HMIS: How Do I?…
Communications Admin • May 31, 2016
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The Coalition’s HMIS Department receives and resolves hundreds of user submissions in Issue Trak each month. The top 3 issues in April 2016 were:
- Duplicate Records
- Housing Check-In Issues
- Requests for Training
Do you see your issue in the above list? If so, keep scrolling to view some troubleshooting tips that may help you resolve your issue with out Issue Trak and waiting on a response!
Duplicate Records
Please review the following steps to ensure you do not create any duplicate clients in ClientTrack. It is important to be diligent when creating a new client since the people we serve do not always have complete, verifiable demographic information.
- Search the system by client Social Security Number
- If the client is not found by Social Security Number, search by first and last name using only the first 2-3 letters of each name. For example: when searching for Kelly Mitchell, type “Ke” or “Kel” for the first name, and “Mi” or “Mit” for the last name. This helps catch people who may not have their name spelled correctly in HMIS. You can correct the spelling on the edit client page.
- If the client still isn’t found, search by date of birth.
- Proceed with enrolling the client only if you cannot locate the client’s information after following steps 1-3.
When you do come across a duplicate record, please let the HMIS team know so they can merge the client records.
Training Requests
Do you or does your staff need HMIS training? Click here
for the training calendar and easy online registration! If you have multiple staff members or an entire department who needs HMIS training, email Yvette Fuentes, our HMIS Training Manager about setting up a training at your organization’s office!
HMIS offers the following types of training:
- HMIS New User
- HOPWA New User & Refresher
- Supervisor Support
- Emergency Shelter
- HMIS Refresher
- APR
- Reports
- Outreach/PATH
Houston, Texas (February 24, 2026) – This week, the nonprofit Coalition for the Homeless of Houston/Harris County (CFTH) is leading the annual Point-in-Time Homeless Count & Survey (“PIT Count”) to determine the number of people experiencing homelessness across Houston and throughout Harris, Fort Bend, and Montgomery counties. “We may see a slight uptick in the number this year, but we have a plan,” said Kelly Young, President & CEO of CFTH. “With the support of the City of Houston, Harris County, and private funders, we have been piloting new interventions to shorten the length of time people in our region experience homelessness. With adequate funding, we look forward to expanding those interventions to help people regain lives of self-determination.” CFTH coordinates the Houston region’s public-private homeless response system, The Way Home . Through this collaboration, The Way Home partners have successfully housed over 36,000 people since 2012. CFTH will release the results of Houston’s 2026 PIT Count in the summer, following independent verification by an epidemiologist. These findings will provide insight into how factors such as increases in the cost of living and the end of federal pandemic relief funding have impacted homelessness in our region. More information about the 2026 Point-in-Time Homeless Count & Survey The PIT Count offers a snapshot of how many people are experiencing homelessness in our region on a single night. This year, the “night of record” is Monday, Feb. 23. CFTH determines the number of people staying in shelters on that night by pulling records electronically from the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) . The unsheltered count will be conducted on the following days, from Tuesday, Feb. 24 to Thursday, Feb. 26. More than 400 volunteers and staff of local nonprofit service provider partners will canvass the three-county region to survey people living unsheltered, using an app on their mobile devices. Results from the 2026 PIT Count will help gauge the progress of The Way Home’s ongoing collaborative efforts. It will also help CFTH and partner homeless outreach teams understand geographic shifts and target their outreach throughout the year. The PIT Count illuminates specific programmatic gaps and provides additional information needed to allocate resources most efficiently. The PIT Count is a requirement of the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) for the annual Continuum of Care (CoC) funding process. HUD furnishes the majority of funding for programs that provide housing and supportive services to people experiencing homelessness in the region. In 2024, HUD granted more than $71 million to the Houston area.
As lead agency to The Way Home Continuum of Care (CoC), CFTH is working with local governmental entities to advocate on behalf of people experiencing homelessness to ensure their needs are being considered as winter weather affects our region. We will make frequent updates as we receive information. Please check back often for the latest information. Last updated 02/01/2026 at 12:00 p.m.
While our system has helped thousands of people move from homelessness to housing, this year’s results highlight the need to broaden our approach.
