Challenge
The U.S. Department of Labor Women’s Bureau was interested in identifying solutions and promising practices to successfully treat the multiple traumas and barriers affecting women Veterans who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless as well as efforts to reintegrate this population back into family, community, and workforce and to achieve financial and economic security. The following traumas and barriers were of primary concern:
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD);
- Military sexual trauma, rape, and sexual harassment;
- Alcohol abuse;
- Drug addiction;
- Domestic violence;
- Unemployment; and
- Homelessness.
Solution
Atlas Research partnered with the National Center on Family Homelessness and Advocates for Human Potential, Inc. to identify the reintegration strategies per barrier; provide the success stories; identify the primary keys to diverse programs success; identify the methods that ensure successful implementation in cross sections for application across barriers; develop lessons learned; and identify difficulties and obstacles.
Result
The Atlas Team developed a comprehensive methodology in approaching this study including the use of a comprehensive literature review, expert panelists, program office interviews, and success stories with women Veterans. The team contacted 30 program offices and conducted interviews to capture promising practices in addressing traumas experienced by homeless women Veterans and those at risk.
The team also identified 25 promising practices and 14 success stories, wrote seven vignettes, and presented the final results of the study to the Women’s Bureau with recommendations for future actions.