Dr. Jim O’Connell, who has tended to the homeless for decades, was at the shrine in Lourdes when he met Kevin Leary. Dr. Tom Durant, one of the great humanitarian doctors in the city, put the arm on O’Connell, insisting he take care of the sick who made the pilgrimage from Boston to France, hoping divine intervention would do what medical intervention could not.
“This is one of the things that I’m most proud of at Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program — that we keep equity at the forefront of our clinical performance and data tracking. We made sure to disaggregate data by race, ethnicity, language, and gender identity to make sure we were tracking disparities in real time and in a way that’s actionable.” — Dr. Denise De Las Nueces, medical director, Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program
Barry Bock, chief executive of Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program, the one health organization in Massachusetts with an AmeriCorps program in place now, says members have played an invaluable role in coordinating care and offering emotional support to patients.
Barry Bock, chief executive of Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program, the one health organization in Massachusetts with an AmeriCorps program in place now, says members have played an invaluable role in coordinating care and offering emotional support to patients.
Dr. Jim O'Connell, president of the Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program, said his organization has vaccinated about 1,800 people since the vaccine became available. That includes those experiencing homelessness in shelters and shelter staff.
“The struggle (homeless people) go through every day to survive, on the streets or in the shelters, has a real immediacy to it,” said Dr. Jim O’Connell, president of the Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program (BHCHP).
“A one-dose vaccine that is highly effective will be more easily administered to people experiencing homelessness,” said Dr. Jessie Gaeta, chief medical officer at the Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program, in a text. “It’s helpful to avoid the need for second doses when people have to necessarily move around frequently, don’t have stable housing or a reliable address or phone number.”
Dr. Jessie Gaeta, the chief medical officer of Boston Health Care for the Homeless, said social distancing efforts of the COVID-19 pandemic mean that many shelters have been “appropriately decongested,” with their residents moved into hotels, gymnasiums and other spaces.
The program’s leadership and staff began a robust screening and testing regimen at all Boston area shelters and locations where it provides care, and drew on its deep experience in contact-tracing a population that is constantly on the move.
