Use Homelessness Point-in-Time Counts

Homelessness Point-in-Time Counts delivers a set of capabilities that help you conduct point-in-time counts, visualize the extent of homelessness, and share homelessness reports with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

In this topic, you’ll learn how to use the solution by assuming the role of a user and performing the workflows below.

Note:
Use your organization's data or configured apps to follow these workflows.

Conduct point-in-time counts

You’ll assume the role of an outreach worker conducting an interview for a homelessness point-in-time count.

To conduct a point-in-time count, follow the steps below.

  1. Download the Survey123 field app onto your mobile device.
  2. Open Survey123 and sign in to your ArcGIS organization.
  3. At the upper right, tap your avatar and tap Download Surveys.
  4. Search for Homelessness Count and tap the Download button.
  5. In the Homelessness Counts survey, provide the following information:
    Note:

    Many of the questions will appear based upon the previous answer.

    ParameterValue
    Surveyor name

    Type your name.

    Is the person in a shelter?

    Select Yes

    What is the name of the shelter/program?

    Type the name of the shelter or program.

    What is the type of shelter/program?

    Select Emergency Shelter.

    Are you able to survey this person?

    Select Yes

    Can I have 10 minutes of your time?

    Select Yes

    Did another volunteer or survey worker already ask you questions about where you are staying tonight?

    Select No

    Including yourself (Person 1), how many adults are there in your (their) household, who are sleeping in the same location tonight?

    Type 1

    How many children <18 are there in your (their) household, who are sleeping in the same location tonight?

    Type 2

  6. Proceed with the interview by filling in the following questions.
    • For all of the Household Questions text boxes, enter any values as if you were conducting the interview.
    • For Location, type an address in the search box and press Enter.
  7. Click Submit.
  8. While using the app, you use the Survey123 mobile app in which you can use your current location from your mobile device GPS.

Visualize point-in-time data

You’ll assume the role of a health and human service agency, or CoC, director that wants to see the point-in-time count results in real time.

  1. In a browser, go to the Homelessness Count Dashboard.
  2. Zoom around on the map to note how the heat map changes based upon the extent of the map.

    All information entered in the Homelessness Counts survey automatically appears in this dashboard when submitted.

  3. To the left of the app, click the arrow to expand the pane to filter.
  4. Under Gender, click Man. Notice how the map and all associated charts change.
  5. Under Gender, click All.

    Examine the other filters on the map.

  6. Close the dashboard when done exploring the various filters.

Examine point-in-time data details

You’ll assume the role of a GIS analyst in a health and human service agency that wants to see more in-depth results from the point-in-time data.

  1. In a browser, go to the Homelessness Point-in-Time Count Survey site and sign in.
  2. Click the Homelessness Count survey.
  3. Click the Analyze tab.
  4. Scroll down to examine the various questions that were asked during the survey.

    The results will visualize the data differently depending on the type of data collected.

  5. Click the Filter button in the upper left corner of the app.
  6. Select What is the type of shelter/program? in the Surveyor name drop-down menu.
  7. Select Emergency Shelter in the drop-down list for the value.
  8. In the bottom of the filter panel, click Apply.

    All of the associated data and charts are now filtered.

  9. In the upper right corner of the app in the green bar, click Data.
  10. Click any individual record in the table to see the details of that survey.
Tip:

You can export the data and create reports from this data.

Generate HUD Report

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has specific guidelines that govern how Continuums of Care must report the results of their point-in-time counts. The Homelessness Point in Time solution accounts for these requirements in the data schema and provides a tool that generates a Microsoft Excel workbook in the format required by HUD.

Note:

You must be assigned a role of Administrator or custom role which includes the privilege to Create and edit notebooks in order to run an ArcGIS Notebooks and complete the following steps.

  1. In a browser, go to your content in your ArcGIS organization and find the HUD Report ArcGIS Notebook included with the solution.
  2. Browse the instructions included with the notebook.
    Note:

    There are two cells that need to be executed. The first allows the notebook to create Excel spreadsheets and may take a few minutes to execute. The second cell creates the spreadsheet.

  3. Upon completion of the notebook, click the link to the report and download the spreadsheet.

    This HUD Report is a summary of all the individual point-in-time surveys that were conducted compiled with metrics that can then be shared with HUD. Each HUD Report is given a date time stamp and stored in your ArcGIS Online account for future reference.