Reading Hospital Foundation receives $320,694 grant to provide care to homeless patients
Apr. 22—The Reading Hospital Foundation announced Thursday that it has received a $320,694 grant from the United Way of Berks County to help fund its Street Medicine program.
With that money the program will begin to offer telemedicine services for patients and hire a clinical director and registered nurse case manager to grow and enhance it, the foundation said in a release.
Those new employees will help treat patients in the community as in-patients and in virtual environments. The program also offers comprehensive patient education and case management services, officials said.
"The Street Medicine Program has been providing care to some of the most vulnerable individuals in our community since 2016," William M. Jennings, Reading Hospital president and CEO, said in the release.
"Our team deeply appreciates the United Way of Berks County for this substantial grant to help the Street Medicine team continue to grow and expand the services they are able to offer," he said. "Our dedicated team of volunteer clinicians see an average of 1,200 patients in our community each year. I thank the United Way, our volunteers and our community partners who support this important program that brings health care directly to those in need."
The Street Medicine program uses a team approach to deliver primary, preventative care to the unsheltered homeless, those living in homeless shelters and those at high risk of being homeless.
The goal is to proactively address health issues, decrease emergency department visits, reduce readmission rates, and reduce costs and increase care plans and medication adherence, officials said.
"Our patients receive the same level of care and attention as they would visiting a primary care physician," said Dr. Eugene York, internal medicine physician and Street Medicine Volunteer. "Patients are registered, triaged and then seen by a physician.
"Each physician carries a backpack weighing approximately 50 pounds of supplies. The goal is to replicate what you might find in a bricks and mortar primary care practice. Our physicians can provide immediate treatment in most cases and can prescribe medication when needed."
Desha Dickson, associate vice president, community wellness at Reading Hospital, said: "Homelessness and health care are closely tied together. We know that, nationally, nearly one-third of all visits to the emergency room are made by people struggling with chronic homelessness.
"Studies show that, on average, homeless individuals visit the ED five times per year. This patient population has high rates of emergency department utilization, often leaves against medical advice, and has a higher than average 30-day readmission rate."
