Verbal Client Consent to share data will temporarily be allowed in Clarity HMIS to reduce the need for clients to sign electronic or paper documents and help reduce the potential spread of COVID 19 to clients and shelter and housing staff. Please note: when you enter a consent with the documentation type verbal you are confirming you have reviewed the Cincinnati/Hamilton County HMIS PRIVACY NOTICE & CLIENT CONSENT FORM with the client and they have verbally agreed to share basic client information in the HMIS. 


Entering Client Consent (aka Release of Information) in Clarity HMIS


When Adding a New Client

Complete the 'RELEASE OF INFORMATION' (RoI) field on the top right-hand corner of the screen. Click on the down arrow to the right of 'DOCUMENTATION' to open a drop-down box with several options. 
  • Choose Verbal Consent after you have reviewed the consent with the client and the client understands and agrees to share basic information in Clarity.

    • Choose Household if the client is a minor, and needs a guardian in the same household to sign the document.

  • When complete, save the option.


Note:  If the client chooses not to share basic information in HMIS, choose NO in the permission settings. This will also allow you to save the client record. You will also need to set the client record to Private. Please scroll to the bottom of this article for more details.




When finished entering all applicable information, click “ADD RECORD” at the bottom of the screen.


From the Client's Profile 

Pull up the client's profile page. If the client doesn't have a consent form on file, you'll see a yellow ribbon at the top of the screen. You can either click the yellow ribbon or click on the shield directly above the "Household Members."



Click on "Add Release of Information."




Choose Verbal Consent from the Documentation drop-down option list. (Remember to choose Household if the client is a dependent and a qualified adult household member has verbally consented to share information).



When finished entering all applicable information, click 'ADD RECORD' at the bottom of the screen. When you have completed the information entry, scroll to the top of the screen. If the entry was successful, you’ll see a green bar. If errors were made, a red bar will appear. Correct any errors and click 'ADD RECORD' again. Scroll to the top again to check the color of the bar.






Revoking Consent

There are multiple reasons a user may need to cancel an existing Client Consent Form: (1) If a client revokes their consent, (2) if a client replaces their existing consent form with an updated version. 


Note: Clients may wish to update their consent forms because they change their name; or they previously signed a consent form, then revoked it, and now want to sign a new one or other reasons. 


To cancel the consent form:


1. Open the client's profile. Click on the "Shield" icon. This opens the privacy page. 



2. Click the "Edit" button next to the Release of Information (RoI) you want to cancel. 


3. Change the "End Date" to today's date. Click "Save Changes". 



See the top of the page. If you see a green bar, your changes have been saved successfully. A red bar means the changes were not saved. Make any corrections, then save again. 






If a Client Refuses Consent


Clients have the option of refusing to sign the consent form. In that case, click 'No' in the Permission drop-down box. Click 'Add Record'. A yellow bar at the top of the screen shows the consent is missing. 






Change the client record from 'Public' to 'Private' and save changes. The yellow warning bar will go away once the client has been set to private.



Note: Even though the client refuses to share information, the HMIS user still must enter the client's information into HMIS. 


Contact Us


If you need help or wish to offer suggestions or feedback, please contact the Cincinnati/Hamilton County HMIS Support Team at HMISsupport@end-homelessness.org or by calling 513-263-2790 9:00 am 3:00 pm Monday through Friday excluding holidays. 


Note: When contacting HMIS Support about a particular client, please do not send personally identifiable information such as full name, social security number, medical records, or any other information used to determine a person's identity. Instead, send the client's Clarity Unique Identifier found on the client's Clarity profile, first name and last 4 digits of SSN, or Vesta Public ID.