Medical unit for homeless

ASK Wellness has unveiled a game-changing new mobile medical unit that will help fill the gap in wraparound services for those living rough on Kamloops streets.

The $180,000 van comes fully equipped like a doctor's office on wheels to treat various medical conditions impacting the city's homeless. The plan is to have the vehicle on the road five days a week — and ASK Wellness CEO Bob Hughes said it's desperately needed.

“It is as well-fitted as you could imagine for a clinic and it is a four-seasons clinic that will allow for people to be treated with their primary health care needs and addictions issues if they’re facing them," he said.

"I think this is the first point of contact for many people in terms of accessing healthcare, so I think it really is a game changer for the community."

The van was supplied by the Telus Health for Good program, which has supplied communities across Canada a combined $16 million through various projects.

“We know that there’s a lot of pressure in the health care system in market like Kamloops right now,” Telus senior program manager Carly Johnston told Castanet Kamloops.

“What a service like this will also help do is help alleviate some of that pressure on the established health care system in the area.”

The van will be stationed at two locations per day, with a nurse and ASK Wellness outreach worker connecting clients to the service who may otherwise not be able to, or have difficulty accessing health care.

The mobile medical unit is scheduled to visit various social service locations for the homeless population in Merritt and Kamloops, including the city’s mini storage for the homeless on West Victoria Street, Mission Flats Manor, Out of the Cold, Moira House and numerous Kamloops motels.

Treating those in need where they are

Hughes said an outreach worker will work in tandem with the nurse and shelter staff at each location, triaging who is in need of medical attention, and help connect them to other healthcare services.

He said the mobile unit will be a particularity important service through the fall and winter, noting it drops the barriers to accessing healthcare for the homeless population.

“If we can treat people where they’re at we can prevent people from having to get into the acute care settings,” Hughes said.

Hughes said wound care is one of the main health needs ASK’s clients are facing due, in part, to the toxicity of the drug supply.

“We’ve seen people with just deplorable wounds that they’re struggling to get to [through] regular care,” Hughes said.

He said ASK offers health care services at two fixed sites, and this mobile unit will be an enhancement of their healthcare services.

“I think we will be drowning in people needing heath care service,” Hughes said.

Van transformed into health care facility

The project began about four months ago with Telus purchasing the van and having it retrofitted to provide medical services for ASK Wellness. The program also provides some operational funding.

Johnston said the program involves a cost shared model with all organizations it partners with to offer health care services for marginalized populations.

She said it’s very important for communities to have mobile clinics as the homeless populations they serve face many barriers to accessing health care.

The mobile medical unit was unveiled at a community event at theYacht Club downtown on Wednesday morning.

“With no traditional walk-in clinics available in the area and temporary closures of regional hospitals, this new and innovative offering will help to address the urgent and increasing needs of these local communities, expecting to serve 4,000 visits annually,” a press release from Telus stated.