Experimental Trial of an Employment-Based Housing Program for Adults at Risk of Homelessness
Project HIRE
2 other identifiers
interventional
750
1 country
1
Brief Summary
Employment-Based Housing (EBH) is a novel model that helps unstably housed individuals obtain housing and on-site employment where they are housed. The long-term goal of this project is to examine how housing and vocational services can be integrated into hospital emergency departments (EDs) as a multi-sectoral intervention. The investigators central hypothesis is that EBH provides housing, employment, and health insurance which will reduce acute care use and ameliorate non-medical determinants of health more than standard care models. The rationale is that EBH addresses multiple upstream factors that can prevent recurring use of acute care, and the combination of housing with employment services will have positive synergistic effects. This project has three specific aims: 1) Conduct a three-arm randomized clinical trial comparing EBH to passive (resource list) and active control interventions (basic vocational services) on acute care use as the primary outcome and secondary outcomes related to housing, employment, and health-related quality of life; 2) Understand the experiences of subgroups of participants receiving EBH; and 3) Identify barriers and facilitators to adoption of EBH in public healthcare systems in other cities nationally. To achieve these aims, an EBH program will be integrated into the ED of the largest safety net hospital system in Houston, Texas- the 4th largest city in the United States. The project will include a three-arm randomized trial enrolling 750 participants (250 participants per arm). The three-arm trial allows for the investigation of the unique contribution of housing over other non-medical determinants of health (employment and insurance). Participants will be randomized to one of the three arms and followed for 12 months.
Trial Health
Trial Health Score
Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach
participants targeted
Target at P75+ for not_applicable
Started May 2026
Longer than P75 for not_applicable
1 active site
Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.
Trial Relationships
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Study Timeline
Key milestones and dates
First Submitted
Initial submission to the registry
March 3, 2026
CompletedFirst Posted
Study publicly available on registry
March 13, 2026
CompletedStudy Start
First participant enrolled
May 9, 2026
CompletedPrimary Completion
Last participant's last visit for primary outcome
June 30, 2030
ExpectedStudy Completion
Last participant's last visit for all outcomes
June 30, 2030
May 18, 2026
May 1, 2026
4.1 years
March 3, 2026
May 13, 2026
Conditions
Keywords
Outcome Measures
Primary Outcomes (1)
Emergency Department (ED) Visits
The number of ED visits during the study period via administrative data and self-report
From enrollment to 12 months after enrollment
Secondary Outcomes (4)
Employment
From enrollment to 12 months after enrollment
Housing stability
From enrollment to 12 months after enrollment
Health-Related Quality of Life
From enrollment to 12 months after enrollment
Sleep Quality
From enrollment to 12 months after enrollment
Study Arms (3)
Employment-Based Housing
EXPERIMENTALExperimental intervention
Vocational Services
ACTIVE COMPARATORActive control intervention
Resources
PLACEBO COMPARATORPassive control intervention
Interventions
Employment-based housing (EBH) is an innovative program that delivers housing and employment needs simultaneously. EBH will be delivered by an organization called Entryway which will provide training and employment opportunities in the apartment/multifamily housing industry. Since hires are required to live on-site, employees are provided with housing at the properties where they work at no or very low cost. There are a variety of entry-level positions in the industry (e.g., leasing agent, maintenance/apt technician, maintenance/apt supervisor) which pay well above Texas minimum wage and have opportunities for career advancement. Participants will receive job coaching, resume assistance, and extended training. Once trained, they are provided interview assistance (e.g., transportation) and, upon employment, continue to support through ongoing training and mentorship.
Active control intervention (AC) which will involve the provision of basic vocational services. Our in-house vocational specialists will offer basic hands-on vocational assistance and take advantage of various existing job support resources that already exist through the U.S. Department of Labor, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and other federal and state agencies. This could include job search support, resume review, application support, job prep, and interview training.
Passive control intervention (PC) which will involve the provision of a list of available community resources. Participants randomized to PC will receive a referral to resources via text, and can self-navigate to whichever resource seems best to them.
Eligibility Criteria
You may qualify if:
- English and Spanish-speaking individuals
- Aged 18+
- Recently discharged from a Harris Health System emergency departments
- Screen positive for risk of homelessness and employment need per the Centers Accountable Health Communities Health-Related Social Needs Screening Tool.
You may not qualify if:
- Participants with a conservator
- Unwillingness to participate a background and drug test
Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.
Sponsors & Collaborators
Study Sites (1)
UTHealth Houston
Houston, Texas, 77030, United States
MeSH Terms
Conditions
Interventions
Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)
Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)
Study Design
- Study Type
- interventional
- Phase
- not applicable
- Allocation
- RANDOMIZED
- Masking
- SINGLE
- Who Masked
- INVESTIGATOR
- Purpose
- HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH
- Intervention Model
- PARALLEL
- Sponsor Type
- OTHER
- Responsible Party
- PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
- PI Title
- Associate Professor
Study Record Dates
First Submitted
March 3, 2026
First Posted
March 13, 2026
Study Start
May 9, 2026
Primary Completion (Estimated)
June 30, 2030
Study Completion (Estimated)
June 30, 2030
Last Updated
May 18, 2026
Record last verified: 2026-05
Data Sharing
- IPD Sharing
- Will share
- Shared Documents
- STUDY PROTOCOL
- Time Frame
- Data will be shared no later than the time of an associated publication or the end of performance period of the extramural award that generated the data, whichever comes first.
- Access Criteria
- Scientific data will be made available at the data repository OpenICPSR. Any identifying variables will not be deposited due to privacy and confidential concerns, but access to the deposited data will otherwise not be controlled.
After the end of the performance period, study data will be uploaded to the OpenICPSR data repository. OpenICPSR is a self-publishing repository for social, behavioral, and health sciences research data. De-identified data from our randomized controlled trial will be made available through this repository for others.