How Will Pathfinders for Hope Measure Whether Referrals Worked?
We will count a referral as worked only when the receiving organization confirms the person arrived and the result is recorded as it was. We will publish each measure only after it has happened, with the date. Today the North Bay Pilot is not running, so we have no results to report.
What is true today
- The North Bay Pilot of Operation Iron Gate is projected for January 2027 in Vallejo and Solano County. It is not running.
- No pilot results exist. We are not publishing counts of referrals, people or agencies, because there are none to count.
- Pathfinders for Hope phone help, (707) 205-7588, is separate from the pilot software and is open now.
What we will count
Each referral moves through six stages. We measure how many reach each one.
| Stage | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Referral Made | Destination, reason, consent and responsible role recorded |
| Referral Received | The receiving organization confirms it has the referral |
| Handoff | A named owner of the next action on both sides |
| Connection | Whether the person actually reached the service |
| Documented Outcome | The result recorded as it was |
| Next Action | If the person did not connect, the next authorized step |
More detail is on North Bay Pilot milestones.
Why “sent” is not a result
A sent referral tells you where a referral went. It does not tell you whether the person arrived. See What Is Referral Accountability? and Sent vs confirmed handoff.
How we will report
- Each milestone is posted here only after it happens, with the date.
- Until then every row reads “Designed, not yet running.”
- Small numbers read “fewer than 5” so no one can be identified.
- Failed handoffs are reported as failed. A referral that did not connect stays visible until there is a documented result.
What we will not claim
We do not claim housing placements, cost per person, long-term housing stability or employment outcomes. We are referral-accountability software and a phone intake line, not a housing provider, and we do not have that data. If a future measure needs outside data (for example from an organization’s own HMIS), we will say whose data it is. See HMIS and referral follow-up.
Frequently asked questions
Does Pathfinders for Hope have outcomes data? No. The pilot has not started. We say so instead of showing stories as evidence.
When will you publish results? After the pilot starts and a milestone has actually happened. Projected start: January 2027. We will post the date once it is confirmed.
How can a donor judge us before then? Read what we measure and how we report here, read Editorial Standards and Sources, and see 8 questions to ask any homelessness charity.
Prepared by Pathfinders for Hope. Updated October 21, 2026.