New care units to help bridge gaps for Saint John homeless patients leaving the hospital

New care beds for homeless patients moving from a hospital setting back into the community will be built in Saint John this fall.

The six unit housing development will be in Waterloo Village, close to Outflow Ministry Inc.

Outflow is a partner in the pilot project along with the Horizon Health Network, the St. Joseph’s Hospital Foundation, and Canada East Spine Centre.

“It should improve the system and how we support individuals identifying as homeless,” says Ben Appleby, director of shelter and housing at Outflow. “To have a place for individuals to go, to heal up, get treatment, get better, have a team of support around them from the hospital, and then transition off once that takes place into a permanent affordable housing unit.”

Appleby says construction will begin on the six units by September, at the latest.

“When it starts, it will go up in a hurry,” says Appleby. “We’re hoping to occupy still before the end of the calendar year, and into the fall months, to have these units ready for people to go into.”

Appleby says the goal is to have a medical professional at the location for any patients who require post-hospital treatments. The six units are meant for short-term stays between four to six months, and each will have a separate entrance.

The plan is for the units to house 12 to 18 patients annually.

“We’re really hoping this will allow a smooth transition for these patients to return back (to) the community, with the supports required for their continued medical interventions and treatments, and allow them to be more comfortable in a location and with individuals who are used to meeting their needs,” says Margaret Melanson, CEO of the Horizon Health Network.

Collaborative research conducted by several local agencies found that between 2020 and 2023, a total of 50 homeless patients accounted for: 885 emergency department visits, 205 acute admissions, 64 readmissions, altogether totalling 6,029 days of a hospital stay.

The research was conducted by: Canada East Spine Centre, Avenue B Harm Reduction Inc., Horizon Health, the University of New Brunswick, Dr. Duncan Webster of Dalhousie University, Housing NB, and the Edwin S.H. Leong Centre for Healthy Children.

The research is what prompted the project, and involvement from the St. Joseph’s Hospital Foundation.

Andrea Scott, director of community relations at the foundation, says the objectives of reducing patient readmissions will free up hospital resources.

“Homelessness and healthcare are both very complicated, and together they’re extremely complicated,” says Scott. “One of the things for us that seemed really great about this project was the collaborative effort of a really outstanding group of partners. I get the sense they want to proceed as a team.”

“To make any sort of impact it’s going to take collaboration and teamwork.”

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