Teams of volunteers fanned out across the city this week to identify homeless persons most at risk of dying on the streets.

The immediate goal is to house 50 of these individuals as soon as possible. Toward this goal, the Housing Resource Center (HRC) at Southwest Solutions is committing 15 “shelter plus care” vouchers that provide a combination of housing and support services.

Most of the 50 volunteers came from homeless service providers in the city, including the HRC. The effort is part of a national project coordinated by Common Ground called the 100,000 Homes Campaign. Common Ground is based in New York and is partnering with communities across the country to help implement its successful program to move chronically and vulnerable homeless persons into permanent housing. Detroit is one of the first communities to participate in the project.

The Detroit teams found 281 individuals during their canvass on three consecutive early mornings this week. Local experts agree that this number represents a small fraction of the number of homeless living on the streets or abandoned buildings in Detroit. Of those located, 211 agreed to fill out a “vulnerability index” survey.

The index assesses numerous factors that make homeless individuals susceptible to early death. These factors include age, time spent on the streets, serious mental and physical illness, frequency of hospital use, and substance abuse.

The findings from the survey were presented at a press conference today (4/9) at the HRC. More than half of the survey respondents were rated as “vulnerable.” The national average is 42%. Two-thirds of these vulnerable individuals in Detroit reported using hospital emergency rooms three or more times in the past year. This figure is about twice as high as other cities among the at-risk homeless.

“These results show that Detroit is different from other cities,” said Luke Bergmann, a research director with the Detroit health department. “We have a homeless population that is especially vulnerable.”

Bergmann attributes this fact to the higher rates of poverty, under-education, crime and health risks in Detroit, compared to other cites, as well as the colder climate. The Detroit respondents have been homeless an average of 65 months. Among those rated as vulnerable, the average is 84 months.

Chronic homelessness, research shows, significantly increases the risk of early death. A vulnerable homeless person has a 40% chance of dying within seven years. Homeless persons spend about four extra days in the hospital per visit than comparable non-homeless individuals, according to a study in the New England Journal of Medicine. In addition to health care, homelessness results in increased costs to society in terms of public assistance, jail and imprisonment, emergency shelter use, and lost income.

“Providing housing and care to homeless persons is not only the humane thing to do, it is very cost-effective,” says Beverley Ebersold, Senior Program Manager at the Corporation for Supportive Housing.

In addition to the HRC, other agencies participating in the outreach effort included: Corporation for Supportive Housing, Detroit Department of Health and Wellness Promotion, Homeless Action Network of Detroit, and Neighborhood Service Organization.