Unsheltered People Face 10 Times More Barriers to Medical Care. Street Medicine Teams Break through those Barriers with Life-Saving Support
A typical day for a homeless person does not involve going to the doctor. It is highly unlikely they’ll be headed to the dentist, getting new glasses, or even filling existing prescriptions. Checking on their mental health can take a backseat to more urgent, immediate needs as well.
In most cases, their regular routine consists of basic survival, of coming up with a plan on where they’re going to sleep, where they’re going to store their clothes, where they will eat, drink, etc., and whether those tasks can be accomplished without getting arrested for violating quality of life ordinances.
Because long-term physical and mental health often fall by the wayside, homeless people, particularly those living unsheltered in environments not intended for human habitation, face a significantly higher risk for chronic and debilitating health issues.
Homeless people are dying. On average, they are dying three decades sooner than their housed counterparts. Most of these deaths are avoidable with access to proper care.
2024 Study Confirms the Success Of and Need For Street Medicine and Mobile Crisis Care
Unsheltered homelessness is the most extreme and visible form of homelessness there is. It is notoriously broadcast by mainstream and social media entities that often exploit the imagery of drug addiction, using that to make it the “face of homelessness”. However, unsheltered homelessness is a multifaceted issue, and there are many diseases this subpopulation might struggle with that have nothing to do with illicit drugs or alcohol use.
- Unsheltered homeless people exhibit higher rates of:
- Late-stage cancer due to lack of preliminary screening access
- Diabetes due to a lack of access to nutritious food options
- Viral Hepatitis due to compromised immune systems
- Oral health conditions
- Mental health conditions
- Low vision quality
- Asthma
- Hypertension
- Emotional distress and more
As inclement weather approaches, our homeless neighbors are constantly fighting for their lives against natural disasters and powerful storms, and they do not have the tools to defend themselves. They run the risk of losing life or limb as exposure to the elements becomes increasingly more dangerous.
Street medicine teams and mobile crisis units are powerful in servicing vulnerable populations. The ambulatory nature of these health institutions means they can meet homeless people where they’re at — literally. A 2024 study published by Taylor & Francis online confirms this.
Careful review of the unsheltered homeless community yielded shocking results, and the study illustrated a dire need. According to the research, this marginalized group of people faces at least ten times more barriers to healthcare access than the general population. Compound this with the elevated physical and mental health risks, and it is easy to see why unhoused people are living statistically shorter lives.
Fortunately, there is hope in services like street medicine and mobile crisis units. To quote the authors of this study directly:
“Results suggest that Street Medicine has been successful in providing trauma-informed behavioral health services to the unsheltered PEH community. The program appears to have been able to meet its goals to improve a variety of behavioral health outcomes, with important quality of life implications for those who exit homelessness.”
Behind the Scenes: How Street Medicine Teams and Mobile Crisis Units Save Lives and Communities
A community is only as safe as its most vulnerable members. This is why caring for our unsheltered neighbors is imperative to creating a brighter future.
In an exclusive discussion with Invisible People writers, Bruce Lockett, the Director of Elwyn’s mobile crisis unit in Philadelphia, explained why the program’s mobile aspect is so effective.
“Our crisis team is more accessible for unsheltered people in the inner city and surrounding suburbs because many of them don’t have vehicles,” Lockett explained. “They might feel intimidated going to the ER or face discrimination, especially if they arrive there because of mental health or behavioral health issues.”
“Because a lot of their experience with law enforcement has been negative, they often feel more comfortable talking to someone in plain clothes who is not wearing a police uniform,” Lockett continued. “What people might not know about our program is that many of us have lived experience and can relate on their level. We take pride in meeting them where they are and getting them exactly what they need.”
Homeless Trauma Specialist Richard Rosario of the City of Philadelphia Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services (DBHIDS) shared an effective tactic he often uses.
“It’s called PIE,” Rosario explained. PIE is an acronym reminding staff to check for the following conditions:
- P — Physical conditions like muscle aches, broken bones, exposure, or underlying illness.
- I — Intellectual conditions. What kind of thoughts is the person having at the time of crisis?
- E — Emotionality. This is about the person’s mood. Sudden displacement and destabilization can be traumatic. Rosario described a painstaking process of helping people cope.
Support Solutions that Work: We Need to Prioritize What’s Effective
Street medicine specialists deliver care and compassion to the people who need it most at the times when they need it most, which is why it works.
On the streets of Chicago, outreach workers for The Night Ministry tend to the wounds of patients with Xylazine amputations that happen as a result of a toxic emerging street drug that’s seeped into the local supply. Meanwhile, medical supplies, care packages, and free healthcare visits are delivered to homeless people in Detroit via similar means by a team of Michigan State University students through their organization, Detroit Street Care.
The point is, when people don’t have a stable place to call home, meeting them where they are takes on a very literal interpretation. It’s a process that requires traveling to them.
Talk to Your Representatives About the Need for Mobile Services and Affordable Housing
While studies continue to show that mobile medicine is a life-saving resource for vulnerable populations, politicians continue to cut funding for it.
The season for inclement weather has arrived. For our unhoused neighbors, that means blustery storms, life-threatening temperatures, and the possibility of not surviving the winter. Talk to your representatives about the need for mobile crisis services and affordable housing as if somebody’s life depends on that conversation – because it does.