Overview | Housing First

Overview

Our Vision:

Human society as a just, hospitable and inclusive community rooted in and affirming the inherent dignity of every person.

Our Mission:

Bethesda House is an interfaith ministry to the homeless, disabled and economically disadvantaged citizens of Schenectady County, building a just, hospitable and inclusive community one person at a time by affirming the dignity and addressing the needs of each guest entering this “House of Mercy”.

We Live Out Our Mission By:

Residential Programs:

Our priority is permanent, supportive housing for the chronically homeless. The new Liberty Apartments provide safe and affordable housing for 16 disabled adults with a history of chronic homelessness. These residents receive case management services, medication management, and life skills support from trained staff on duty 24/7. Both the Liberty Apartments and our ten-bed Lighthouse facility in Mont Pleasant practice the effective and acclaimed “Housing-First” model, a proven “best practice” which assists the chronically homeless to address personal challenges with the crucial support of safe, caring and permanent housing. These 26 units of housing have reduced by two-thirds the chronic homelessness in our community.

 

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Housing First

Housing First has been recognized as a best practice by national researchers and policy makers. As a result, communities around the country are piloting projects that employ Housing First principles. The National Alliance to End Homelessness defines the Housing First approach for addressing the chronic homelessness of disabled and vulnerable people as a “client driven strategy that provides immediate access to an apartment without requiring initial participation in psychiatric treatment or treatment for sobriety.”

Housing First Principals:

Housing is a basic human right, not a reward for clinical success

1. Once the chaos of homelessness is eliminated from a person’s life, clinical and social stabilization occur faster and are more enduring.
2. Move people into housing directly from streets and shelters without preconditions of treatment acceptance or compliance.
3. The provider is obligated to bring robust support services to the housing. These services are predicated on assertive engagement, not coercion.
4. Continued tenancy is not dependent on participation in services.
5. Units are targeted to the most disabled and vulnerable members of the community.
6. Embraces harm reduction approach to addictions rather than mandating abstinence. At the same time, the provider must be prepared to support resident commitment to recovery.
7. Can be implemented as either a project-based or scattered site model.

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