Find out more about our homeless patient pathway
January 31, 2018
According to the charity Crisis, the average age of death for single homeless men is 47 and age 43 for homeless women – a shocking 30 years younger than the national average population. Homeless people face rates of physical ill health several times higher than the general population, often made worse by mental ill health and substance misuse. Depression is also extremely common, with homeless people being nine times more likely to commit suicide than the general population.
Such a combination of complex health and social issues often leads to homeless people becoming entrenched in their lifestyle, with little sense of hope for change. A lack of a settled address, a transient and chaotic lifestyle, and hard to access healthcare all conspire to make health care a huge challenge for homeless people.
The Homeless Patient Pathway within our organisation is a small team of two and consists of a Lead Nurse, Helen Taylor and Housing Navigator, Louise Edwards. The main aim of the pathway is to ensure safer discharges for homeless patients into accommodation as oppose to rough sleeping, to improve patient journey and maximise service referrals / access to health care, along with reducing re-admission rates.
Following discharge the team will complete a home visit to ensure that patients are engaging with the relevant services and sustaining their tenancy. They will identify and register with a local GP and ensure that they have adequate prescribed medications. Registering with a GP can be a lengthy process specifically for homeless patients that often do not have any ID therefore the lead nurse can provide them with vital interim prescriptions as a bridging gap between secondary and primary care thus reducing potential re-admissions for deterioration/non-compliance of medications.
The referral process into the team is quick and easy, either set the homeless flag on EBMS or simply telephone one of the team on the contact details provided. In addition the homeless team can also provide advice and support, clothing, food and toiletries on request.
Helen Taylor (Lead Nurse) – 07580 677913
Louise Edwards (Housing Navigator) – 07580 677884