Title: Offering Lung Cancer Screening among Homeless-Experienced Veterans
Date: 10/16/2024
Description: Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the US. Though effective screening exists, outcomes among homeless populations are poor, with lung cancer mortality among the homeless population 2-fold higher than in the general population. This health inequity can be attributed, in part, to socioecological impediments, such as finding shelter or acute health conditions, and the homeless populations' older age and significant smoking histories. But since overall mortality, including lung cancer mortality, remains high after housing is obtained, some of these impediments are not specific to housing conditions alone. Lung Cancer Screening (LCS) can reduce lung cancer-related mortality by 20%. Yet, less than 10% of eligible individuals (i.e. people ages 50-80 years with 20-pack-year smoking history, and current smoking or quit within last 15 years) receive LCS and fewer follow-up care. Homeless-experienced persons are less likely than people with stable living conditions to undergo cancer screening, including LCS.
Presenters: Jill Roncarati, ScD, MPH, PA-C
Title: Integrating Spiritual Supports for Veterans in HUD-VASH: An Evaluation
Date: 8/21/2024
Description: Offering Veterans spiritual support could tackle a number of risk factors impeding health and well-being post-homelessness. Spirituality, as defined by Veteran Health Administration's (VHA) Whole Health model of care, entails an individual's search for meaning or purpose in something (e.g., an entity or experience) larger than oneself; it encompasses but is not wholly defined by formal religion. Supporting spirituality may counter mental health conditions and substance use which are notable risk factors for homeless status. This webinar will review findings from a VHA quality improvement project conducted across HUD-VASH programs in New England; findings suggested that enhancing efforts to offer spiritual support within these programs would better address the needs of Veterans who desire such support.
Presenters: Jenny Palmer, MS, PhD
Title: Safety Resources and Skills for Staff who Provide Clinical Related Care in the Community
Date: 7/16/2024
Description: Providing clinical related services to Veterans in the community as opposed to the hospital or clinic environment has its unique staff safety related situations. The purpose of this webinar is to provide education about mitigating and managing these situations. This training reviewed local workplace violence prevention resources and how to leverage these resources to enhance safety for services delivered in a community setting.
Presenters: Dina Hooshyar, MD, MPH, Karen Russell, LCSW, and Michal Wilson, MD
Title: Motivational Interviewing
Date: 5/15/2024
Description: Homeless and underhoused Veterans experience a myriad of problems that require significant behavioral changes to meet their goals. A common problem related to behavioral change is that of ambivalence. People often get stuck in making changes because they feel two ways about it. The gold-standard treatment for ambivalence is Motivational Interviewing (MI), a robustly evidence-based treatment. This webinar will serve as an introduction and overview of MI with special emphasis on working with homeless and underhoused Veterans.
Presenters: James Portner, LISW-S, LICDC-CS, and Dan Knippel, LCSW
Title: Disparities in care disruptions and telehealth utilization among VISN 1 diabetic Veterans experiencing homelessness during the pandemic
Date: 4/17/2024
Description: Prior to the Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) had the largest telehealth program in the nation. The pandemic motivated VA providers to expand telehealth in effort to reduce disrupted care while mitigating risks. Among Veterans experiencing housing instability (HI), the pandemic exacerbated disparities and potentiated examining barriers to diabetes care. To address this problem among Veterans experiencing HI, clinicians turned to telehealth. Yet, technology barriers and internet unaffordability may have furthered a “digital divide”-disparate access to telehealth for Veterans with HI. We explored the extent to which VA Video Connect (VVC) was leveraged to mitigate diabetes care disruptions among Veterans with HI during the pandemic. Specifically, this work examined the characteristics of Veterans who are more likely to engage in telehealth care. This study also investigated the barriers and facilitators of delivering telehealth diabetes clinical care to Veterans experiencing HI.
