A new nurse practitioner clinic officially opened at the Brock Mission homeless shelter in Peterborough on Wednesday morning.
The clinic — situated at the shelter at 217 Murray St. — offers primary medical care for anyone experiencing homelessness, not just current shelter clients. The clinic, which began on May 25, operates on Wednesdays and Fridays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Nurse practitioner Lee-Anne Quinn and Dr. Janet Kelly (serving as the collaborative physician for the clinic) founded the clinic and are appealing to nurse practitioners to consider volunteering at the clinic.
The project is in partnership with the United Way Peterborough and District and the 360 Degree Nurse Practitioner Led Clinic, (NPLC) the latter providing space setup, equipment and will help with future planning.
Kelly says access to primary care could lessen complications of a medical condition and reduce or avoid trips to the emergency department at the Peterborough Regional Health Centre.
“We are hoping to provide low or no-barrier access to primary care for people experiencing homelessness who may otherwise find it difficult to access primary care,” said Kelly.
“This clinic will be complementary to the 360 Nurse Practitioner–Led Clinic.”
Since its soft opening in late May, the clinic has averaged three to five people per session with concerns such as skin and eye infections. The clinic also provides follow-up after discharge from a hospital and a review of medications.
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“We have a moral obligation as well-bodied individuals to volunteer and make a difference in our city by looking after our community people. This is our city,” said Quinn.
“Our vision is to assist in decreasing the number of unnecessary visits to PRHC’s emergency department while assisting in the primary health care needs of this particular population.”
Bill McNabb, Brock Mission’s executive director, says clinical staff on site are becoming “familiar faces” with shelter clients, which leads to increased trust and decreased apprehension about seeking health care.
“The clinical staff have a deeper knowledge of the challenges that are faced by those we serve, and, therefore, are able to address health concerns from a very practical level,” McNabb said.
Jim Russell, CEO of the United Way Peterborough, says the organization assisted with startup costs via federal funding from the “Reaching Home” program, which is delivered locally through the United Way as part of Canada’s “Homelessness Strategy” aimed at preventing and reducing homelessness.
The United Way held a meeting of community members and agencies that serve vulnerable and homeless neighbours to discuss the project.
“It was a priority setting gathering to discuss the best way to invest $1.1 million in the coming months to ensure no one died,” he said. “Ten projects were funded focusing on outreach, safe after hours drop-in, health care outreach and COVID testing.
“We were pleased and proud that we could be early funders in this pilot to establish an urban clinic for those experiencing homelessness.”
Kelly Pension, a nurse practitioner with the 360 Degree NPLC, says the organization quickly jumped on the opportunity to support the clinic.
“The Peterborough 360 NPLC has been consistently dedicated to providing access to low-barrier primary care for people in the community, including individuals experiencing homelessness or precarious housing,” said Pension.
“It is our hope that in collaboration with this inspiring initiative, we continue to find creative ways to support vulnerable and marginalized people in our community in accessing high quality health care.”
Nurse practitioners who would like to get involved and volunteer their time can contact 705-748-4766 ext. 237.
More to come…
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