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RAI Ministries Expands Case-Management Program into Louisiana
October 5, 2009
Since June 2008, RAI Ministries has contracted with the State of Mississippi and, more recently, the State of Louisiana as an affiliate in a Federally-funded case management pilot program. The goal is to determine the best form of case management to deploy in future disasters, while equipping Katrina survivors still living in FEMA-assisted housing with a comprehensive recovery plan that will connect them with permanent, affordable housing solutions.
In Mississippi, the pilot program began in June, 2008. RAI was initially assigned 800 clients in Mississippi: Katrina survivors who were still living in hotels, motels, travel trailers, mobile homes, or still displaced in other states who were receiving housing assistance from FEMA. To date, approximately 166 of the 800+ cases remain open; 75% have been closed due to recovery plans achieved or primary goals met. Due to the effectiveness of case management delivery by the consortium of affiliate organizations, RAI Ministries will be receiving another 277 cases in Mississippi. Currently there are 19 case managers, three supervisors, one director and two data entry specialists funded through the grant, with administrative and IT support not funded by the program.
The new case management team for Louisiana.
In Louisiana, RAI was awarded a similar program on August 17, 2009 as a result of a proposal that scored a perfect rating of 100. There are 40 case managers, five supervisors, and one program director on the Louisiana side, with similar administrative and IT support. Like the Mississippi project, clients were provided by FEMA who were in need of permanent affordable housing. After initial assessments and triaging took place, RAI was assigned 551 clients. Initially, case work was conducted out of the dining hall at Camp Restore, during the annual slow months for volunteers of August and September. The case managers will be spreading out into the area just as the fall surge of volunteer groups begins to arrive at camp.
Hard at work at Camp Restore.
In addition to the clients assigned by FEMA as part of the grant contracts, hundreds more families on Camp Biloxi and Camp Restore’s waiting lists may be able to be integrated into the program, but resources are limited. At Camp Restore alone, RAI Ministries is averaging over 15 new requests a month for assistance with home reconstruction.
“Case Management goes through the bureaucracy to get to resources,” explains Director of Case Management Maria Morris. “That’s challenging, especially for clients who are already frustrated.”