Presenters: Rebecca Kinney, PhD, MPH, Shara Katsos, LICSW, Jillian Weber, PhD, RN, and Keith McInnes, ScD
Title: Project CHALENG (Community Homelessness Assessment, Local Education and Networking Groups)
Date: 3/20/2024
Description: The National Center on Homelessness Among Veterans conducts a knowledge needs assessment on a bi-annual basis. The most recent needs assessment indicated an interest among VHA Homeless Programs front line staff in learning more about Project CHALENG (Community Homelessness Assessment, Local Education and Networking Groups) and resources available on the Homeless Programs Hub. This webinar will provide a history and overview of Project CHALENG and will offer a live demonstration walkthrough of resources available on the Homeless Programs Hub. In addition, the webinar will include a description of the updated Foundational Knowledge and Practice Curriculum for VHA Homeless and Veterans Justice Program Staff.
Presenters: Jessica Blue-Howells and Shara Katsos, LICSW
Title: Low Barrier, Harm Reduction, Low Demand: Principles, Practice and Programs, Part II
Date: 2/21/2024
Description: Many GPD housing programs have revised facets of their program design by incorporating Low Barrier and Low Demand principles and practices based on Harm Reduction to better accommodate chronically homeless Veterans with substance use and/or mental health disorders who were unsuccessful in traditional housing programs. Low Barrier and Low Demand programs do not place sobriety or treatment participation requirements on residents for admission to or continued stay in the programs, but they expect residents to take steps towards securing permanent housing solutions. Minor infractions (e.g., curfew) are not typically grounds for dismissal from these programs, though such instances are used as opportunities to engage residents. This webinar will review the core values of these programs, explain why we need them, describe characteristics of high performing programs, describe special challenges that these programs face, and review two of VA's housing programs that are based on these Low Barrier and Low Demand harm reduction principles.
Presenters: Scott Young, PhD, Paul Smits, LCSW, Marzena Guzik, LCSW, and Janine Griggs, MSW, LICSW
Title: Supporting Evidence-Based Practice Implementation in Settings Serving Veterans Who Have Experienced Homelessness
Date: 1/17/2024
Description: The purpose of this live, virtual, knowledge-based session is to describe strategies that support the implementation of evidence-based practices (EBP) in settings serving homeless Veterans, using the case example of a national initiative to implement Critical Time Intervention (CTI) in 32 VA Grant and Per Diem (GPD) case management sites. This project was funded by the VA Quality Enhancement Research Initiative (QUERI). Ending Veteran homelessness is an urgent national priority. By investing in robust health and housing services for homeless-experienced Veterans (HEVs), the VA has made tremendous strides in addressing Veteran homelessness. Veterans who remain homeless despite these services are extraordinarily vulnerable. At present, 41% of HEVs are unsheltered, living on the streets, in abandoned buildings, or other places not intended for human habitation. To further VA's goal of ending Veteran homelessness, there is a pressing need to identify effective practices that support the scale up, spread, and sustainment of evidence-based practices (EBPs) across the broad range of VA services and community-based organizations that serve HEVs. This session will share our experiences with implementing Critical Time Intervention, as a case example that describes potential supports for EBP implementation in settings that serve HEVs. We will highlight lessons learned from this implementation initiative and engage with the audience to discuss ways to support the implementation of other EBPs in VA and community-partnered contexts that work with HEVs.
Presenters: Sonya Gabrielian, MD, MPH and Erin Finley, PhD, MPH
Title: Exploring Access to Care Among Veterans Experiencing Housing Instability in Rural: Part 2
Date: 12/6/2023
Description: The purpose of this live, virtual, knowledge-based session is to explore migration among Veterans experiencing housing instability in rural areas. Housing instability is associated with adverse health outcomes and is a barrier to health care access. To most efficiently assess the circumstances and context surrounding migration among unstably housed rural Veterans, investigators conducted reviews of electronic health records for 60 Veterans experiencing housing instability in a rural area to assess factors contributing to migration. This session will highlight some of the lessons learned from these data. Specifically, we will describe the frequency of migration, characteristics of migrations, predictors of migrations, and changes in the use of homeless and health services following a migration among unstably housed Veterans living in rural areas. In addition, we will profile the stories, based on chart reviews, of Veterans whose electronic health record data indicate a migration. The ultimate purpose of this project is to improve practices for linking unstably housed Veterans in rural areas with health care, housing and supportive services provided by VHA and community-based providers.
