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Street Medicine


young, barefoot homeless girl sitting on steps

About

The Family Service Street Medicine Program is a mobile care unit, working in conjunction with our Bucks County Emergency Homeless Shelter, Behavioral Health Program and the Bucks County Housing Link.  The team drives throughout the service area, interacting with and supporting the immediate medical/mental health and basic survival needs of unsheltered ‘street homeless’ population.

Services

  • General medical/mental health wellness checks
  • Basic first aid and medical procedures
  • Vaccines and preventative medicine
  • Case management, medical referrals and coordination of appointments with, and transportation to urgent or specialized care facilities when necessary
  • Educational clinics and seminars about upholding medical and mental wellness through self-care
  • Provision of “basic needs” items including food, water, blankets, personal hygiene items, etc.

Goals

  • Ensure that street homeless individuals and families of Bucks County maintain basic health and wellness outcomes, while living in the elements year-round, and ultimately reduce their significantly higher mortality rate than that of the sheltered homeless and general population
  • Reduce the number of costly hospital emergency room visits and extensive hospital stays through basic first aid and preventative medicine/education practices
  • Initiate the process of supporting the unsheltered homeless in overcoming their obstacles, re-claiming their lives and securing permanent housing

Participation

The Family Service Street Medicine Program is open to all of the unsheltered people of Bucks County. We work closely with our Housing Link partners to identify common areas where the unsheltered ‘street homeless’ reside, and meet them at a location where they feel most comfortable interacting.