A MANCHESTER doctor has called for an increase in GP services for the homeless.
Dr. Gerry O’Shea, a practitioner at the Urban Village medical practice in Central Manchester, works with 750 registered homeless patients.
He states that many of his patients have been turned away from other surgeries as a consequence of having no fixed address.
“It’s vital that homeless people know that they can and should register with a doctor.” He explains.
“If a health problem is detected early it can be dealt with before it develops into something much more serious.”
At the busy practice in Ancoats, he and his colleague Dr. Shaun Jackson allow some patients to register permanently using the practice address.
They can also register using a temporary address, such as a friend’s house or a day centre.
The bustling practice offers all the usual services that an inner-city surgery offers, as well as a weekly drop-in clinic for homeless patients on Wednesdays, operating between 2:30 and 4:30 pm.
Interesting times! We look forward to welcoming @MayorofGM at our Practice next week to hear more and showcase our homeless health service https://t.co/Fg7jUfuI0B
— Urban Village (@uvmp1) October 6, 2017
Dr. O’Shea goes on to explain the importance of accepting homeless patients.
“The ethos at our practice is one of inclusion.” he says.
“Homelessness is a very broad category, from temporary homelessness to rough sleeping.
“We want all our patients to be integrated into the care of the practice, regardless of their circumstances – the fact that a patient is homeless is almost an incidental factor.
“However, we do recognise that some of these people will have multiple and complex health issues which need extra time to deal with, this is why we offer flexible access.”
The practice is staffed by a specialist team, including three case managers and two specialist nurses who work from within the surgery, but also do work in hostels and day centres.
The case managers work to address any underlying issue such as addictions and social problems.
They also help patients with housing-related paperwork and direct them to other care and service providers.
Thanks to @Soap4all1 & @DrAndrewRowland for the donations of toiletries, we have a lot of happy customers at our homeless drop in today! pic.twitter.com/nUYNqD9L6b
— Urban Village (@uvmp1) September 13, 2017
Urban Village are also working with Manchester Royal Infirmary staff to provide the Manchester Pathway (MPATH) service, a pilot project designed to improve the outcomes for homeless people admitted into hospital.
National research shows that homeless patients attend A&E around five time more than the general population and are almost four-times more likely to be admitted.
MPATH aims to reduce this number as much as possible.
It is based on the work done in London by Pathway, a charity which has developed innovative ways of working in the NHS to make health services better for homeless people.
“The fundamental aim of the project is to prevent a ‘revolving door’ system, whereby a homeless patient goes to A&E for multiple visits for a health problem because they have no access to a GP.” Explains Dr. O’Shea.
“For those patients who are admitted, we want to be able to reduce their risk of becoming ill again by giving better access to primary care and linking with housing services.
the MPATH healthcare team has engaged with over 458 homeless patients in the last 12 months.
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