OCEAN CITY – Officials at Diakonia say additional resources are needed to expand its Rapid Response Team, a pilot program that has assisted more than 100 homeless individuals this year.
From April to August, members of Diakonia’s new Rapid Response Team (RRT) provided immediate assistance to 118 people facing homelessness. Executive Director Ken Argot said the pilot program has since been able to place 18 of those individuals in shelter and three in permanent housing, while assisting several others with clothing, SNAP benefits and drug rehabilitation admissions.
“These are eye-opening returns,” he said. “Post pilot phase, there is certainly proof of concept that RRT is a vital program and should be part of a permanent component of homeless outreach in our community, working alongside our referring partners and local law enforcement.”
For years, Diakonia has been a member of the Worcester County Homeless Outreach Team (HOT), a multi-agency effort to connect homeless individuals with local resources. While HOT members go out into the community at scheduled dates and times, on-call staff with the Rapid Response Team are dispatched as soon as law enforcement, EMTs, hospitals or other service providers identify a new homeless individual.
“Today, there is still a need for both entities,” Argot explained. “RRT responds to the call of homelessness in real time, with coordination from HOT and local law enforcement. RRT is dispatched when information is given that a client is at a specific location and either appears to be in need of services or has resulted in a complaint to authorities.”
how much does this cost, per person?