Presenters: Ann Elizabeth Montgomery, PhD and Taylor Harris, PhD
Title: Exploring Access to Care Among Veterans Experiencing Housing Instability in Rural: Part 1
Date: 11/15/2023
Description: The purpose of this live, virtual, knowledge-based session is to explore issues related to access to a variety of services among Veterans experiencing housing instability in rural areas. Housing instability is associated with adverse health outcomes and is a barrier to health care access. On one day in January 2022, approximately 33,000 Veterans were identified as experiencing homelessness in both sheltered and unsheltered locations; almost one in five of these Veterans was living in rural areas. Unstably housed Veterans living in rural areas may be harder to identify, more difficult to engage, and less likely to access Veterans Health Administration (VHA) health care than those living in urban areas. To improve practices for linking unstably housed Veterans in rural areas with health care, housing, and supportive services provided by VHA and community-based providers, we have sought the perspectives of providers who are addressing housing instability among Veterans living in rural areas. This session will highlight some of the lessons learned from these providers. Specifically, we will share reflections of providers located at rural CBOCs related to infrastructure and improvements that may promote access to care among Veterans experiencing housing instability in rural areas. In addition, we will share perspectives of Health Care Navigators regarding the barriers and facilitators to connecting unstably housed rural Veterans with health care, with a focus on multiple levels of influence (i.e., from the individual to community levels). The ultimate objective is to identify strategies to improve unstably housed rural Veterans' access to care.
Presenters: Ann Elizabeth Montgomery, PhD
Title: Homeless Evidence and Research Synthesis Roundtable: Trauma-Informed Care in the Homeless Veteran Population: Current Applications and Future Directions
Date: 10/27/2023
Description: Homelessness is a traumatic experience; it is more than the absence of shelter; it is a dehumanizing, dangerous experience. Trauma-Informed Care (TIC) is a strengths-based service delivery framework that is grounded in an understanding of and responsiveness to the disempowering impact of experiencing current and past trauma. Past literature has underscored the need for a trauma-informed approach in the delivery of health care to the homeless Veteran population; however, VA lacks a universal definition and practice of trauma-informed care. The rationale and caveats of current trauma-informed care practice in selected Veteran populations will be presented and discussed at this roundtable. Moderated by NCHAV Director, Dina Hooshyar, MD, MPH, the event will provide an opportunity for a wider reflection of the issues and set the stage for future education efforts and directions in the implementation of trauma-informed care practice among VA clinicians and staff who work directly with homeless Veteran populations.
Presenters: Roger Casey, PhD, MSW, Kathleen Chard, PhD, MS, Kathleen Guarino, LMHC, Karen A. Guthrie, LICSW, Shara Katsos, MSW, LICSW, Rebecca Kinney, PhD, MPH, Kelly O'Malley, PhD, Jill Roncarati, ScD, MPH, PA-C, Matthew Stimmel, PhD, and Jillian Weber, PhD, RN
Title: Building VA Tiny Structure Communities for Veterans Experiencing Homelessness
Date: 10/18/2023
Description: The purpose of this webinar is to learn from the Veterans themselves about why the Care, Treatment and Rehabilitation Service (CTRS) program has become a popular housing service and to discuss how VA can develop and enhance existing service offerings for Veterans experiencing homelessness.
Presenters: Matthew McCoy, PhD and Peter Capone-Newton, MD, MPH, PhD
Title: Trauma-Informed Approach: Practical Implications for Teams Serving Veterans Experiencing Homelessness
Date: 9/20/2023
Description: The purpose of this webinar is to inspire staff in homeless programs serving Veterans who are experiencing homelessness to move their programs toward a Trauma-Informed Approach by sharing one VA program's intentional development utilizing this philosophy.
