Collaboration for Change: A
Co-Responders
and CoC Care Coordination Model

Collaboration for Change: A Co-Responders and CoC Care Coordination Model On any given night in the US, some 500,000 people experience homelessness. In many cities, homeless encampments form for a number of reasons—a sense of community, safety in numbers, and to remain near necessary resources like food and water.

Many cities respond to encampments by clearing them out. In Topeka, Kansas, the city homeless services agencies have found a more helpful and productive approach with their Equity Access Shelter program, made possible by compassionate collaboration with the city’s police department and service providers in the community.

By collaborating with the Topeka Police Department’s Behavioral Health Unit, the Equity Access Shelter program has been able to build trust with those living in encampments, provide support, and connect people experiencing homelessness with needed resources and services they otherwise would not have.