St Paul’s Hostel is working with local NHS to provide Health Checks to people who experience homelessness.
The evidence is clear: People who have or are experiencing homelessness are more likely to have poor physical and mental health than the general population. This includes both poor mental as well as physical health and both can cause homelessness or sustain it. People who experience homelessness are also far more likely to have addictions to drugs, pharmaceuticals or alcohol as a consequence of childhood adversity and then use these as a way of coping with distress. Multiple health needs alongside drug and alcohol use can act as a barrier to accessing mainstream health services, and as a result often end up using more costly primary healthcare services, for example Accident and Emergency.
Gemma and Heidi from the Worcester Primary Care provided health checks for the over 40s. This involved checking blood pressure and cholesterol levels. It also provided an opportunity to promote health advice begin the re-registration of those patients from Farrier House which is closing on 1 March. Alongside was Sharon, a Cancer Care Coordinator, who answered questions about cancer and gave advice on the common symptoms to look for.
Felicity James, Service Manager at St Paul’s Hostel said
“These health checks are needed because they remove the hurdles for residents who might otherwise not attend a GP surgery and there miss the warning signs of ill health. The NHS team were brilliant in the way they listened to residents and I know the residents were pleased of the opportunity.”