Presenters: Karen Guthrie, LICSW, David Martino, LICSW and Dave Chesley, CPSS
Title: Dialectical Behavior Therapy for Justice-Involved Veterans: Changes in Treatment Targets in a Small, Pre-Post Design Clinical Trial
Date: 8/16/2023
Description: The purpose of this Connecting Research to Practice webinar is to explore how Dialectical Behavior Therapy for Justice-Involved Veterans (DBT-J) provides justice-involved Veterans 1-1.5 hours of telehealth-based intervention per week for 16 weeks through a combination of group therapy and case management services. Veterans receiving Veterans Health Administration (VHA) behavioral health services experience an alarmingly high rate of criminal-justice involvement. Justice-involved Veterans (JIVs) are often considered a high-risk, high-need group of particular interest within the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) behavioral health services system. To address a gap in services, DBT-J was recently developed as a uniquely tailored intervention for Veterans with current or recent criminal justice involvement.
Presenters: Emily R. Edwards, PhD
Title: Peer-led Digital Training to Increase Video Telehealth Use among Veterans Experiencing Homelessness: Piloting an Intervention
Date: 7/19/2023
Description: The purpose of this Connecting Research to Practice webinar is to explore the design and piloting of a peer-led digital training and support intervention to increase use of video telehealth by Veterans experiencing homelessness and substance use disorder (SUD). Presenters will identify evidence-based behavioral health approaches (such as motivational interviewing) that have demonstrated efficacy among Veterans experiencing homelessness. They will recognize established theories and techniques in technology research that are useful in conducting projects featuring virtual care devices and applications that may be daunting for Veterans experiencing homelessness. This project was funded through an Intramural Grant by the National Center on Homelessness among Veterans.
Presenters: Lynn Garvin, PhD, MBA and Mary Alexis Greenan, MPH
Title: Standardizing and Optimizing Occupational Therapy Practice in Homeless Programs and Community Based Settings
Date: 4/19/2023
Description: At an average of 0.4 per medical center, OT is still rare within HUD-VASH teams, but growing, with the number of funded positions rising by 14% and vacancy rates dropping by 28% between 2020 and 2022. As we work to promote the inclusion and well-being of aging and disabled Veterans, it is critical to define the OT role and procedures to take full advantage of the benefits the discipline can bring to a community-based setting. This presentation will detail lessons from a project to standardize OT intake screening, referral and workload capture within HUD-VASH. Applications to other community-based settings with growing OT populations, such as Home Based Primary Care and Intensive Community Mental Health Recovery will be discussed.
Presenters: Wynne Scherf, MOT, Lindsay Marth, MA, and Sarah Reineck, MS
Title: Financial Health Workshop Series: Maximizing Income
Date: 4/12/2023
Description: The purpose of this live, virtual, Financial Health Workshop Series webinar is to translate research findings into clinical practice as financial health is a significant social determinant of health. The specific clinical intervention that will be showcased is a recently developed SharePoint site that contains resources targeted to meet the needs of Veterans experiencing homelessness and at risk of experiencing homelessness.
Presenters: Eric Elbogen, MEd, PhD, and Dina Hooshyar, MD, MPH
Title: Low Barrier, Harm Reduction, Low Demand: Principles, Practice and Programs
Date: 3/15/2023
Description: The Health Care for Homeless Veterans (HCHV) and the Grant and Per Diem (GPD) programs have revised some facets of their program designs using a Low Demand/Harm Reduction model to better accommodate chronically homeless Veterans with substance use and/or mental health disorders who were unsuccessful with traditional housing programs. Low demand programs do not place sobriety or treatment participation requirements on residents for admission to and continued stay, but they expect residents to take steps towards securing permanent housing solutions. Minor infractions (e.g., curfew) are not typically grounds for dismissal from Low Demand programs, though such instances are used as opportunities to engage Veterans. This webinar will describe two of VA's Harm Reduction Model Development Initiatives, explain why Low Barrier/Low Demand/ Harm Reduction programs are needed, and explore some common misconceptions about the Harm Reduction approach.
Presenters: Scott Young, PhD, Paul Smits, LCSW, Marzena Guzik, LCSW, and Janine Griggs, MSW, LICSW
Title: Providing Whole Health Services to Homeless Veterans
Date: 2/15/2023
Description: Whole Health, also known as Personalized, Proactive, Patient-driven Care, is an approach to healthcare that empowers and equips people to take charge of their health and well-being and to live their life to the fullest. This aligns with the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) mission statement to honor America's Veterans by providing exceptional health care that improves their health and well-being.
