Title: Are hospitals 'dumping' homeless patients on shelters, service agencies in Sacramento? | The Sacramento Bee
Headings: Are hospitals 'dumping' homeless patients on shelters, service agencies in Sacramento? | The Sacramento Bee
Are hospitals 'dumping' homeless patients on shelters, service agencies in Sacramento? | The Sacramento Bee
Homelessness
‘It was a scary thing.’ Hospital dumps senior at homeless shelter. He’s not the first
By Cynthia Hubert
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Content: He was happy to leave the facility, he said, but never was told where he was going. When he entered the cab, the driver informed him he was being delivered to the Union Gospel Mission. That evening he met a local homeless activist, Tom Armstrong, who notified Loaves & Fishes and others about Lewis’s plight. Loaves & Fishes staffers contacted various nonprofit groups and housing agencies, and the organizations managed to find a board and care home for Lewis within a day. Oliver, of Dignity Health, said the hospital group helps patients who need transportation and lodging after they are released from inpatient care. Those plans are specific to each person, and “may include providing transportation and determining bed availability at shelters,” she said. She noted that Dignity Health works with community partners to provide services to homeless people, including mental health outreach and interim care for those recently released from the hospital. Officials at Sutter Health, which is considered a local leader in innovative programs for homeless people, said hospitals have an obligation to make sure all patients are released to a safe setting. Sutter’s staffers prepare detailed “transition of care” plans for homeless patients who remain frail but are well enough for release from the hospital. The plan might include respite care at one of about three dozen beds at Volunteers of America and Salvation Army for recently released homeless patients, said Keri Thomas, vice president of external affairs for Sutter Health Valley Area.