Care For the Homeless

Brooklyn Councilmember Antonio Reynoso joined CFH Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Regina Olasin, in touring our health center located at Peter Jay Sharp in April during our HIV Awareness Carnival. Councilmember Reynoso and Dr. Regina Olasin spoke about the health challenges that people experiencing homelessness face and what CFH does to address those challenges. Those efforts include a highly successful citywide Peer Outreach program that trains and employs currently or formerly homeless peers to locate unstably housed individuals not currently accessing health care services and provide them with the information and aid necessary to increase proper utilization. Councilmember Reynoso also took the opportunity to speak to CFH Staff, including our very own Peer Outreach Specialist, Crystal Santana, who spoke of the positive impact that the outreach program has in communities where people face incredible challenges accessing quality lifesaving services.  At CFH we provide primary medic...

Sahira's Story Sahira getting her heart rate checked by Joy. No more than 4 months ago, Sahira P. came to Care For the Homeless’ (CFH) Susan’s Place Health Center in the Bronx for a routine check-up. However, there was something else on her mind aside from taking her blood pressure and checking her resting heart rate. It turned out she had been struggling with a Percocet addiction. As is the case with many CFH patients, Sahira was (at first) apprehensive about telling her story, despite her intense desire to do so. “I was dying to tell somebody my story,” she commented. “But, I was afraid someone would judge me.” Judgement is just one of the many legitimate concerns CFH patients have when seeking medical services. Negative past experiences and financial insecurities lead patients to believe that they’ll also be, either turned away by providers or treated poorly by them. These complex concerns yield a litany of negative consequences. Perhaps the most severe ...