Presenters: Maureen Corbett, MS, Walter Clark, CPS, Jennifer Betancourt, and Erin LeBlanc, MS
Title: A Shared Mission: Lessons from Vermont's Homeless Veteran Response System
Date: 1/18/2023
Description: Homelessness is often assumed to be an urban phenomenon because people are more numerous, more geographically concentrated and more visible. However, people experience the same challenges and difficulties with homelessness and housing distress in rural areas. One unique feature to homelessness in rural areas, like Vermont, finding people experiencing homelessness can be more challenging. They may sleep on park benches and in tent cities, however they may also be tucked away in the hills in run down trailers with no heat or running water; living in places not meant for human habitation. There are fewer shelters, fewer resources, fewer affordable housing options in rural areas. This is often due to the population as well as vastness of rural areas. In order to have an effective homeless Veteran response system, community partnerships are imperative. We will look at two unique partnerships to highlight the creative and innovative ways collaboration with both Veteran and non-Veteran focused community partnerships can have on ending and preventing Veterans homelessness. One focus will be on case conferencing as an effective outreach and engagement tool and the other will be on a Veteran housing prioritization policy. We will explore the key concepts to effective partnership, such as accountability in action, transparency and communication and collaboration.
Presenters: Meghan Snitkin, LICSW, Jason Brill, LICSW, Sarah Russell
Title: Recognizing the Potential for Homeless Program Staff Burnout and Methods Program Coordinators and Managers Use to Facilitate Supportive Environments
Date: 8/17/2022
Description: In this webinar Katherine Gerard, LICSW, Bri Harmon-Moore, LSCSW, Dina Hooshyar, MD, MPH and Harry McCurdy, LCSW provide strategies to assist staff in preventing and reducing burnout. Practices from the field from effective program managers and supervisors were shared on how to empower frontline staff, demonstrate support, and facilitate open communications.
Presenters: Katherine Gerard, Dina Hooyshar, Bri Harmon-Moore and Harry McCurdy
Title: Changes in Primary Care and Health for Veterans Who Have Experienced Homelessness during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Date: 7/20/2022
Description: In this webinar, presenters Stefan Kertesz, MD and Dina Hooshyar, MD discuss how the COVID-19 pandemic is an example of a societal shock that affected people's lives and health care systems. This presentation offers insights about the pandemic experience based on interviews with 26 homeless-experienced Veterans from five different VA health settings. The findings highlighted challenges and vulnerabilities for these Veterans, as well as their strengths and resilience. This may help VA clinicians plan for future health system shocks.
Presenters: Stefan Kertesz, MD, MSc
Title: Enhancing VA's Preparedness for Disease Epidemics that Impact Homeless Experienced Veterans
Date: 6/15/2022
Description: In this webinar presenters Stefan Kertesz, MD and Dina Hooshyar, MD offer insights about the pandemic experience based on interviews with 26 homeless-experienced Veterans from five different VA health settings. The findings highlight challenges and vulnerabilities for these Veterans, as well as their strengths and resilience, and can help VA clinicians plan for future health system shocks.
Presenters: Sonya Gabrielian, MD, Chanin Santini, LCSW, , Binyamin Amrami, MD and Matthew McCoy, PhD
Title: Combining Medical, Social Determinants of Health, and Suicide Data: Enhancing Understanding of Suicide Risk among Homeless and Justice-Involved Veterans
Date: 5/18/2022
Description: This webinar presented by Ryan Holliday, PhD, Shawn Liu, MSW and Matthew Stimmel, PhD discusses how Veteran suicide remains a significant public health concern, with risk potentially elevated among Veterans experiencing homelessness or interacting with the criminal justice system. Increased efforts by VHA homeless and justice programs are discussed, noting efforts to screen, evaluate, and intervene upon risk through interdisciplinary and collaborative initiatives.
