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HMIS Data Standards

Updated

This portion of the Resource Center is intended to guide you through functionality specific to the HMIS Data Standards using a variety of resources, along with frequently asked questions. 


HMIS Data Standards Changes - FY2024 - Oct 1 2023 Update

In order to meet requirements for FY2024 Data Standards, the following AWARDS changes are effective for HMIS projects as of Sunday, October 1st 2023.   

You'll find detailed descriptions of the FY2024 Data Standards changes below, but if you'd prefer a walk-through we've got you covered!  Check out the following bite-sized Data Standards training films or watch the full webinar recording below.

In addition to these brief training videos, you can learn more about these changes by checking out these additional resources:

For more information on the data standards we also encourage you to read the  HMIS Data Standards Manual.  

 

Project Descriptor Data Elements

The following changes were made to "Project Descriptor Data Elements," which define how projects are set up in AWARDS using the Add/Edit Entire Program and Configure Data Elements features:  ‍

  • Emergency Shelter tracking method - Previously when the HMIS Project Type was set to "Emergency Shelter" a dependent Emergency Shelter Tracking Method option was made available. Now the HMIS Project Type instead includes the selections "Emergency Shelter - Night-by-Night" and "Emergency Shelter - Entry Exit," and mapping to the correct type has been done for the previous tracking values. Configure Data Elements has also been updated to reflect the new HMIS Project Types.

  • Identify RRH subtype - When the HMIS Project type is set to "PH - Rapid Re-Housing" a new Identify RRH subtype option is displayed and contains two selections - "RRH: Services Only" and "RRH: Housing with or without services." If the services only selection is made, the dependent "Affiliated with a residential project" option is also made available.

  • Funding sources - Obsolete/discontinued funding sources (“HUD: CoC – Joint Component RRH/PSH” and “HUD: Rural Housing Stability Assistance Program”) have been removed. New funding sources ("HUD:ESG RUSH" and "HUD:Unsheltered Special NOFO") have been added.

  • Participation status feature- A new feature to capture Participation Status has been added to System Setup > Agency Program Information. The Participation Status table holds the following: 

    • Coordinated Entry Participation Status - Each HMIS project should be indicated as Project is a Coordinated Entry Access Point "Yes," or "No," with follow up questions about  services provided, if the project receives referrals, and the status start date. Data entered here will be made available on the Agency Programs ReportBuilder, and is included on the CEParticipation.csv. 

      All active projects should be updated to reflect a value for this new option. Mapping has been done to indicate a “yes” for projects that have existing CE Assessments or CE Events, but CoC Leads will need to update the services offered.

    • HMIS Participation Status - Each HMIS project should be indicated as “Not Participating,” “HMIS participating,” or “Comparable Database Participating,” with a follow-up question about Participation Status start date. Data entered here will be made available on the Agency Programs ReportBuilder, and is included on the HMISParticipation.csv. 

      All active projects should be updated to reflect a value for this new option. However, mapping has been done to indicate “HMIS Participating” for projects that previously had 2.02 HMIS Participating Project = yes.

Data Elements

Changes to client-level data elements, known as "Universal Data Elements" and "Program Specific Data Elements" are as follows:

  • Client Refused - This response has been changed to Client prefers not to answer throughout all response lists.

  • Ethnicity - Ethnicity has been eliminated as a stand-alone question, and is now part of the Race data element. If a client had previously indicated they are "Hispanic/Latina/e/o," that is mapped to a new Race option. Additionally, "Middle Eastern or North African" has been added as a new Race option. All other options remain the same.

  • HMIS Gender - Some options have been relabeled and new options have been added. The full list is now:

  • Woman (Girl if child) - previously “Female”

  • Man (Boy if child) - previously “Male”

  • Non-Binary - previously “A gender that is not singularly 'Female' or 'Male'"

  • Culturally Specific Identity (e.g., Two-Spirit) - new

  • Transgender - no changes

  • Questioning - no changes

  • Different Identity - new; includes a text field that can be used to specify a different identity

  • Household Income as a Percentage of AMI - There were previously three selection options, the third of which has been split. The updated list is:

30% or less

31% to 50%

51% to 80%

81% or greater

 

  • Client Location - Previously, 3.16 Client Location was collected multiple times per client enrollment. Now, it is only collected once per client enrollment, at Intake/Admission, and the label is Enrollment CoC. Since it is only collected once per enrollment, there is no longer a need for it to be on its own csv; instead it will be on the Enrollment.csv.

