Challenges Facing Homeless People And Lessons Learned From A Hospital’s Outreach To Homeless People

International Journal of Medical Science

© 2021 by SSRG - IJMS Journal

Volume 8 Issue 7

Year of Publication : 2021

Authors : Chukwuemeka A. Umeh, Vanessa Kort, Jessica So, Christina Arcuri, Sirish Nakka, Jackie Huerta, Sumanta Chaudhuri

10.14445/23939117/IJMS-V8I7P104

How to Cite?

Chukwuemeka A. Umeh, Vanessa Kort, Jessica So, Christina Arcuri, Sirish Nakka, Jackie Huerta, Sumanta Chaudhuri, "Challenges Facing Homeless People And Lessons Learned From A Hospital’s Outreach To Homeless People," SSRG International Journal of Medical Science, vol. 8,  no. 7, pp. 31-34, 2021. Crossref, https://doi.org/10.14445/23939117/IJMS-V8I7P104

Abstract:

Objective
To understand the social, mental, and healthcare needs of the homeless population in the community and ways that the health care system can better adapt to help this population
Method
Physicians and social workers from a hospital in California had a one-hour per week interaction for four weeks with 23 homeless people in the community. We discussed the medical and social needs of the homeless, substance use, mental health, and housing.
Results
We identified three main themes from the discussions: first, participants faced challenges and barriers to accessing healthcare, such as competing personal needs, lack of identification documents, and lack of health insurance. Second, participants gained new knowledge of available resources in the community, and third, participants felt supported and socially connected with physicians and other attendees during the meetings.
Conclusion
The opportunity for service providers and homeless people to interact in an informal environment was reported as helpful by participants. There is a need for more research on the influence of such social interactions on the health and wellbeing of homeless individuals.

Keywords:

Homeless people; mental health; housing; social services; hospital outreach

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