Supportive Housing in Brooklyn

Health Progress, Mar/Apr 2005 by Burke, Natasha

A New York City System Provides Special Housing for Patients with Mental Illness or HIV/AIDS

SAINT VINCENT Catholic Medical Centers (SVCMC), a seven-hospital system in metropolitan New York City, has been operating and developing residential and supportive housing programs for people with mental illness since 1977. It currently operates 12 residential/supportive housing programs serving 388 people, including single adults, children, and adolescents.

"Supportive housing" is safe, affordable housing that is linked to a continuum of medical and social services. Designed for at-risk persons and families, it blends housing with health care, social supports, employment resources, and other services, depending on the specific needs. The options vary widely in terms of size, cost, services, and facilities, but what all supportive housing facilities have in common is the goal of enabling residents to stabilize and rebuild their lives, thereby experiencing community, self-reliance, dignity, and hope. The combination of permanent, affordable housing and available services works well for people who face complex challenges-who often are, for example, not only homeless but also have very low incomes and such serious, persistent issues as mental illness and HIV/AIDS.

In this article, I will, first, give an overall picture of SVCMC's supportive housing services, and, then, focus on a particular program, St. Mary's Prospect Place in Brooklyn, NY.

SAINT VINCENT AND SUPPORTIVE HOUSING

SVCMC is one of New York City's most comprehensive health care systems, serving nearly 600,000 people annually. The system was established in 2000 as a result of the merger of Catholic Medical Centers of Brooklyn and Queens, Saint Vincents Hospital and Medical Center of New York, and Sisters of Charity Healthcare on Staten Island.

SVCMC developed and provides supportive services and property management for all of its properties. Funding for these housing programs has come predominantly from the state Office of Mental Health and the city departments of Health and Mental Hygiene and Housing Preservation and Development. Through its capacity as a service provider and property manager, SVCMC has very rarely needed to evict anyone from its housing programs, maintaining a 98 percent occupancy rate for its facilities. The system sustains this high occupancy rate by maintaining a strong referral network, including effective linkages with the NYC Continuum of Care Coalition, a local not-for-profit group; centralizing outreach for all of its housing programs; quickly processing referrals through a centralized agency committee approach; and maintaining a waiting list of potential residents.

SVCMC operates its housing programs through its Department of Residential Services (which is, in turn, part of the system's Behavioral Health Services Division). The residential programs comprise 232 units of permanent supportive housing (both single-site and scattered-site); 84 beds for transitional supervised community residences (group homes with intensive rehabilitation sendees) with around-the-clock staff coverage; 15 beds for adult family care; 34 units of licensed apartment beds; 20 family-based treatment program beds for children and adolescents (temporary foster homes in which the foster parents are trained to deal with emotionally disturbed kids); and two beds for adult respite care.

These programs target people who have been diagnosed with serious and persistent mental illness (often considered among those hardest to house); mentally ill drug abusers; HIV/AIDS patients; and the geriatric mental health population. SVCMC views residents' training for and achievement of meaningful, gainful employment a critical component of any successful supportive housing program. In addressing this goal, SVCMC has created two businesses for people with psychiatric disabilities, Rainbow Recycling and Rainbow Brite, which provide recycling and office-cleaning services, respectively. The system also offers training and placement for "companions," people who provide respite care for fami lies with a mentally ill member in residence.

SUPPORTIVE SERVICES

The residential services program provides supportive services geared towards meeting tenants' individual needs and providing them with a flexible array of support. These services enable residents to re-enter the community; maintain physical and psychiatric health; participate in therapeutic and rehabilitative programs; pursue employment, education, or other productive activities; sustain healthy relationships; and improve the quality of their lives. A major objective of the program is "recipient empowerment"-enabling a resident to retain his or her housing and obtain meaningful, gainful employment.

The specific services provided for residents are:

* Development of a comprehensive individualized service plan and functional assessment

* Supportive housing case management

* Coordination of medical care for those with HIV/AIDS

* Supportive counseling

* Crisis intervention