admin, or other items added to the rate provided to you with the exception of provincial tax. 

Members: A system, community, or organization can become a “Member”  by purchasing an annual subscription to self-paced online onboarding modules. Discounts on live training are available determined by the subscription package chosen. (See “Onboarding Module” section here).

A CAEH TTA Fidelity Review Contains Three components.

  1. Initial information gathering 
    1. Program Self-Assessment 
    2. Documentation review 
    3. Review planning   
  2. Review
      1. Team meeting observation
      2. Staff interviews
      3. Participant focus group
      4. Partner interviews
      5. Home visit shadowing
      6. File review
      7. Team debriefing
  3. Post Review
    1. Review team checklist scoring 
    2. Review team collaboration 
    3. Writing of review report 
    4. Draft report review with program 
    5. Finalizing the report (External team scoring comparison with program self-assessment, Identification of strengths in fidelity, Identification of challenges along with recommendations for addressing,  Identification of system factors contributing to both strengths and challenges and associated recommendations) 

Fidelity reviews involve the time and energy of 3 TTA staff and typically require each of them to commit 2 days of work time where all items associated with #2 above will be completed.  

Having a team of three has shown to be effective in a few ways: 

  • Large enough review team to shorten the time frame of the review. 
  • Provide a varied set of perspectives making for a richer review process. 
  • Additional insight allows for a more accurate and robust collection of information. 
  • Small enough to keep costs lower.  

 REQUEST MORE INFO 

Subscribe

Go to our Newsletter sign up form to subscribe to the CAEH newsletter.

Subscribe

The CAEH TTA program is funded in part by the Government of Canada through the Community Capacity and Innovation funding stream of Reaching Home: Canada’s Homelessness Strategy.