Presenters: Ryan Holliday, Matthew Stimmel, PhD, Lynn A. Garvin, PhD, and Aaron Steele, MS
Title: Medical Legal Partnerships for Older Adults in Patient Care
Date: 4/20/2022
Description: This webinar presented by Anne Fabiny, MD and Sara Huffman, JD provides information about older adults' legal needs, how they can impact their health and well-being, what a Medical Legal Partnership (MLP) is; how collaboration between a clinical program designed to support marginalized, frail older Veterans and a MLP works, and how such a collaboration can be established.
Presenters: Anne Fabiny, MD and Sara Huffman, JD
Title: Understanding and Working Effectively with Veterans with Borderline Personality Disorder
Date: 3/16/2022
Description: This webinar presented by Heather N. Kacos, PsyD provides a more advanced understanding of symptoms of borderline personality disorder (BPD) and how to effectively engage with Veterans with this symptom subset. Many health care workers have not received specialized training for working with individuals with personality disorders, which leads to increased burnout and less effective resources for helping this population.
Presenters: Heather N. Kacos, PsyD
Title: Virtual Outreach: Expanding Access for Homeless Veterans through VA-Issued Video Telehealth Tablets
Date: 2/16/2022
Description: In this webinar Lynn Garvin, PhD, Keith McInnes, ScD and Donna Zulman, MD, MS discuss their project comparing the homeless Veteran population who use tablets for VA Video Connect (VVC) visits with both homeless Veterans who are not using tablets and with tablet users who are housed.
Presenters: Donna Zulman, MD, MS
Title: Connected Health: A Discussion on Virtual Tools
Date: 2/16/2022
Description: In this webinar Lesli Culver, LCSW and Cortney Frosch, RN provide data and implementation information to increase clinician knowledge of virtual care key competencies and considerations and resources for this specific population, in an effort to increase utilization of virtual care tools among homeless Veterans.
Presenters: Lesli Culver and Cortney Frosch
Title: Engaging Veterans with Experience of Homelessness and Serious Mental Illness in Primary Care
Date: 12/15/2021
Description: This webinar and roundtable discussion focuses on findings from the report: Primary Care Engagement Among Individuals with Housing Insecurity and Serious Mental Illness: An Evidence Map, published in 2021 by Megan Shepherd-Banigan, PhD, MPH; Karen M. Goldstein, MD, MSPH; Connor Drake, PhD, MPA; Jessica Dietch, PhD, and colleagues. The authors cited here present their work and engage in a discussion with VA clinicians and researchers specialized in treating homeless-experienced Veterans.
Presenters: Dr. Dina Hooyshar, MD, Karen M. Goldstein, MD, MSPH, Connor Drake, PhD, Shepherd-Banigan, PhD and Jessica Dietch, PhD
Title: Where are we with Housing First?
Date: 8/16/2021
Description: Housing First is a supportive housing model that emphasizes permanent supportive housing to end homelessness and values flexibility, individualized supports, client choice and autonomy. This approach provides individuals who are experiencing homelessness with permanent housing as quickly as possible and supportive services as needed. This live webinar describes Housing First as a concept and program, outlining some implementation and sustainment challenges. Multiple presentations also addressed some Housing First perspectives and changes, as well as pros and cons of this approach from service user point of views, including the following presentations: Housing First Principles, Successes, and Challenges; Implementation Successes and Challenges in VA Programs; Findings from the Canadian At Home/Chez-Soi Project and from a Multi-Country Study of Fidelity of Housing First Programs; Housing First Model: A Firsthand Look; and U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness and Housing First.
Presenters: Dina Hooyshar, MD, MPH, Sam Tsemberis, PhD, Meghan Deal, LICSW, ACSW, Tim Aubry, PhD, Stacie Penrod, Anthony Love, MPA
Title: Peer Specialists in Homeless Programs – Screening for Suicide Risk in the Community
Date: 7/21/2021
Description: Suzanne McGarity, PhD facilitates integration of the Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS) screener into the work of Peer Specialists and demonstrates how Peer Specialists should address a positive C-SSRS screen, especially during encounters with Veterans in community settings.