  • HIV/AIDS Medical Assistance - The question “Receiving Public HIV/AIDS Medical Assistance” and its dependency “(If No) Reason” have both been removed from this section of Intake/Admission, HMIS Update, and Discharge.

  • Sexual Orientation - This question is now required for projects with funder "HUD: CoC – Permanent Supportive Housing," and workers will see the option as they do Intake/Admissions.

  • Well Being - This section is no longer required for CoC Permanent Supportive Housing programs and has been removed by default in Configure Data Elements. If there are programs for which you do still want it displayed, these can be set using Configure Data Elements on the Project level. 

  • Worst Housing Situation - Removed as a data element. This was originally designed for Rural Housing Stability Assistance Programs, but no RHSAP programs were ever funded and the program no longer exists.

  • Last Permanent Address - No longer required and thus hidden for programs with funding sources "VA: Supportive Services for Veteran Families" and "HUD: HUD/VASH."

  • SSVF Homeless Prevention Targeting Criteria - Minor changes have been made to the wording of some questions in this section. Of note, “History of literal homelessness (street/shelter/transitional housing) (any adult)” has changed to “Past experience of homelessness (street/shelter/transitional housing) (any adult).”

  • Translation Assistance - A new field for heads of households. If the answer is "yes," a dependent question is available to capture the Preferred Language. If the preferred language is not in the selection list, there is a field to type it in, for the moment, though additional languages can be enabled by reaching out to your CX Manager or Support. These fields are on the Enrollment.csv.

  • Destination - Minor changes have been made to display order and selection options. In addition, a new dependency question has been added - Rental Subsidy Type - which displays if "Rental by client, with ongoing housing subsidy" is selected.

  • Prior Living Situation - Minor changes have been made to display order. In addition, a new dependency question has been added - Rental Subsidy Type - which displays if "Rental by client, with ongoing housing subsidy" is selected.

  • Current Living Situation - Minor changes have been made to display order. In addition, a new dependency question has been added - Rental Subsidy Type - which displays if "Rental by client, with ongoing housing subsidy" is selected.

HMIS Coordinated Entry APR

The HMIS Coordinated Entry APR will be updated in AWARDS in October 2023.  Instructions for this report can be found here.

APR and CAPER Changes and Additions

As per revised report specifications, changes have been made to the CoC APR and ESG CAPER. These changes were put in place to accommodate the new HMIS Data Standards.  In addition, several new questions have been added including those about Translation Assistance. 

CSV Version Update

The CSV version used to transmit data between systems has changed from CSV FY2022 to CSV FY2024. AWARDS now only supports the new format CSV FY2024.

CSV Additions and Removal

CSV Exports, Imports, and Uploads have been changed to use the new FY2024 CSV version file sets. The biggest changes here are removal of the Enrollment.csv file, and addition of two new csv files - CEParticipation.csv and HMISParticipation.csv. These new files contain data from the Program Participation feature in AWARDS.

PATH ARS Updates

As per revised report specifications, minor changes are being made to the PATH ARS in October 2023. These changes accommodate the new HMIS Data Standards, apply minor clarifications, and clean up some items. Click here for instructions on running the PATH ARS.

 

 

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Can an HMIS client have overlapping admissions to two residential programs?

Yes, if one of the programs is a Permanent Housing program and the program is using the Housing Move In Date field(s).  The question, Has the Client Been Placed into Permanent Housing? must be set to "No" (on the admission form or in the HMIS Info Update portion of the client's face sheet), and the Housing Move In Date must be blank.  In residential projects where the Housing Move in Date field is present, clients will not be assigned to a bed/apartment until the leading question, Has the client been placed into Permanent Housing, is set to "Yes." Once a client has been assigned a residence unit then this section will become read only and corrections can only be made using Program History Corrections.  This allows Permanent Housing projects to admit clients as soon as they are accepted by a program, even if an apartment or unit is not yet available. "

  • Where do I locate the Victim Service Provider option?

The Victim Service Provider option can be found under System Setup > Agency Program Information > Continuum Provider Agency Information - or - Agency Information (depending on how your AWARDS database is configured).  A "Yes" or "No" selection should be made here for the entire agency.

  • Why does AWARDS say "not an annual update" when I try to do an HMIS Info Update using the anniversary of the client's admission?

