Entry Assessment & Quick Data Quality Issue Guide

Entry Assessment & Quick Data Quality Issue Guide

This article will provide information on how to complete entry assessments and give detail on ways that data quality issues could appear and be addressed.

ENTRY ASSESSMENTS: HUD Data Elements

The following assessment questions must be answered for all clients, regardless of project type and age of client. These data elements were determined to be collected by HUD. Depending on your programs' project type and/or funders, additional assessment questions may be required.

1. Universal Data Elements
  1. Date of Birth
    1. Includes "DOB Data Quality" question
  2. Race and Ethnicity
  3. Gender
  4. Relationship to Head of Household
  5. Enrollment CoC
2. Prior Living Situation
  1. Prior Living Situation County
    1. This has been added by HAD due to funder-related requests, but still required for all entries
  2. The following questions are also used to calculate a client's Chronic Homelessness Status
    1. Prior Living Situation
      1. Length of stay in previous place
    3. Regardless of where they stayed last night - number of times the client has been on the streets or in ES in the past three years, including today
    5. Regardless of where they stayed last night - number of times the client has been on the streets or in ES in the past three years, including today
3. Income
  1. Yes/No
  2. HUD Verification
  3. Total Monthly Income
4. Non-cash Benefits
  1. Yes/No
  2. HUD Verification
5. Health Insurance
  1. Yes/No
  2. HUD Verification
6. Disabilities
  1. Yes/No
  2. HUD Verification
7. Domestic Violence
  1. Survivor of Domestic Violence
    1. If Yes for Survivor of Domestic Violence, When experience occurred
  2. If Yes for Survivor of Domestic Violence Victim/Survivor, Are you currently fleeing?

REVIEW: Prior Living Situation

GUIDING QUESTION: Where did the client sleep the night immediately before this intake/program enrollment?
  1. These questions should be updated during each project enrollment, even between enrollments within the same Agency/organization.


CONSISTENT DEFINITIONS: We are to use HUD's definition of homelessness to answer these questions. We understand that these questions and definitions involved will be interpreted differently between HUD, the provider, and the client, so additional interviewing may be needed.
  1. The client is living in 1) a place not meant for human habitation or 2) an emergency shelter, including a hotel/motel provided through a voucher from the state or charity.
  2. Clients actively fleeing domestic violence are considered homeless, per HUD's definitions.
  3. If the client is coming from another living situation (friends or family for over a week, a hotel/motel paid for by family or out-of-pocket for over a week, a rental), the "episode" of homelessness would begin on the Project Start Date.

REVIEW: Multi-Step Data Assessment Questions

Associated Data Elements:
1. Income
2. Non-cash benefits
3. Health Insurance
4. Disabilities

Multi-Step Process:
a. Select Yes/No
b. HUD Verification table
  1. Must be completed in full and match Yes/No response
  2. Additional details are asked in the HUD Verification:
    1. Income: Income amount per source
    2. Non-cash benefits: Benefit amount per source (optional)
    3. Disabilities: If "Yes", expected to be of long-continued and indefinite duration and substantially impairs ability to live independently
c. (Income only) Total Monthly Amount




What Causes Data Quality Issues?

Along with blank assessment responses, the following options available in HUD's drop-downs flag assessment question responses as data quality issues on reports:
  1. Client doesn't know
  2. Client prefers not to answer
  3. Data Not Collected
Some data elements have assessment question responses that also lead to data quality issues. Those include:
  1. Name: Partial, Street Name, or Code Name Reported
  2. Social Security Number: Approximate or Partial SSN Reported
  3. Date of Birth: Approximate or Partial DOB Reported
  4. Exit Destination: No exit interview completed; Other

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