Presenters: Suzanne McGarity, PhD
Title: Veterans with Experience of Homelessness that is Unsheltered
Date: 6/16/2021
Description: Stefan Kertesz, MD, MSc and Ann Elizabeth Montgomery, PhD use results from a national survey of Veterans who use VA primary care to show how vulnerabilities associated with unsheltered status can stack up and how they interact with location to influence the likelihood of being unsheltered.
Presenters: Stefan G. Kertez, MD
Title: Best Practices for Addressing Substance Use Disorder
Date: 5/19/2021
Description: Joseph Liberto, MD and Dominick DePhilippis, PhD review trends in substance use disorders in VHA and provided evidence-based diagnostic, brief intervention, and treatment strategies in addition to risk mitigation strategies aimed at reducing substance use overdose fatalities.
Presenters: Joseph Liberto, MD and Dominick DePhilippis, PhD
Title: Establishing a Care Environment for Homeless Housing Settings: Lessons Learned from the COVID-19 Pandemic
Date: 4/21/2021
Description: In this webinar Dina Hooshyar, MD, MPH and Barbara DiPietro, PhD discuss the partnership of the VA's National Center on Homelessness among Veterans and the National Health Care for the Homeless Council to create A Clinical Resource Guide for Community Care Centers During the COVID-19 Pandemic. A roundtable of community providers explore practical ways to implement the guide's recommendations and reflect on the challenges of providing a homeless housing care environment and lessons learned.
Presenters: Dina Hooshyar, MD, MPH, Barbara DiPietro, PhD, Shannon Gregory, Deborah Hayes, James McCloden and Kirsten Cahoon
Title: Challenges Serving Veterans Experiencing Homelessness and Housing Instability in Rural Areas
Date: 3/17/2021
Description: In this webinar Thomas Byrne, PhD. and Jamison Hild, LCPC present findings from a recent study funded by VA's National Center on Homelessness among Veterans that examined challenges to serving Veterans experiencing homelessness in rural areas and strategies and resources needed to address these challenges.
Presenters: Thomas Byrne, PhD
Title: Integrating Data Analytics, Peer Support, and Whole Health Coaching to Address the Needs of Homeless Veterans
Date: 2/17/2021
Description: In this webinar Daniel Blonigen, PhD. and Stephen Tull, BFA discuss the benefits and potential of using Peer Specialists trained in Whole Health Coaching to meet the needs of homeless Veterans Core elements of this approach, modifications to conducting Whole Health Coaching with homeless Veterans, and contextual factors that impact the implementation of this approach are discussed.
Presenters: Daniel M. Blonigen, PhD and Stephen Tull, BFA
Title: Mindfulness and Compassion with Veterans: Paying Attention to What Really Matters
Date: 12/16/2020
Description: In this webinar Greg Serpa, PhD provides an overview of the integration of mindfulness as an organizing feature of the VA's Whole Health System of Care as mandated by Congress in the 2016 CARA legislation. This training provides an overview of mindfulness and compassion interventions with Veterans to ensure VA Homeless Programs staff have the knowledge to meet this congressionally mandated system transformation.
Presenters: J. Greg Serpa, PhD
Title: Gambling among Veterans: Screening, Treatment, and its Association with Homelessness
Date: 11/18/2020
Description: In this webinar Steven D. Shirk, PhD and Shane W. Kraus, PhD provide information on how gambling impacts homelessness among U.S. Veterans and how to screen and treat problem gambling and gambling disorder among Veterans experiencing issues with housing and other financial difficulties.
Presenters: Shane W. Kraus, PhD, and Steven D. Shirk, PhD
Title: Workplace Violence Reporting in Homeless Programs
Date: 8/19/2020
Description: Dina Hooshyar, MD, MPH and Kelly Vance MD provide an overview of VHA's workplace violence prevention model along with specific guidance for employees working in homeless programs. This model includes reporting disruptive behavior events in the Disruptive Behavior Reporting System (DBRS) to provide an understanding of risks in care environments.
