2010 National Health Care for the Homeless Conference & Policy Symposium
Innovative Approaches: Building on 25 Years of Health Care for the Homeless
San Francisco, California
June 2–5, 2010
CALL FOR PROPOSALS
***** Please read these instructions in entirety. Incomplete or incorrect proposals will not be considered. *****

The National Health Care for the Homeless Council is accepting proposals for workshop, poster and pre-conference institute presentations for the 2010 National Health Care for the Homeless Conference & Policy Symposium. This annual meeting draws on the expertise and commitment of more than 700 attendees from across the United States and is broadly inclusive of Health Care for the Homeless staff, consumers and board members, others providing health care and support services to homeless people, government officials, academicians, health professions students and advocates.
    We seek introductory and advanced workshop and poster session proposals to:
  • Educate participants about elements of Health Care for the Homeless practice
  • Establish and enhance knowledge and skills for working in homeless health care
  • Advance consumer participation in all aspects of Health Care for the Homeless
  • Describe methods for effective change in public policy and advocacy
  • Present evidence-based practices and programs
  • Educate practitioners in order to inform clinical practice
  • Disseminate information about emerging and promising practices
  • Encourage collaboration among social service systems
    • Key content areas for workshop proposals include, but are not limited to:
  • Health Care Delivery
  • Collaborative Care Delivery
  • Administration
  • Policy and Advocacy
Introductory workshops should provide a general overview of the topic by exploring principles and definitions. This level is suitable for an audience with little exposure to the topic and provides a solid framework for understanding subsequent advanced level workshops.

Advanced workshops cover the specific topic intensively and focus on applying acquired knowledge. The instruction style combines intermediate level knowledge with component breakdowns, specific usage scenarios, examples and hands-on exercises to ensure concepts are well understood. This level is suitable for an audience with previous work experience with the topic. We are particularly interested in receiving proposals for advanced level workshops for the 2010 conference. Please reference the chart below for more suggestions regarding content areas and examples of appropriate workshop topics for the introductory and advanced levels.
Content Area Proposals IncludeExamples of
Introductory Workshops 		Examples of Advanced Workshops
Health Care Delivery Health Care Delivery workshops should include specific attention to integrative care delivery models, adaptations to clinical care for homeless individuals and unique HCH programs (e.g., respite, case management, consumer-driven models).

Health Care Delivery may include content-specific discussions and presentations on the unique medical, dental, and health care related topics of homeless health care delivery. Audiences have specifically requested content on mental health, substance abuse, case management, outreach, and sub-populations such as homeless children and youth.		 Care and Advocacy for Commercial Sex Workers (June 2008)

Providing Best Services to Chronic Alcoholics (June 2009)		 The Impact of Housing and Other Socioeconomic Factors on Diabetes Care (June 2009)

Working With Homeless Injection Drug Users (June 2008)
Collaborative Care Delivery Collaborative Care Delivery workshops should include presentations on programs and projects that integrate the various aspects of HCH models of care (e.g., integrating substance abuse, mental health, housing and primary care into outreach).

Collaborative Care Delivery workshops focus on the unique way that HCH models work to bring innovative and novel services to persons experiencing homelessness.		 Housing is Health Care: Supportive Housing for Homeless People with Complex Health Problems (June 2009)

Innovative Collaborations (June 2009) 		Providing Trauma-Informed Care for People Experiencing Homelessness (June 2009)

Integrated Treatment for Homeless Individuals with Co-occurring Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders (June 2009)
Administration Administration workshops should include specific attention to staffing issues, governance, finance, practice-based research and consumer involvement in HCH service delivery.

At past HCH conferences, administrative workshops focused on the multitude on programmatic needs facing the day-to-day planning and operations of an HCH project or homeless healthcare program.		 Developing a Consumer Advisory Board (June 2009)

Integrating Electronic Health Records (June 2009)		 Collaborative Leadership Techniques for HCH Executives (June 2009)

Development and Application of Community-Based Participatory Research: Lessons Learned from the Chicago Hospital to Health Program (CHHP) (June 2009)

Policy and Advocacy Policy and Advocacy workshops should include presentations that describe and elucidate the intersection between housing, health care access and financing, respite care, income and entitlements, and consumer perspectives and involvement.

Policy and Advocacy workshops typically involve a wide range of discussion that informs, educates and empowers HCH providers and consumers to better represent the unique needs of persons experiencing homelessness. 		Using Mortality Risk to Inform Outreach, Housing Placement and Advocacy (June 2009)

How to Use Media Relations and Web-Based Strategies to Advocate for Solutions to Homelessness (June 2009) 		The Human Right to Health Care: A Singular Solution (June 2009)

Housing and Homelessness Initiatives in Rural America (June 2009)
    In general, proposed workshops will be evaluated based on the following criteria:
  • Addresses issues of high priority within the Health Care for the Homeless field
  • Presents model programs and/or practices for the delivery of health care to homeless persons
  • Incorporates practice-based research findings, if applicable
  • Represents innovation in Health Care for the Homeless service provision
  • Demonstrates collaborative technique
  • Offers useful lessons or tools for the audience
The conference planning committee has developed a list of topics for which they are particularly interested in receiving workshop proposals. Please click here to view this list of suggestions.”

Click here http://learn.nhchc.org/mod/questionnaire/view.php?id=2152 to complete a Proposal Form. This link will direct you to the online proposal form on our Moodle learning website. If you are already a registered Moodle user, log in to your account, and click Yes to enroll in the course. Then fill out the proposal and click Submit.

If you are not a registered Moodle user, click on the New Account link on the right of your screen and follow the directions to register. You will be emailed a link to verify your registration; click this link in your email. Click Yes to enroll in the course, fill out your proposal, and click Submit. If you have any technical questions regarding accessing the system or proposal form, please email frankichm@yahoo.com.

After submitting your proposal, click here to complete the Conflict of Interest form (one per speaker), and email them to lcatalano@nhchc.org. Only complete proposals and speaker forms will be eligible for review.


Note: Only complete Proposal Forms will be eligible for review. Click here to view a sample proposal. If you have an idea for a session but need assistance developing a proposal, please contact Lily Catalano (lcatalano@nhchc.org).
    Deadlines
  • The deadline for submitting workshop and poster proposals is Wednesday, October 21, with absolutely no exceptions. Approval letters will be sent out by November 10.
  • The deadline for submitting pre-conference institute proposals is Wednesday, November 11; approval letters will be sent out by December 10.
    Presenter Compensation
  • The conference registration fee will be waived for up to three workshop presenters per workshop. (Note there is a limit of three workshop speakers per session; please do not include more on your proposal.)
  • The conference registration fee will be waived for only one poster presenter per poster.
  • Honoraria and compensation for travel and accommodation are not available.
Questions regarding submissions should be directed to the Conference Planner, Lily Catalano (lcatalano@nhchc.org), at the National Health Care for the Homeless Council, Inc.

The National Health Care for the Homeless Council is pleased to sponsor this vital national gathering.  This conference is partially supported by a grant from the Health Services & Resources Administration, and the views expressed are not necessarily those of HRSA or the National Council. For more information about the National Health Care for the Homeless Council, please visit www.nhchc.org.