AWARDS calculates household members' annual assessment dates based on the head of household's admission date rather than their own (if it was after the head of household's).

To make it clear when a client's HMIS Annual Update is due, the anniversary of the Head of Household's admission is automatically populated to two locations:

  • Face sheet > HMIS Info section > Date of relevant anniversary field
  • HMIS ReportBuilder > HMIS Info Updates section > Date of Relevant Anniversary (Update) data variable  
  • Why does the "Housing Move In Date" section display on the Intake/Admission form for some projects?

Housing Move in Date is a new section that is required for all Permanent Housing projects as of October 1st, 2017.  (Previously this section was known as Residential Move In Date, and was required only for Rapid Rehousing projects.)

When working with this portion of the Intake/Admission form, keep in mind the following:

  • "Housing Move In Date" is separate from "Project Start Date."
  • Project Start Date is the client's Admission Date and signifies that he/she is eligible for the program and has been approved for housing.
  • Housing Move In Date is the date the client actually moves into his/her apartment/housing.

The Housing Move In Date and Project Start Date may be the same day; however, Housing Move In usually happens later.

  • Housing Move In Date is turned on using Configure Data Elements.  It can be found both at Intake/Admission, and on the HMIS Info section of the Face Sheet when turned on. Users can fill in information in either location, but it is only saved once per enrollment; information entered in one location will override previously saved information.
  • When Housing Move In Date is turned on in a Residential project, the bed/unit assignment will no longer take place at admission; instead, it will take place when a Housing Move In Date is entered. The list of available Residence Units during data entry is based on available units on the Housing Move In Date. Non-Residential projects (such as Uploading projects) will not see the Residence Unit assignment.
  • Once a Housing Move In Date is entered this section becomes read-only, similar to how Admission Date becomes read-only after an admission is processed. If you want to make a correction to the Move In Date you will need to use the Program History Corrections tool.  Bed/Unit Swaps can still occur using the Housing Bed Swap feature; however, this feature is not used to change Move In Dates.
  • Error checking will prevent Housing Move In Dates that are before the Project Start Date (Admission Date), or after the client's Project Exit Date (Discharge Date). A client cannot be dually enrolled in two residential programs in the same division while in Housing; however, a client can be dually enrolled if they do not yet have a Housing Move In Date.
  • Reports that look at Housing History will pay attention to the Housing Move In Date to determine if the client was in housing.  Affected reports include:
    • Housing Report
    • Housing Utilization Report
    • Point In Time Report
    • HMIS Grantee APR
    • AHAR Report
  • This data element was deployed on 10/1/2017.  The Housing Move In Date for existing clients at the time of deployment was pre-populated with the client's Admission Date.  With this change in place, Rapid Re-Housing Projects are encouraged to switch to being set up as residential projects. Contact the Help Desk to have a project converted to a residential project.
  • Why doesn't a local CoC Admin see a client when running a report that involves a program the worker has access to?

If a client doesn't have Client Location (Continuum of Care) information filled out, then he/she won't be included on reports run by the worker.

  • Why don't I see a certain field?

The fields and options that are displayed by default are based on the HMIS Project Type and Funding Source associated with each project (as set under System Setup > Agency Program Information > Add/Edit Entire Program).

  • Why is "Disabling Condition" not editable on the HMIS Intake/Admission form?

If the client has already had an HMIS Info Update or a Discharge completed, the update needs to be made on the most recent form where Disabling Condition is available.  If it has already been filled out more recently on a different form, the Intake/Admission form will let you know which form with an indicator in parentheses below the Disabling Condition field label.  For example:  "(Value saved on the latest collection stage:  HMIS Info Annual Update 11/02/2018)."  Additionally, during a new Intake/Admission, if any of the Special Needs questions that would result in a disabling condition are answered "yes," then Disabling Condition will auto calculate to "Yes" and be read-only.

 

  • Why isn't AWARDS auto-calculating "chronically homeless?"

The auto-calculation fields only work if you are using a browser supported by AWARDS.  (For more information on supported browsers, see our System Requirements.)  In addition, the client must be a member of a household in order for the auto-calculation to work properly.

 

Other Helpful Resources

Webinar Recordings

Enhancement Request Forms

 

Links to External Documents & Websites

Please note that these are external resources, not maintained by Foothold Technology.

 

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