Presenters: Dina Hooyshar, MD, MPH and Kelly Vance, MD
Title: Employee Whole Health and Self-Care
Date: 6/30/2020
Description: Cynthia Mealer, PhD and Sandra Schmunk, BS discuss the importance of health care workers' maintaining work life balance and building resilience during difficult times. They provide self-care resources and discuss real world examples of the practical application and building of new habits for long term utilization.
Presenters: Cynthia Mealer, PhD and Sandra Schmunk
Title: Elicit-Provide-Elicit: A Motivational Interviewing Technique to Enhance Homeless Program Staff's Services to Veterans
Date: 6/17/2020
Description: This webinar presented by LaDonna Saxon, PhD discusses Motivational Interviewing (MI) as a recognized evidence-based treatment and has been used in a variety of settings to assist clients in making significant health and lifestyle changes. The Elicit-Provide-Elicit (EPE) model of information exchange is used in MI to foster a productive working alliance and reduce the potential for client-provider discord.
Presenters: LaDonna Saxton, Phd
Title: Self-Care in the Time of COVID-19: Ways You can Cope with Coronavirus Stress, Anxiety and Isolation
Date: 4/15/2020
Description: Brian L. Meyer, PhD and Matthew Stimmel, PhD provide research supported strategies on how to help Veterans and ourselves deal with the ongoing trauma of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Presenters: Brian L. Meyer, Ph.D and Matt Stimmel, PhD
Title: Trauma Informed Approach:Implications for Practice When Serving Veterans Experiencing Homelessness
Date: 3/18/2020
Description: This webinar presented by Karen Guthrie, LICSW, David Martino, LISW and David Chesley, Certified Peer Specialist discusses the Trauma-Informed Approach (TIA) to care and how it is a shift in the way we move through the multiple layers of interactions with Veteran clients, coworkers, supervisees, teams, and the larger organizations we are embedded in.
Presenters: Karen A. Guthrie, David Martino and Dave Chesley
Title: Housing for Veterans with a Sex Offender History: Policy and Programmatic Solutions to Address Barriers for a High Need Population
Date: 3/10/2020
Description: This webinar featured a research review presented by Thomas Byrne, PhD on housing challenges faced by Veterans with a sex offense history, followed by a panel discussion featuring leaders from the VHA Homeless Programs Office and Veterans Justice Programs, and the San Francisco Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing.
Presenters: Dina Hooyshar, MD, Thomas Byrne, PhD, Sean Clark, JD, Anne Dunn, RN, Jennifer Knapp, MSW, Megan Owens, MPA, Jesse Vazzano, LICSW
Title: Processes and Strategies to Enhance Staff Safety in Providing Care in the Community
Date: 2/19/2020
Description: This webinar presented by Lynn M. Van Male, PhD, Michal Wilson, MD and Bridget M. Truman, PhD provide staff working in homeless programs with an overview of the Workplace Violence Prevention Program (WVPP), definitions of abuse and difficult situations, methods of assessment, and possible interventions.
Presenters: Lynn M. Van Male, PhD, Dr. Michal Wilson and Bridget M. Truman, PhD
Title: Motivational and Cognitive Predictors of Community Integration in Recently-Housed Veterans
Date: 1/21/2020
Description: This webinar presented by Michael Foster Green, PhD and Jonathan K. Wynn, PhD focuses on findings and clinical implications from two studies that looked at changes in community integration before and after Veterans were housed. Discussion centers on what kinds of recovery-oriented interventions practitioners in the field might consider to improve community integration outcomes.
Presenters: Michael Foster Green PhD, Joanthan K. Wynn, PhD, Sonya Gabriellian, MD, MPH, Cendrine Robinson, PhD, MPH
Title: Helping Veterans Experiencing Homelessness Manage Their Money: A Guide for Case Managers
Date: 1/21/2020
Description: This webinar presented by Eric Elbogen, PhD, ABPP provides an overview of a brief psychoeducational, recovery-oriented money management intervention called $teps for Achieving Financial Empowerment ($AFE). Designed primarily for case managers working with Veterans with psychiatric disabilities, $AFE has been tested and shown to produce several positive outcomes.
Presenters: Eric Elbogen, PhD, ABPP